Front view
Dial, hands and bezel as delivered.
Case-back view
Case-back engraving and, where fitted, the sapphire display.
Movement
Calibre with its finishing and decoration.
On the wrist
Worn shot for proportion and strap drape.
Ulysse Nardin · Diver
Ulysse Nardin Diver 38 mm Slate Quartz
Reference 36516OR.92
Reference at a glance
- Brand
- Ulysse Nardin
- Collection
- Diver
- Model
- Ulysse Nardin Diver 38 mm Slate Quartz
- Reference number
- 36516OR.92
- Year / era
- 1955 · 1950s — pre-quartz mechanical era
- Complication
- Annual calendar
- Movement
- In-house automatic, Superlative Chronometer
- Case material
- Quartz TPT
- Dial type
- Slate grey
- Strap / bracelet
- Rubber strap with titanium clasp
- Water resistance
- 150 m
- Limited-edition status
- Limited edition of 88 pieces
Case, dial & bracelet
- Case dimensions
- 38 mm
- Case thickness
- 8.8 mm
- Case material
- Quartz TPT
- Bezel
- Baguette diamond rainbow
- Crystal
- Flat sapphire with Cyclops lens
- Dial
- Slate grey
- Hands
- Blued steel Breguet-style hands
- Indexes
- Applied Arabic numerals with luminous coating
- Bracelet / strap
- Rubber strap with titanium clasp
- Clasp / buckle
- Pin buckle in matching case metal
- Water resistance
- 150 m
Movement
- Movement / calibre
- Calibre 9C — In-house automatic, Superlative Chronometer
- Movement type
- Automatic, self-winding
- Frequency
- 21,600 vph (3 Hz)
- Power reserve
- 45 hours
- Number of jewels
- 21 jewels
- Complications
- Annual calendar
- Functions
- Hours, minutes, seconds, date
- Watchmaker
- The calibre is built in-house and adjusted in five positions before delivery.
Production & market
- Production period
- 1955 – 1968
- Limited-edition quantity
- 88 pieces
- Current market information
- Trades close to retail on the secondary market, with steady demand for full-set examples.
Designer
Emmanuel Gueit
Emmanuel Gueit came from a family of Geneva jewellers and was barely into his twenties when he drew the oversized Royal Oak Offshore in 1993 — a watch the house's traditionalists resisted and collectors turned into an icon.
Historical significance
Ulysse Nardin Diver 38 mm Slate Quartz sits within Ulysse Nardin's Diver line, introduced in 1955. It carries the house codes established since 1846 — quartz tpt case, slate grey dial and in-house automatic, superlative chronometer — and is one of the references collectors use to date the evolution of the collection.
Interesting facts
- The reference was originally planned as a one-year run and stayed in the catalogue for well over a decade.
- The movement's bridges are decorated even where they will never be seen once the watch is cased.
- Early production dials show a slightly different minute track, and collectors pay a premium for them.
The House
Ulysse Nardin
Brand facts
- Founding year
- 1846
- Founder
- Ulysse Nardin
- Headquarters
- Switzerland
- Tier
- Luxury
- Major collections
- Freak, Diver, Marine, Blast, Executive Skeleton
- Signature technologies
- Proprietary case-hardening and polishing · Composite and ceramic case materials
- Famous movements
- In-house automatic chronograph · In-house automatic, chronometer certified · In-house automatic, Superlative Chronometer · In-house manual-winding
- Notable watches
- Ulysse Nardin Freak 44 mm Slate Carbon (1957) · Ulysse Nardin Freak 40 mm Blue 18k (1960) · Ulysse Nardin Freak 37 mm Skeletonised Quartz (1989) · Ulysse Nardin Freak 37 mm Silvered 18k (2001)
Brand history
Ulysse Nardin has spent more than 180 years refining a single idea: a watch should outlive its owner. From the earliest workshop pieces to today's Freak, the house has balanced technical ambition with a recognisable design language, and its collections remain among the most closely followed by collectors worldwide.
Ulysse Nardin established Ulysse Nardin in 1846, working from Switzerland at a time when precision was measured by hand. The founder's obsession with finishing and accuracy still defines every Ulysse Nardin calibre produced today.
Historical milestones
1846
Ulysse Nardin founds Ulysse Nardin in Switzerland.
1886
Ulysse Nardin earns its first international recognition for precision timekeeping.
1969
The quartz era forces Ulysse Nardin to redefine mechanical watchmaking.
1990
Ulysse Nardin enters the modern collector market with its signature lines.
2024
Ulysse Nardin continues to produce Freak, Diver, Marine and other icons in limited numbers.