Yahoo Lifestyle 8 Timeless Watches Celebrating Milestones in 2025, From Rolex’s Datejust to Omega’s Planet Ocean
Every year, there’s inevitably an anniversary or two to celebrate in the watch world, but there must be something in the water during years that end in the number five. This year, there seems to be a powerful group of watches celebrating milestone birthdays. With the lucky number five rounding out our present year, does this mean we’re also poised for the debut of some brand new collections? Only time will tell with Watches & Wonders on the horizon.
A couple brands have already kicked off the festivities. As Hublot rings in two decades of the Big Bang, the maison unveiled not one, not two, but four new interpretations of the legendary model at LVMH Watch Week in January. A month later, we got the brand’s third edition of the model as the official timekeeper and resort partner of Aspen One. In addition, 2025 marks 50 years of Girard Perregaux’s Laureato, and so far, we’ve already gotten a collaboratively designed version of the model with the brand’s longtime partner, Aston Martin.
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This year, there are also milestone anniversaries from models by Patek Philippe and Rolex as well as Omega, Cartier, and IWC—let’s dig into all the watches celebrating big birthdays in 2025.
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Patek Philippe Ref. 97975—The World’s First Perpetual Calendar Wristwatch
Our first big birthday is a really big one—triple digits—the big 1-0-0. In 1925, Patek Philippe introduced the world to the first ever perpetual calendar wristwatch. However, the history of the Reference 97975 goes back even further to 1898 when the Maison first made the movement that would go on to power the wristwatch. This caliber, fittingly designated No. 97975, was initially housed in a women’s pendant watch.
Fast forward to 1925, Patek gives the No. 97975 a new life in a 34.4 mm yellow gold wristwatch with a hunter caseback and impeccable hand-engraved lugs. The No. 97975’s remarkable capabilities translated to a beautifully symmetrical grand feu enamel dial with the moon phase at three o’clock across from the small seconds at nine and the month at six o’clock across from the day of the week at twelve with the date indicated around the periphery. Patek has never repeated this exact design—not even when the Maison released its first serially produced perpetual calendar, the 1518 (pictured here), in 1941. Will this be the year?
Rolex Datejust
Rolex has two important models celebrating important anniversaries this year. The first is the iconic Datejust—one of The Crown’s oldest collections in continuous production. In 1945, Rolex was notching a big milestone as a brand—40 years. To commemorate the occasion, the Maison wanted to create a new collection that was different than anything offered at the time—enter the Datejust.
The line started with the Jubilee Datejust, Reference 4467, featuring a five-piece metal link bracelet called Jubilee as a nod to The Crown’s 40th anniversary celebration. The initial reference offered a 36 mm 18-karat yellow gold Oyster case with a fluted bezel. To accommodate the larger Caliber 710 movement that powered the revolutionary new date function, the model came equipped with a domed caseback, like the brand’s Bubbleback.
In the past eight decades, the essence of the Datejust has changed very little, which speaks to the forward thinking and exceptional execution of the original. This model is the true embodiment of a classic that follows the philosophy if-its-not-broken-don’t-fix-it.
Rolex GMT Master
A decade after the debut of the Datejust, the GMT Master was released. The model, spurred by a partnership between Rolex and Pan Am, was designed inspired by the boom of commercial air travel and flights between different time zones.
The original Reference 6542 introduced some of the model’s signature design elements: a two-tone bezel, a bold red GMT hand, fully lumed hour markers and handset (including the distinct Mercedes hour hand), and a date window with a cyclops lens at three o’clock. Like the Datejust, the DNA of the GMT Master has remained largely unchanged in its 70-year history, further emphasizing The Crown’s ability to create designs that were ahead of their time and that have withstood the test of time.
In the past seven decades, one of the most exciting updates to the GMT Master has been the playful two-tone bezel. We’ve seen countless variants, each of which have garnered affectionate nicknames from Coke to Pepsi and Root Beer alongside Batman and Hulk. If there’s any way for the GMT Master to ring in its monumental 70th birthday, it will most certainly be with a new colorway.
IWC Ingenieur
IWC’s Ingenieur is also notching its 70th anniversary this year. The model initially debuted as an ultra-utilitarian tool watch boasting new feats of water resistance, shock resistance, and above all magnetic resistance. Its original design achieved these features with a soft iron inner “Faraday cage” but evolved over time.
