Omega Calatrava Ref. 2888 1958

$2,250.00 NZD

The Omega Ref. 2888 is a dress watch from the late 1950s that exemplifies what Omega was doing particularly well in that decade — producing clean, well-proportioned timepieces with an emphasis on legibility, restraint, and movement quality. The round case, silver dial with applied baton indices, and slim profile place it firmly within the 'Calatrava' archetype that the era produced across several Swiss manufactures: a dress watch reduced to its essentials, with nothing added that was not required.

The Omega Ref. 2888 is a dress watch from the late 1950s that exemplifies what Omega was doing particularly well in that decade — producing clean, well-proportioned timepieces with an emphasis on legibility, restraint, and movement quality. The round case, silver dial with applied baton indices, and slim profile place it firmly within the 'Calatrava' archetype that the era produced across several Swiss manufactures: a dress watch reduced to its essentials, with nothing added that was not required.

Details
- Maker
  
  Omega
- Model
  
  Calatrava
- Reference
  
  2888
- Year
  
  1958 (approx.)
- Box & Papers
  
  No
- Movement
  
  Caliber. 501, automatic
- Dial & Hands
  
  Silver dial w/ applied baton hour markers; dauphine hands
- Crystal
  
  Plexiglass
- Bracelet/Strap
  
  Artisan Straps dark brown epsom leather strap w/ stainless steel buckle
- Performance
  
  Watch is fully functioning and running at +9 seconds per day
- Service History
  
  Serviced April 2026
Dimensions
- Diameter: 35mm
- Thickness: 8mm
- Lug width: 18mm
- Lug-to-lug: 38mm
Materials

Stainless steel

The Caliber. 501 is a bumper automatic — a movement type in which the rotor winds the mainspring by oscillating between two tension springs rather than rotating freely, producing a distinctive tactile and audible quality entirely its own. The bumper automatic represents a brief but charming chapter in watchmaking's transition from manual to full rotor automatic movements, and the Caliber. 501 is regarded as one of Omega's better executions of the mechanism
The silver dial with applied baton indices and dauphine hands is the Ref. 2888 at its most resolved — a configuration that prioritises legibility and proportion above all else, and which has aged with the kind of quiet confidence that only genuinely well-designed objects possess
The Ref. 2888 represents Omega at a high point of its dress watch production — a period in the late 1950s when the manufacture was producing movements and cases of considerable quality at a price point that placed them within reach of a broad audience.

Minor scratches and pitting on the case
Minor scuffs on crystal

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