Eterna Matic Serial Numbers

Eterna began using the ball-bearing auto in the late 40s. Eternamatic was the in-house automatic movement for eterna. If you review ETA movements vs. Eterna movements, you begin to see that any technological improvement eterna created would find its way into an ETA movement several years later.

I'm not sure if this was because the patents expired or if some sort of licensing was involved. I think it was only until the late 70s or early 80s that eterna used some modified ETAs. When the porsche family purchased the company, they continued producing their own movements as well as using a modified ETA ebauche for a few of their models.

Eterna began using the ball-bearing auto in the late 40s. Eternamatic was the in-house automatic movement for eterna. If you review ETA movements vs. Eterna movements, you begin to see that any technological improvement eterna created would find its way into an ETA movement several years later. I'm not sure if this was because the patents expired or if some sort of licensing was involved.

One thing to note: if serial numbers corroborate to production, and i'm not sure why they wouldn't, then the number is watches eterna produced is a fraction of the likes of omega and rolex. Options Copy link to this post. Nov 16, 2013 - eterna matic 3000 watch serial number 5066703 around 1960s - Watches question.

I think it was only until the late 70s or early 80s that eterna used some modified ETAs. When the porsche family purchased the company, they continued producing their own movements as well as using a modified ETA ebauche for a few of their models. Jon is correct, ETA was spun off of eterna in the 30s.

One thing that have not been able to discover, however, is exactly how the companies interacted after the split. I have read that, although swiss law required them to be seperate, they still shared a building and were seperated in legal name and function only. It seems that eterna developed the technology, used it in their movements, and then ETA got it a bit later.

But i'm not sure how that took place. At some point their histories diverge, i think, as the mergers of swiss companies becomes more predominant.

I really know very little about it. I have become interested in eterna because i think they're very well made and undervalued right now. A solid gold cased eterna chronometer recently auctioned on the bay for around 300 dollars. A great deal for an excellent watch. I was hoping someone would appear in this thread who knows a lot more than i do. I suspect that ETA and Eterna worked closely.

During the period between wars things got bad for the Swiss watch industry and the Government stepped in and put them all into a cartel. They set laws to govern who could make what. Eterna probably split off ETA to comply with these rules. The real mystery is how they got away with it. Starting a new business required a government permit and they gave out very few. This is discussed in Neuchatel and Its Horological Heritage which is reviewed in the horological books section.

To me an Eterna is mnufacturer's watch even when it has an ETA movement. I reallly like the Eternamaic chronometer pictured.

• Model: Eterna-Matic Super Kontiki • Caliber: 1489K • Case: Stainless Steel • Case number: 5.205.511 • Serial number: 5.446.091 • ref#: 130FTP-3 • Year of production: 1967 • Size. • Crown: Replacement crown Eterna-Matic Super Kontik • KonTiki was the name of the balsawood raft used by the Norwegian explore Thor Heyerdahl, as he together with his crew crossed the Pacific in 1947. He set out from the Peruvian coast heading for the Polynesian atoll. The journey was Thor Heyerdahl’s way of proving a scientific point claiming that the inhabitants of the Polynesian atoll originally descended from Peru.

The journey was to last 101 days and nights before Skipper Heyerdahl reached Polynesia and proved his point. • Essentially for the operation to work, each one of the crew members had been equipped with an Eterna watch to keep track of time, tides and destination. These watches never left their wrists as their survival could depend on it.

As they accomplished their mission in 1947, their success gained them a place in history. • In 1958, this triumph was celebrated as Eterna launched a watch line which shares the name of an Inca Sun God and the balsawood raft Thor Heyerdahl used in 1947 when crossing the oceans to proof sceptics wrong. The watch line was to become Eterna’s most ruggedly, reliable edition. The watch was superior to other watches in all ways as it was water resistant to more than 200 meters due to its screw down case back. The case was built for an exceptional robustness and stands out by having the KonTiki icon cast on its back case. • This specefic model is known as the Eterna-Maric Super Kontiki Divers model as was and still is considerd the peak verison the Eterna kontiki collection. • The Eterna KonTiki has for more than half a century demonstrated exemplary toughness, water resistance and precision on the wrist of countless other adventurers.