{"id":16399,"date":"2026-03-12T16:58:23","date_gmt":"2026-03-12T16:58:23","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.vintagemasters.eu\/?post_type=product&#038;p=16399"},"modified":"2026-09-25T15:16:10","modified_gmt":"2026-09-25T15:16:10","slug":"universal-geneve-ref-5922-caliber-285-from-1937","status":"publish","type":"product","link":"https:\/\/www.vintagemasters.eu\/nl\/product\/universal-geneve-ref-5922-caliber-285-from-1937\/","title":{"rendered":"Universal Geneve Chronograph Uni-Compax ref. 5922 caliber 285 from 1937"},"content":{"rendered":"<div>\n<div class=\"standard-markdown grid-cols-1 grid [&amp;_&gt;_*]:min-w-0 gap-3 !gap-3.5\">\n<p class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]\">A rare and breathtaking prewar chronograph \u2014 the Universal Gen\u00e8ve ref. 5922 from 1937 belongs to a period when Swiss watchmaking was producing some of its most technically ambitious and visually distinctive work. Universal Gen\u00e8ve, founded in 1894, was at the height of its powers in the late 1930s \u2014 operating its own movement manufacture, Martel, and supplying chronograph calibres to the most prestigious houses in Switzerland.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]\">The dial is immediately arresting. Against a warm cream background, two subsidiary registers sit at 3 and 9 o&#8217;clock, framed by a blue-printed tachymetre and telemetre scale that runs around the outer edge of the dial \u2014 a visual signature of the era that no modern watch can authentically replicate. The blued chronograph hands are the crowning detail: deeply coloured, elegantly proportioned, and in striking contrast to the cream surface. Arabic numerals and a bold &#8220;12&#8221; anchor the composition, while &#8220;Universal Gen\u00e8ve&#8221; is signed across the upper dial.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]\">The gold case wears with the full, generous proportions of late 1930s Swiss chronographs \u2014 substantial on the wrist, with the pushers flanking the crown in the classic configuration of the period.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]\">At the heart of the watch, the manually wound calibre 285 \u2014 an 8-column-pillar-wheel chronograph movement of exceptional engineering, introduced by Martel and shared with Zenith, running at 18,000 A\/h with a Breguet hairspring. It is widely regarded as one of the finest chronograph movements ever produced, and remains sought after by collectors and watchmakers alike for its robustness and elegance.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]\">Prewar Swiss chronographs of this quality, in gold, with original dials and blued hands intact, are increasingly difficult to find. This is a piece that belongs in a serious collection.<\/p>\n<p class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]\"><strong>What we love:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul class=\"[li_&amp;]:mb-0 [li_&amp;]:mt-1 [li_&amp;]:gap-1 [&amp;:not(:last-child)_ul]:pb-1 [&amp;:not(:last-child)_ol]:pb-1 list-disc flex flex-col gap-1 pl-8 mb-3\">\n<li class=\"whitespace-normal break-words pl-2\">Blued chronograph hands against cream dial \u2014 the defining aesthetic of prewar Swiss chronographs<\/li>\n<li class=\"whitespace-normal break-words pl-2\">Blue tachymetre and telemetre scale \u2014 graphically extraordinary and period-authentic<\/li>\n<li class=\"whitespace-normal break-words pl-2\">Calibre 285 column wheel chronograph \u2014 one of the finest movements ever made<\/li>\n<li class=\"whitespace-normal break-words pl-2\">Gold case from 1937 \u2014 genuine prewar horological history<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p class=\"font-claude-response-body break-words whitespace-normal leading-[1.7]\"><strong>What you should know:<\/strong><\/p>\n<ul class=\"[li_&amp;]:mb-0 [li_&amp;]:mt-1 [li_&amp;]:gap-1 [&amp;:not(:last-child)_ul]:pb-1 [&amp;:not(:last-child)_ol]:pb-1 list-disc flex flex-col gap-1 pl-8 mb-3\">\n<li class=\"whitespace-normal break-words pl-2\">Watch comes without its original box and papers. Delivered with a premium watch box and our warranty card.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>A rare and breathtaking prewar chronograph \u2014 the Universal Gen\u00e8ve ref. 5922 from 1937 represents Swiss watchmaking at its most ambitious. The gold case houses one of the most visually arresting dials of its era: a cream two-register chronograph with blued hands and a striking blue-printed tachymetre and telemetre scale that frames the dial with extraordinary graphic presence. Inside, the manually wound calibre 285 \u2014 a column wheel chronograph of legendary reliability, shared with Zenith and produced by Universal&#8217;s own Martel manufacture. At over 85 years old, this is a piece of genuine horological history.<\/p>","protected":false},"featured_media":16278,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false},"product_brand":[],"product_cat":[953],"product_tag":[43,329,504,32],"class_list":["post-16399","product","type-product","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","product_cat-other-brands","product_tag-seamaster","product_tag-gilt","product_tag-vintage-watch","product_tag-omega","first","outofstock","taxable","shipping-taxable","purchasable","product-type-simple"],"acf":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vintagemasters.eu\/nl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/product\/16399","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vintagemasters.eu\/nl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/product"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vintagemasters.eu\/nl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/product"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vintagemasters.eu\/nl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/16278"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.vintagemasters.eu\/nl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16399"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"product_brand","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vintagemasters.eu\/nl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/product_brand?post=16399"},{"taxonomy":"product_cat","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vintagemasters.eu\/nl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/product_cat?post=16399"},{"taxonomy":"product_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.vintagemasters.eu\/nl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/product_tag?post=16399"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}