In 1939, the IWC watch company received a very unusual order for a series of wristwatches that operate with the precision of a marine chronograph.

 

The order was placed by two businessmen from Portugal - Rodriguez, and Teixeira, so the watches developed for the Portuguese market was named Portugieser. The accuracy of the watch with Arabic numerals on the minimalistic dial was ensured by the mechanisms of pocket watches from IWC stocks, which is why the size of the watch case was so close to modern standards.

 

Later, the iconic design of the Portugieser watches became the basis for the creation of the popular chronograph with Ref. 3716.

 

This year IWC started with the presentation of the updated Portugieser Chronograph model, which remained faithful to the exterior design: this is watches with small seconds at 6 o'clock, and a minute counter at 12 o'clock, overlaid Arabic numerals, narrow feuille (leaf-shaped) hands, printed with a quarter-second scale. The time is now controlled by the manufacturer's IWC caliber 69355 which can be seen through the transparent back cover. The mechanism has a power reserve of 46 hours.

The new watches are available in 6 versions in 41 mm diameter stainless steel or gold cases with a blue, blue-gray, silver, and black dial.