Watches by Ole Mathiesen – The art of timeless timepieces

This is the first article on Klockfeber we write in English because we will write about our Danish friends from Ole Mathiesen. A Danish watch brand founded in 1962 that designs timeless watches with high-quality Swiss movements.  

At Klockfeber we will in the following months launch a series of articles about Ole Mathiesen. This article will give a closer look into the brand Ole Mathiesen and gives you an introduction to all their amazing collection. Following we will go through our personal favorites and show you what to look out for during 2022 when the company celebrates the 60-year anniversary of its core collection.

The history of Ole Mathiesen 

Ole Mathiesen has since 1962 designed and produced elegant minimalistic watches and is mostly known for their iconic timeless watches. All their watches are designed in Denmark and produced in Switzerland, which is why they have the Swiss-Made label in their logo. 

The brand is family-owned and has more than 50 years of watch expertise, designing watches in different categories of the field. They are mostly known for their classic dress watches from 1962, but since the third generation of the Mathiesen family took over the company, they have expanded their collections with Diver watches, Chronograph Watches, and watches for both men and women. We personally like the wide range of the brand, with many different designs and collections, while keeping the red thread throughout the collection, with the Ole Mathiesen traits, that Ole Mathiesen has used since the first watch was designed. A design language that makes the brand recognizable and timeless across collections and models.

Collections

Ole Mathiesen 1962 Classic

The first and main collection from Ole Mathiesen is the 1962 Classic collection. This collection is also the most popular one and is designed in three sizes. The Classic Men’s-Size with a 35 mm dial, The Classic Mid-Size with a 33 mm dial, and the Classic Lady-Size with a 28 mm dial. The design has throughout the years been honored with international prizes such as The Classic Prize, which is a prestigious international prize for Danish design. This collection is originally designed in 1962 by the second generation of the family-owned business – Ole Mathiesen. 

The 1962 Classic collection by Ole Mathiesen comes in both, steel, and a gold-plated version with several different options for the indexes. It comes with either, line index, Roman numerals, or Arabic numerals. We do like it when there are several options for the indexes since it makes it possible to keep most of the design elements, but still gives the owner a possibility to pick their favorite style. In addition, it is also possible to match the Ole Mathiesen 1962 Classic collection on several different straps and bracelets, which always adds a little extra to the timepiece and is able to give the watch a new appearance. 

The 1962 Classic collection is fitted with a high-quality Swiss quartz movement, which gives you a precise and durable timekeeping piece. The movement stands out, by being extremely thin contributes to the overall impression of the thin timepiece as well as keeps the watch modern and timeless.

Ole Mathiesen 1962 Classic OM8.33.Q

We would like to bring up one specific watch from the Classic 1962 collection, which is the 35mm Men’s-size watch, with a grey dial and a convex sapphire crystal.

This is a watch we will look out for during the summer as one of the rising stars of this year.

Ole Mathiesen Royal Marine

The Royal Marine collection from Ole Mathiesen was specially designed in 2008, to mark the honor of Ole Mathiesen being awarded the Royal warrant “By Appointment to the Royal Danish Court”. The design is a reinterpretation of the Classic 1962 collection. The first impression of the collection is that it is a very tasteful collection with great measures.

The Royal Marine Collection comes with two different types of movements. One with a Swiss-made Automatic movement and one with a Swiss-made Quartz movement. All timepieces from Ole Mathiesen are powered by an ETA movement which is famous for its reliability and high quality.

The male version of the Royal Marine comes with two different indexes. Either with line index or Roman numerals. Both versions come with a black leather strap and a convex dial, which makes the watch unique since it brings a lot of depth to the dials. The diameter is 37mm and a height of 8,6mm which is a great and classic measurement.

Ole Mathiesen Royal Marine OM1.37.A.ROYAL

This is one of our favorites in the Royal Marine collection, it has a 37mm diameter, roman numerals, A Swiss Automatic movement as well as a discrete date window on a black leather strap. Truly a simple but beautiful watch.

Ole Mathiesen 1919 Heritage

The 1919 Heritage collection from Ole Mathiesen is designed as a tribute to the founder of the family-owned company Axel O. Mathiesen. The collection is designed to be worn on a daily basis and on every special occasion. 

The dial is a little larger than the previous collections with a diameter of 40 mm and the overall expression strikes a fine balance between modern and classic Danish design. 

