UNIVERSAL GENÈVE Unisonic ref.853100/01 cal.1-53 / Tuning Fork, Day-Date

Because of the affection we generally hold for the mechanical watch, the quartz watch nevertheless retains a certain value today.

When Bulova announced the Accutron 218 movement in 1965, it made a strong impression on brands and consumers alike.

And ten years before Seiko's quartz crisis changed watchmaking for ever, Universal Genève set out to put this new technology to practical use.

The result was the Unisonic.

A very simple, crisply defined case design.

The silhouette of a watch cut from a plate of stainless steel, with only the corners chamfered — a form with nothing wasted.

The machining of the case is kept to a minimum, yet the bevelling is decisive and beautifully balanced.

The dial is faintly cream and Bauhaus in flavour, with a tuning fork worked into the UG logo.

The movement is the Bulova-based Cal.1-53, slimmer than the Accutron of the day.

It was, in fact, the world's first tuning-fork watch with a day-date display.

The date does not creep over around midnight but snaps across in an instant, like a Datejust.

As with all tuning-fork watches, the seconds hand sweeps.

Hold the watch to your ear and you can hear the high hum of the tuning fork.

The Unisonic is also a clear symbol of Universal Genève's end.

That may be a little sad, but there is no doubt that it holds an important meaning in Universal Genève's history.

Which is exactly why it is a piece that stays in watch history — a relic of the transitional period from the arrival of the tuning fork to the quartz crisis.

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