Women’s Timepieces Are Finally Getting the Attention of Watchmakers

The ladies’ wristwatch dates back to the early 1800s, but its golden age may just be emerging, thanks in part to Paul Newman. When the hammer came down on Newman’s Rolex Daytona three years ago for $17.7 million at a Phillips auction, it supercharged the revivalist trend in men’s watches.

Vintage designs from the 1950s and ’60s were suddenly everything, and this dictated smaller cases, which in turn dictated smaller movements. (The Newman watch was 37.5mm across; in recent years, sports watches tended to start at 40mm.) When it became more commercially promising for brands to develop them, a new generation of smaller, thinner calibers emerged, with silicon escapements, ceramic bearings, and other state-of-the-art components.