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 · Executive Skeleton
Ulysse Nardin Executive Skeleton 38 mm Mother-of-pearl 18k
Reference 45165OR.47
Reference at a glance
- Brand
- Ulysse Nardin
- Collection
- Executive Skeleton
- Model
- Ulysse Nardin Executive Skeleton 38 mm Mother-of-pearl 18k
- Reference number
- 45165OR.47
- Year / era
- 2003 · 2000s — modern production
- Complication
- Tourbillon
- Movement
- In-house automatic, Superlative Chronometer
- Case material
- 18k yellow gold
- Dial type
- Mother-of-pearl
- Strap / bracelet
- Milanese mesh
- Water resistance
- 150 m
- Limited-edition status
- Regular production, not a limited edition
Case, dial & bracelet
- Case dimensions
- 38 mm
- Case thickness
- 12.6 mm
- Case material
- 18k yellow gold
- Bezel
- Unidirectional ceramic 60-minute
- Crystal
- Flat sapphire with Cyclops lens
- Dial
- Mother-of-pearl
- Hands
- Faceted dauphine hands, polished by hand
- Indexes
- Applied faceted white-gold indexes
- Bracelet / strap
- Milanese mesh
- Clasp / buckle
- Triple-folding clasp with safety catch
- Water resistance
- 150 m
Movement
- Movement / calibre
- Calibre 70F — In-house automatic, Superlative Chronometer
- Movement type
- High-frequency automatic
- Frequency
- 28,800 vph (4 Hz)
- Power reserve
- 10 days
- Number of jewels
- 40 jewels
- Complications
- Tourbillon
- Functions
- Dive time, running seconds
- Watchmaker
- Assembled and regulated by a single watchmaker, who signs off the piece before casing.
Production & market
- Production period
- 2003 – 2009
- Limited-edition quantity
- Not applicable
- Current market information
- Thin secondary-market supply — pricing is set piece by piece at auction.
Designer
Marc Newson
Marc Newson is an Australian industrial designer whose work spans Qantas cabins, Apple hardware and Jaeger-LeCoultre's Atmos clocks; his watch design reduces the object to pure geometry and legibility.
Historical significance
Ulysse Nardin Executive Skeleton 38 mm Mother-of-pearl 18k sits within Ulysse Nardin's Executive Skeleton line, introduced in 2003. It carries the house codes established since 1846 — 18k yellow gold case, mother-of-pearl 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 bracelet tapers across its length, which is why the profile looks thinner on the wrist than the specification suggests.
- Early production dials show a slightly different minute track, and collectors pay a premium for them.
- The reference was originally planned as a one-year run and stayed in the catalogue for well over a decade.
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.
More Executive Skeleton
Ulysse Nardin Executive Skeleton 40 mm Ice Sapphire
Ref. 12773OR.48
Ulysse Nardin Executive Skeleton 43 mm Blue Quartz
Ref. 87622OR.46
Ulysse Nardin Executive Skeleton 38 mm Blue 18k
Ref. 87411OR.33
Ulysse Nardin Executive Skeleton 42 mm Black Stainless
Ref. 35876ST.97
Ulysse Nardin Executive Skeleton 44 mm Meteorite Platinum
Ref. 54948OR.74