BOUTIQUE
GOS WATCHES
Sarek Akka
If you’re a collector of handcrafted knives, and you’re reading iW, chances are
good that you’ve heard of Swedish watch company Gustafsson & Sjögren,
known as GoS Watches. The company has been making mechanical watches
that feature intricate patterned steel dials that mimic the Damascus steel
swirls often seen on high-end knives.
And if you know that GoS was founded ten years ago by master blade
smith Johan Gustafsson and master watchmaker Patrik Sjögren, the compa-
ny’s focus on Damascus steel dials and cases makes perfect sense.
GoS earned some extra notoriety in the U.S. last March when an article
in the New York Times put a spotlight on the brand’s mix of Viking-inspired
metal work and mechanical watchmaking.
Among the newest watches debuted recently by the small-scale
manufacturer (the brand makes about thirty watches each year) is the
Sarek Akka, which features uncolored Damascus steel. Inspired by the
Swedish mountain Akka in Swedish Lapland, the bezel’s scroll engrav-
ings are meant to recall low-growing mountain birch. For this watch,
master engraver Stanley Stoltz, who is legendary among knife and rifle
collectors, makes the detailed engraving.
Colorful straps complement the monochrome 43mm watch nicely.
GoS will deliver the watch with a chocolate brown GoS strap in premium
Moose leather, though GoS will offer four different color alternatives.
The Sarek chapter ring and the case ring both draw inspiration from
authentic Viking bracelets and brooches.
Sarek is also the first GoS model to feature the new GoS crown, which
is shaped much like the form of a Viking sword hilt.
For added security, perhaps during a sword battle, the neck of the
GoS crown is deeply recessed into the case. Even the hands have Viking
roots: they are high-gloss polished in a Dauphine finish with a center
ridge that resembles the Viking arrow and spear heads that inspired the
first GoS hands.
Inside the watch is a Soprod A10 movement customized by GoS with
its own ‘triskele’ rotor design and is equipped with an additional counter
weight made from Damascus steel. Every watch engraved with “Sarek
1/1” to indicate that every watch is a unique piece in addition to a serial
number. Price: $10,800.
IW RATING
Design: 8 (out of 10)
Unusual, full of character and adeptly made.
Innovation: 6
This metal work demands new techniques.
Finissage: 7
Clean, clear engraving with personality.
Legibility: 7
Clear, but precision is not the point of this artistic piece.
Rarity: 9
Each piece is unique.
Value: 7
The high cost is somewhat mitigated by its rarity,
though collector base is also small.
iW rating: 44 out of 60
30 | INTERNATIONAL WATCH | SPRING 2018
iWMAGAZINE .COM