Angelus Chronograph Rensie

Overall Condition: Great condition overall. Case shows light wear and signs of sleeve polish. Chronograph pushers show light wear from normal use. Dial is excellent with clear scales. Handset and numerals show even patina.

Military chronographs are a fascinating and highly-collectible sub-category in vintage watch collecting. A bonafide military heritage takes a watch with a versatile, perhaps even ubiquitous, complication and makes it into something worth owning. Brands such as Gallet, Excelsior Park, and Zenith all contributed timepieces to the war effort, producing chronographs for many of the world's militaries.

Like Universal Geneve, Wittnauer, and Gallet, Angelus is a defunct brand whose chronographs have been gaining a lot of momentum in vintage collecting circles. Like these brands, Angelus has a long and storied history of making watches--and making them well. Established in Le Locle in 1891 (four years before Universal Geneve was founded in the same village) by the Stolz brothers, Angelus at first assembled watches out of parts made by other manufacturers. But as the 20th century dawned, Angelus were designing and manufacturing their own movements entirely in-house. They won awards at international exhibitions almost every year from 1902 to 1926.

Starting in the late 1940s, Angelus began producing chronographs for the Hungarian Air Force. Hungary had been banned from having a military air force by the Treaty of Trianon in 1920. So the Royal Hungarian Air Force (Magyar Királyi Honvéd Légierő or Légi Erő) started covertly as civilian flying clubs. But by the 1930s the Légi Erő was officially established and recognized. As World War II began and Hungary's neighbors to the north--Poland and Czechoslovakia--fell, the L.E. added their airplanes to their air force, proving worthy foes to the encroaching Soviet forces in the East.

The brand has so much history, and the result are some of the coolest pieces available. Take this beautiful chronograph, for example. Powered by a stunning in-house movement, this two register chronograph is chock full of exciting vintage callbacks, with syringe hands, gilt finishes, and outer tachymeter scale.

Amazing

And to top it all off, the dial is signed by German brand 'Rensie', adding to the prominence of the exciting timepiece. If you love all things vintage, it's pieces with a rich history like this one that deserve a place on your wrist.

The vintage market is a constantly-evolving ecosystem, and we're always keen to identify trends and speculate on the future. If the outpouring of complimentary feedback on the various chronographs we've offered so far by Angelus is any indicator, big things are coming down the pike for Angelus. Our advice is to grab a good one, and this one--with a sterling military record--certainly is.