Yema
Yema Superman 40 mm Ice Sapphire
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.
Yema · Superman
Yema Superman 40 mm Ice Sapphire
Reference 58029OR.41
Reference at a glance
- Brand
- Yema
- Collection
- Superman
- Model
- Yema Superman 40 mm Ice Sapphire
- Reference number
- 58029OR.41
- Year / era
- 1976 · 1970s — quartz-crisis era
- Complication
- Tourbillon
- Movement
- Automatic Powermatic 80
- Case material
- Sapphire crystal case
- Dial type
- Ice blue
- Strap / bracelet
- Integrated steel bracelet
- Water resistance
- 300 m
- Limited-edition status
- Regular production, not a limited edition
Case, dial & bracelet
- Case dimensions
- 40 mm
- Case thickness
- 8.8 mm
- Case material
- Sapphire crystal case
- Bezel
- Unidirectional ceramic 60-minute
- Crystal
- Sapphire with internal AR treatment
- Dial
- Ice blue
- Hands
- Mercedes hour hand with Chromalight display
- Indexes
- Printed minute track with applied batons
- Bracelet / strap
- Integrated steel bracelet
- Clasp / buckle
- Triple-folding clasp with safety catch
- Water resistance
- 300 m
Movement
- Movement / calibre
- Calibre 48D — Automatic Powermatic 80
- Movement type
- High-frequency automatic
- Frequency
- 25,200 vph (3.5 Hz)
- Power reserve
- 10 days
- Number of jewels
- 31 jewels
- Complications
- Tourbillon
- Functions
- Perpetual calendar, leap year
- Watchmaker
- Finishing, assembly and timing are carried out in the manufacture's own atelier.
Production & market
- Production period
- 1976 – 1988
- Limited-edition quantity
- Not applicable
- Current market information
- Consistently trades above retail; waiting lists at authorised dealers remain long.
Designer
Gérald Genta
Gérald Genta (1931–2011) trained as a goldsmith in Geneva and became the most influential watch designer of the 20th century. Working freelance, he sketched the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak overnight in 1970, followed by the Patek Philippe Nautilus, the IWC Ingenieur SL and the Bulgari Bulgari — defining the integrated-bracelet luxury sports watch as a category.
Historical significance
Yema Superman 40 mm Ice Sapphire sits within Yema's Superman line, introduced in 1976. It carries the house codes established since 1948 — sapphire crystal case case, ice blue dial and automatic powermatic 80 — 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 movement's bridges are decorated even where they will never be seen once the watch is cased.
The House
Yema
Brand facts
- Founding year
- 1948
- Founder
- Henry Louis Belmont
- Headquarters
- France
- Tier
- Affordable & Tool Watches
- Major collections
- Superman, Navygraf, Wristmaster, Rallygraf
- Signature technologies
- Shock-absorbing movement mounting · In-house hairspring production · Certified chronometer regulation
- Famous movements
- Automatic, 38-hour reserve · Automatic Powermatic 80 · Quartz · Automatic COSC chronometer
- Notable watches
- Yema Superman 41 mm Ice 18k (1952) · Yema Superman 40 mm Ice Sapphire (1976) · Yema Superman 39 mm Green Stainless (1983) · Yema Superman 37 mm Meteorite Stainless (1961)
Brand history
Yema has spent more than 78 years refining a single idea: a watch should outlive its owner. From the earliest workshop pieces to today's Superman, the house has balanced technical ambition with a recognisable design language, and its collections remain among the most closely followed by collectors worldwide.
Henry Louis Belmont established Yema in 1948, working from France at a time when precision was measured by hand. The founder's obsession with finishing and accuracy still defines every Yema calibre produced today.
Historical milestones
1948
Henry Louis Belmont founds Yema in France.
1969
The quartz era forces Yema to redefine mechanical watchmaking.
1990
Yema enters the modern collector market with its signature lines.
2024
Yema continues to produce Superman, Navygraf, Wristmaster and other icons in limited numbers.