What is different with this collection, is that it has a more modern look, and comes in dials with different colors and both straps and steel bracelets. There is a classic vintage-inspired beige dial, but also a blue dial with a sunburst effect, with a lot of texture giving the watch a more modern expression

The movement is similar to some of the previous collections, a high-quality Swiss automatic ETA Movement. A movement many of us watch enthusiasts have known for a long time and truly a movement one can trust.

Ole Mathiesen 1919 Heritage OM6.40.A

There is one specific model in the 1919 Heritage collection we want to lift here, which is the 1919 Heritage with a Navy-blue dial, roman numerals, and a Swiss automatic movement. 

This shows a very classic model made in a discrete and beautiful blue color. The watch stands out with a more modern design while keeping some of the same classic elements as the other watches in the collection for example the steel case.

Ole Mathiesen 1919 Navy Diver

The 1919 Navy Diver collection from Ole Mathiesen is a collection inspired by the silent underwater universe. This collection is one of their most popular collections.  

The 1919 Navy Diver collection has clear indexes and a wide lug which makes it easy to read the time. One of the most important criteria for a diver watch. The stainless-steel bracelet and steel case is sandblasted, which makes the look sporty and more elegant. The Navy Diver collection also comes with a black rubber strap. 

Another feature that makes the design unique and stands out from most other diver watches, is the size of the watch. The diameter of the watch is 40 mm and only 10 mm in thickness, which is arguably perfect for a diver watch and a size that fits most people perfectly and also makes the watch more timeless.

And finally to mention is that all the 1919 Navy Diver Ole Mathiesen watches come with the great automatic Swiss-made ETA movement as seen in many of the different collections from Ole Mathiesen.

Ole Mathiesen 1919 Navy Diver OM11DLC.40.A

Our favorite version of the Navy Diver Collection is the all-black version. This watch has a Carbon DLC finish and beautiful sand-colored indexes. 

It has the perfect balance between a retro look and modern design features.

The Ole Mathiesen Davy Diver is one of the watches that we will dig deeper into later during the year and also a watch we will conduct a full review of. So stay tuned for more content related to the beautiful Ole Mathiesen 1919 Navy Diver.

Ole Mathiesen Sportivo

The 1919 Sportivo Collection was specially designed by the third generation of the family-owned company – Christian Mathiesen, to celebrate Ole Mathiesen’s 100^th year anniversary. For the first time, Ole Mathiesen represented a limited watch with an automatic chronograph movement, which is our favorite.  

It stands out from other watches from Ole Mathiesen, with a dial with sub dials. The design reflects the past and present for Ole Mathiesen, with a mood of youth and character and at the same time well-proportioned with the materiality and quality of detail.

Ole Mathiesen 1919 Sportivo OM2.41.AC-SP-B

This is our favorite watch from the 1919 Sportivo collection, because of the detailed dial and Swiss Chronograph movement. It is well balanced between a classic and modern design. Who doesn’t like a good Chronograph?

Overall summary of the collection

To summarize the brand Ole Mathiesen and their different watch collections, it is obvious that the design is focused on keeping a fine balance between modern and classic design, which was originally designed in the Classic 1962 collection. 

Where the brand also stands out, is within the variety of options in each collection. There is always a classic traditional watch in each of the collections, but Ole Mathiesen has in their new collections, dared to work with new materials and design features, which makes it fun to follow the company.  

Also, we appreciate that the brand has chosen to always fit their watches with high-quality Swiss movements, something that gives you as an owner of an Ole Mathiesen a lot of reliability in your watch. We also see it as very positive that the brand can offer both Quartz and Automatic movements which gives you as a buyer even more flexibility to get a watch that fits your lifestyle and interest best. 

Lastly, something we would highlight is the logotype, Ole Mathiesen uses on their dials. In general, it is a challenge with logotypes with long names of brands. But their logo fits perfectly on the dial of the watch. Something that goes might miss by first eyesight but is very important to consider when having a further look at the watches. 

As watch enthusiasts, we are very impressed by the brand of Ole Mathiesen and the watches they produce. This brand shows how good the mix of Danish design and high-quality Swiss movements combined creates a brand that is going to play a crucial role in the world of watchmaking for a long time. 

That’s all for now regarding our analysis of Ole Mathiesen as a watch brand but stay tuned for more content regarding this traditional brand with a lot more to come.