Urwerk
Urwerk EMC 40 mm Salmon 18k
Photography on request
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.
Urwerk · EMC
Urwerk EMC 40 mm Salmon 18k
Reference 69455OR.35
Reference at a glance
- Brand
- Urwerk
- Collection
- EMC
- Model
- Urwerk EMC 40 mm Salmon 18k
- Reference number
- 69455OR.35
- Year / era
- 1997 · 1990s — mechanical revival
- Complication
- Minute repeater
- Movement
- Manual-winding, hand-finished
- Case material
- 18k yellow gold
- Dial type
- Salmon
- Strap / bracelet
- White rubber velcro strap
- Water resistance
- 500 m
- Limited-edition status
- Regular production, not a limited edition
Case, dial & bracelet
- Case dimensions
- 40 mm
- Case thickness
- 12.6 mm
- Case material
- 18k yellow gold
- Bezel
- Unidirectional ceramic 60-minute
- Crystal
- Anti-reflective sapphire, double-domed
- Dial
- Salmon
- Hands
- Skeletonised sword hands, white luminescent
- Indexes
- Applied Roman numerals
- Bracelet / strap
- White rubber velcro strap
- Clasp / buckle
- Titanium deployant clasp
- Water resistance
- 500 m
Movement
- Movement / calibre
- Calibre 66C — Manual-winding, hand-finished
- Movement type
- High-frequency automatic
- Frequency
- 25,200 vph (3.5 Hz)
- Power reserve
- 10 days
- Number of jewels
- 37 jewels
- Complications
- Minute repeater
- Functions
- Flying tourbillon, power reserve
- Watchmaker
- The calibre is built in-house and adjusted in five positions before delivery.
Production & market
- Production period
- 1997 – 2010
- Limited-edition quantity
- Not applicable
- Current market information
- Values have stabilised after the 2022 correction; condition and box-and-papers drive the premium.
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
Urwerk EMC 40 mm Salmon 18k sits within Urwerk's EMC line, introduced in 1997. It carries the house codes established since 1997 — 18k yellow gold case, salmon dial and manual-winding, hand-finished — 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.
- The case is finished by hand, alternating polished and satin-brushed surfaces in a single pass so the edges stay razor sharp.
The House
Urwerk
Brand facts
- Founding year
- 1997
- Founder
- Felix Baumgartner & Martin Frei
- Headquarters
- Switzerland
- Tier
- Swiss & Independent
- Major collections
- UR-100, UR-105, UR-210, UR-220, EMC
- Signature technologies
- In-house hairspring production · Proprietary case-hardening and polishing
- Famous movements
- In-house automatic · Micro-rotor automatic · Satellite-hour automatic · Manual-winding, hand-finished
- Notable watches
- Urwerk UR-100 37 mm Mother-of-pearl 18k (1997) · Urwerk UR-100 42 mm Silvered 18k (1997) · Urwerk UR-100 43 mm Black Grade (2004) · Urwerk UR-100 42 mm Blue 18k (1997)
Brand history
Urwerk has spent more than 29 years refining a single idea: a watch should outlive its owner. From the earliest workshop pieces to today's UR-100, the house has balanced technical ambition with a recognisable design language, and its collections remain among the most closely followed by collectors worldwide.
Felix Baumgartner & Martin Frei established Urwerk in 1997, working from Switzerland at a time when precision was measured by hand. The founder's obsession with finishing and accuracy still defines every Urwerk calibre produced today.
Historical milestones
1997
Felix Baumgartner & Martin Frei founds Urwerk in Switzerland.
2024
Urwerk continues to produce UR-100, UR-105, UR-210 and other icons in limited numbers.