IWC Schaffhausen Portugieser Grand Complication

Comprising 659 individual components, the hand-made Grande Complication packs the most significant innovations of several centuries into a tiny space.

The Portugieser Grande Complication brings together many of watchmaking’s most significant achievements. One of these is the perpetual calendar, which is mechanically programmed until 2499 and requires just three adjustments in what would normally be leap years (2100, 2200 and 2300) but are not. Further complications include the perpetual moon phase display, chronograph and minute repeater. When activated by the repeating slide, the latter chimes out the precise time in harmonious tones. A total of 20 functions are made possible by the interplay of 659 individual mechanical parts. Despite its complex construction and numerous controls, the case is water-resistant to 3 bar. For the exclusive 18-carat 5N gold model, available in a limited edition of 250 watches, the dark brown alligator leather strap from Santoni is stitched with a 5N gold thread. The engraving on the back of the case takes the form of a compass rose.