Two decades after its introduction to IWC’s catalog, the Ingenieur got a complete overhaul thanks to the Genta touch. The designer had already reached icon status thanks to his hand in Audemars Piguet’s Royal Oak and Patek’s Nautilus. He went on to bring this same sensibility to the Ingenieur with a screw-on, round bezel with five recesses and an integrated steel bracelet with H-links, ushering it from tool to sport watch territory.
Since then, versions of the model have continued to pull from both eras: the original and the Genta. We’ll be waiting with bated breath to see which direction an anniversary edition might take.
Girard-Perregaux Laureato
In 2025, Girard-Perregaux’s Laureato notches 50 years of excellence. The model hails from an important moment in the history of watchmaking: the birth and rise of the luxury sport watch. The trend started with Genta’s Royal Oak developed for AP in 1972 with a notable design marked by an angular bezel and an integrated bracelet. In both future models Genta would create for brands like Patek and IWC and in other designs that would emerge from the era, the bezel and bracelet composition were highly influential. Case and point the Laureato, a model notable for its octagonal bezel and integrated bracelet—a quintessential sport watch through and through.
Last month, we saw the introduction of the first Laureato in this anniversary year. The brand’s sixth collaboration with Aston Martin took the model to new heights with an iridescent dial made with car paint. The brand has set a high bar for itself as it continues to commemorate five decades of this exciting collection.
Cartier Pasha
The Cartier Pasha made its official entrance in 1985, making this its 40th birthday. Yet, the origins of the Pasha trace back decades prior. The model takes its name and inspiration from a bespoke watch created for the Pasha of Marrakesh in the 1930s. His request was a “sport watch” that could be worn while swimming. Fast forward a few decades and enter the man synonymous with the sport watch: Gerald Genta. While the designer was particularly prolific in the 1970s, his momentum continued into the 80s with models like the Pasha.
Despite its sport watch roots, the Pasha is distinct compared to other models Genta had a hand in. The reference that started it all featured a leather strap instead of an integrated bracelet and a more traditional round case in contrast to Cartier’s expansive catalog of square watches. The Pasha offered its own set of sporty details from its broad diving bezel to its screw down crown and its bold 38mm build, which was large for the time. However, it ultimately leaned into the “luxury” aspect of the luxury sport watch and has continued to tow that line over the past 40 years.
Hublot Big Bang
This year, the Big Bang is celebrating its 20th birthday—not quite of legal drinking age here in the States but nonetheless firmly coming out of its teen years and into adulthood. We’ve already started to see the model take itself a bit more seriously with editions that have dropped this year, like the newly refined version of the Big Bang Meca-10 with smaller and more wearable 42 mm proportions alongside an elevated King Gold build. However, the collection most certainly hasn’t lost its youthful spirit with more playful iterations like the neon Big Bang Tourbillon Automatic Green Saxem.
The Big Bang takes root in the new millennium—the brainchild of horological legend Jean-Claude Biver who had just joined Hublot as CEO the year prior to the model’s release. Biver has many talents, and one of them is knowing a good thing when he sees it. The building blocks of the Big Bang were already there in the founder of Hublot Carlo Crocco’s vision—the porthole shape—but it was Biver who brought it to life and propelled the collection and the brand through the past two decades.
Omega Planet Ocean
In 2005, we also saw the introduction of Omega’s Planet Ocean. While the model would go on to grace the wrist of James Bond (several times), this was not just a watch for a secret agent—this was a watch for a serious diver. The Planet Ocean boasts a whopping 600 meters of water resistance—more than double most other models in the Seamaster family. Bolstering its water resistance and technical prowess is a bold build. The Planet Ocean is not for the faint of heart, with cases measuring upwards of 42 mm in diameter and upwards of 14.5 mm in thickness.
Right around this time last year, Omega subtly released a set of six boutique exclusive editions of the Planet Ocean, but on this 20th anniversary year, we doubt the brand will be so discreet. The latest additions to the collection have leaned away from the more utilitarian aesthetic of the original and into a more refined design that could be used for daily wear just as easily as on a dive. It will be interesting to see if the anniversary models continue to lean in that direction or if Omega reprises elements of the initial design.
