When Norwegian brand Von Doren built their seminal Uræd back in the less-than-halcyon days of 2020, they graduated to the realms of serious mechanical timekeeping. The watch, inspired by nautical genius Ole Brude, is a solid, ocean-themed timepiece tapping into Von Doren’s signature Art Nouveau stylings.
Yet the Uræd also stole the limelight from Von Doren’s older pieces, a particular travesty when it comes to the eye-catching little quartz numbers in the Runde collection.
The collection’s name comes from a Norwegian island notable for its miniscule population of a mere 120 people and the enormous shipwreck just off the shoreline, that of the Akerendam. The Akerendam was a treasure ship that, after disappearing in a storm, washed up near Runde and, over the centuries since, spilt its bullion payload into the ocean – hence the island’s nickname of Treasure Island.
That story is to explain precisely why Von Doren’s latest has been dubbed the Treasuremaster Mechanical. While the Runde is a tribute to the island itself with eye-catching gemstone colours, the Treasuremaster is its mechanical evolution – and notice we say mechanical, not automatic.
While Perrelet invented the automatic movement as early as the 1770s, the Akerendam sank in 1725, a solid half-century earlier. So, Von Doren has stuck with a manual-wind number inside the Treasuremaster, namely the Sellita SW210-1. Like any Sellita, it’s a workhorse movement, with a 42-hour power reserve and the kind of affordability many a smaller brand needs in their line-up.
While the 39mm stainless steel cases mirror the previous Runde collection, the dials are slightly more nuanced. They still maintain some of those jewel tones – restricted for now to green and blue rather than the yellow, magenta and aquamarine – but with a more, for want of a better phrase, grown-up addition of an inset chapter ring in a light grey.
Paired with a yellow second hand and sword shaped hour and minute hands slathered with blue lume, the overall effect is downright lovely. Honestly, if they had a yellow version, I’d upgrade my own Runde to a Treasuremaster in a second.
As a final flourish, the caseback is engraved in the same vein as the old 18th century gold ducats that still occasionally wash up from the Akerendam on Runde’s shoreline. This includes the text “Concordia Res Par Cres Tra”, or in English, “Unity Makes Strength”.
But, I hear you ask, just how many gold ducats will I need to shell out for this? Well, on average a single ducat is worth $300, and you’ll need roughly three of them to pay for your Treasuremaster. If you’re doing the maths, that’s just under $900 or, to be precise, just €795. If you’re exceptional at in-head calculations, you’ll also know that equates to just over £660.
It doesn’t really matter though. By whatever currency you care to use, the end result’s the same: the Treasuremaster is exceptional value. Paired with a clean yet individual design, Von Doren’s latest mechanical timepiece is anything but a shipwreck.
Price & Specs:
Model: Von Doren Treasuremaster
Case/dial: 39mm diameter x 10.5mm height, stainless steel case, green or blue dial
Water resistance: 50m (5 bar)
Movement: Sellita SW210-1, manual winding, 19 jewels
Frequency: 28,800 vph (4 Hz)
Power reserve: 42h
Functions: Hours, minutes, seconds
Strap: Leather with stainless steel bracelet sold separately
Price/availability: €795 EUR (approx. £664.58)
More details at Von Doren.
