Junghans Honours Its Founder With The Meister Fein Automatic Edition Erhard

A birthday is always a good reason for a little party, and we’ve already shown you some of the most important ones to keep an eye out for in 2023. We kicked off early in the year with Seiko and Blancpain celebrating landmark pieces from the past, but there’s a lot more to come. January 1st 2023, for instance, also marks the 200th date of birth of Erhard Junghans, founder of the eponymous watchmaking company. Although the company itself was founded in 1861, it’s a nice hommage to the man who started it all. And in honour, Junghans has just introduced the rather elegant Meister Fein Automatic Edition Erhard, which comes in white or yellow gold.

Erhard Junghans was born in the Black Forest region of Germany. Mr Junghans took on an apprenticeship at a straw-hat factory in Schramberg, where he soon moved up through the ranks to become a partner and managing director. Leaving the company in 1859 to venture out on his own, he bought the grounds and building where Junghans still resides today just two years later. Despite initial struggles, Junghans quickly found success through optimised production processes and innovation and grew into the world’s largest watch and clock manufacturer by the early 20th century. Just two years ago, the company celebrated its 160th birthday with the Junghans Meister Handaufzug Edition 160.

The two editions presented to celebrate Mr Junhans’ 200th birthday feature many of the brand’s signature styles. Minimalist in design, the cases are made in white and yellow gold and measure 39.5mm in width and 11.0mm in height. It has the typical bowl-shaped construction, a fully polished finish and a very slim bezel. The domed sapphire crystal rounds off the profile perfectly, with a second crystal around the back. A small, knurled pull-out crown is used to adjust the time and date or to wind the movement if desired.

Junghans often shows its refined, minimalist touch when it comes to dials (although it does have a funky side!). This anniversary piece comes with a slightly domed white dial with very nice and slender, elongated Roman numerals in black. It gives off a very comforting vibe, as this combination never seems to go out of style. The Roman III is slightly shorter than the others to give way to the date window, also in black and white. The very simple yet elegant hands for the hours, minutes and seconds are colour-matched to the case material.

Junghans keeps it simple from the mechanical side of things by fitting the Meister Fein Automatic Edition Erhard with the calibre J800.1. This automatic movement is based on the ETA 2824 and provides a running time of 38 hours when fully wound. Speaking of which, this is done with a two-armed gold rotor that bears a miniature portrait of the company’s founder, Mr Erhard Jungans. The back crystal is also signed, which is a nice finishing touch to the special celebratory edition.

The Junghans Meister Fein Automatic Edition Erhard is worn on a black leather strap with a gold pin buckle matching the case. Both are limited to 200 pieces and will cost EUR 8,450. This might sound expensive for a Junghans, as they rarely seem to break the 3k mark, but it seems fitting for such a handsome full gold tribute to the company’s founder.

For more information, please visit Junghans.de.