Wristwatches · Wristwatch
Universal Genève Gilt Shadow, 1970s
- Maker / attribution
- Universal Geneve (maker)
- Date
- 1970s
- Historical period
- Quartz Revolution (1969 – 1990)
- Country of origin
- Switzerland
- Object type
- Wristwatch
- Dimensions
- Case 35 mm
- Stock no.
- 40992191
- Credit line
- Dealer listing, Analog/Shift (40992191)
- Catalogue title (original)
- Universal Genève Gilt Shadow (English)
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Record summary
Catalogued by Analog/Shift (dealer), New York (stock number 40992191), this is a wristwatch by Universal Geneve, made in Switzerland, dated 1970s. The Atlas places it in the Quartz Revolution period (1969 – 1990) of its Wristwatches collection. Recorded dimensions: Case 35 mm. The record is illustrated with 6 photographs.
Assembled from the source record's structured fields. Dates and attributions are given as the source states them; where a field is missing the Atlas leaves it blank rather than estimating.
Catalogue description
Dealer description — Analog/Shift
You’re looking at one of Gérald Genta’s first notable watch designs. That’s right — before he put pen to paper and created the Royal Oak for Audemars Piguet and the Nautilus for Patek Philippe, the young Swiss designer made the White Shadow for Universal Genève. Elegant and comfortable, it’s one of the more interesting vintage dress watch designs both from an aesthetic and a technical perspective. Thanks to its record-breaking, slim automatic movement, the Gilt Shadow is a supremely comfortable watch. The cushion shaped case is impressively thin, but it’s also wide enough to feel substantial. UG produced this model in several configurations, but this particular example has to be one of the handsomest we’ve seen. Dating to the 1970s, it features a 35mm yellow gold-plated cushion case, a signed crown, an acrylic crystal, sunburst champagne dial with black 'Roman' indices and a matching black 'pencil' handset. Powered by the Universal Genève Cal. 2-66 automatic movement with micro-rotor, this piece comes paired to a signed Universal Genève, brown alligator leather strap with a gold-plated pin buckle. There are lots of great affordable dress watches out there, but few can match the Gilt Shadow’s pedigree. It’s elegant, innovative and unusual — quite the combination!
Historical context
Quartz Revolution (1969 – 1990)
Seiko's Astron begins mass quartz timekeeping; traditional industries contract sharply.
Quartz and digital watches transformed the market after 1969. Swiss employment collapsed, Japanese and Hong Kong production soared, and the Swatch (1983) helped the Swiss industry recover; mechanical watches survived as luxury goods.
Read the period in the timelineMore wristwatches from this periodEarlier: Modern Mechanical Horology
Atlas type guide
Wristwatches
Bracelet watches were worn by women from the early nineteenth century — Breguet made one for Caroline Murat, Queen of Naples, in 1810–12 — but the wristwatch only became a man's instrument with military use and aviation in the early twentieth century. Between the World Wars it overtook the pocket watch; the 1920s and 1930s brought rectangular Art Deco cases, water-resistant cases and the first automatic winding systems.
After 1945 the wristwatch became a carrier of identity — dress watches, sports and dive watches, chronographs, calendars — produced by Swiss, American, Japanese, German, Soviet and Chinese industries. The quartz revolution after 1969 and the mechanical renaissance since the 1990s, including the rise of independent watchmakers, complete the story.
What to look for
- The reference number (between the lugs or inside the case back) and serial number, the starting point for dating.
- The calibre: its maker and number are often stamped under the dial or on the bridge.
- Originality of dial, hands and crown — refinished ('redial') dials are common.
- Case material marks: 18K/750, 14K/585, stainless steel, gold-filled, plated.
Dating clues
- Wire-lug cases: before c. 1925.
- Water-resistant screw-down cases: from 1926.
- Quartz movements: from 1969; sapphire crystals widespread after c. 1980.
General guidance written by the Atlas editors about this kind of object. It is not a statement about this particular piece; for that, rely on the source record above and on physical examination.
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