Montblanc Orbis Terrarum Watches

For many of us, we can only dream of owning a Jaeger-LeCoultre, IWC or Rolex, and that’s a shame. But there’s another way, sort of—buy a more affordable alternative. With that said, here are three more affordable alternatives to expensive watches.

If you’re just getting started with photography, you buy a Canon, or a Nikon. Hi-fi, something from Naim. A Porsche will most likely be your first sporty set of wheels. Brand recognition, heritage, market stability, resale prices, broad appeal, etcetera, etcetera. The list of reasons why all these companies are great places to put your money—and they are, everybody knows it—goes on and on. That’s why they’re the norm. For some people, however, normal is just too … normal. For some people, the interesting, the esoteric, the stuff that can only be found wide of the beaten path—that’s where the real gold lies. Question is, when it comes to a proper, hand-wound chronograph with all the bells and whistles—is a pen company that bit too far?

Historically, Montblanc was most closely associated with luxury pens, the Meisterstück being its most iconic and successful. The brand’s watchmaking debut didn’t come until 1997, when it opened up its watchmaking division in Le Locle, Switzerland. The name of its first timepiece? The Meisterstück. Like its namesake, the watch was a finely finished piece of craftsmanship, but the brand didn’t really find its footing in horology until 2006, when Richemont (who already owned Montblanc) also acquired the esteemed Swiss movement-making firm Minerva.

Montblanc in fact traces its roots back to the production of luxury writing instruments—which it still creates to this day—but turned its attention to watchmaking in 1997. A relatively young brand, it is increasingly creating beautiful and highly complicated timepieces, at affordable price points—especially since it made its first in-house movement in 2008.