Glossary

This special time display is only available in NOMOS watches with the automatic caliber DUW 5201, which features a world time display. Like all NOMOS calibers, DUW 5201 is made in-house by expert watchmakers in Glashütte, Germany. It has an additional hour wheel that rotates a single time through a 24-hour time period and is displayed as a subdial at 3 o'clock. This allows you to see at a glance whether it is morning or evening in your home time zone.

Assortment is derived from the French word for selection, sortiment. In a watch movement, it refers to the escapement assembly that consists of the pallet fork, escape wheel, and balance and is jointly responsible for ensuring that the stored energy of the mainspring is transferred to the ticking hands at the correct rate. NOMOS Glashütte has developed its own assortment: the NOMOS swing system.

This value states how much pressure the watch can withstand without water leaking into the case. NOMOS watches are water-resistant according to German norms to 3, 5, 10, or 20 atm. A watch water-resistant to 3 atm is protected against splashes of water, and so can experience a short rain shower without any problems, and is also not at risk when you wash your hands. Watches with 5 atm are suitable for showering. Timepieces with a water-resistance of 10 and 20 atm are also suitable for swimming, the latter even for diving. But every watch should have its water resistance checked once a year.

The balance is the flywheel of a watch movement, the pacesetter. It transforms the energy that comes to it via the escape wheel into even oscillation. In watches, this is done with the help of a balance spring, which repeatedly brings the flywheel back to its rest position. The constant impulse is then transmitted via the gear train to the hands, causing them to advance consistently. The balance wheel in a NOMOS watch moves out of its rest position (each time the pallet lever engages the escape wheel with one of its arms) six times per second—that's 21,600 motions per hour, and 189 million per year.

Bearing jewels are of immense importance for mechanical watch movements. Patented by de Duillier and the Debaufre brothers in the early 18th century, drilled and undrilled rubies are still used in watch movements today to minimize friction between the parts and keep wear and tear to a minimum. Before this invention, watchmakers still drilled holes in the brass of the plates, bridges, and cocks. Since the beginning of the 20th century, artificial rubies have been used almost exclusively. Although their properties do not differ from those of "reconstituted rubies," which are jewels produced by melting and then pressing ruby waste, they are generally more uniform, without inclusions, and therefore easier to work with. The correct press-in height is important when setting the jewels. At NOMOS Glashütte, depending on the exact watch movement, between 19 and 42 rubies are inserted by machine after they have been pre-sorted by a colleague.

The term bezel refers to the part of the watch case that surrounds the glass. The bezel protects the watch glass and the wider it is, the better. However, it is also an extremely important element of the watch design because it presents the dial under the glass like a picture frame. In tool watches and watches with complications, such as a world time display, a bezel can also have other functions. It is often very wide, features a timing scale and other markings, and can usually be rotated—in diving watches in only one direction, in pilot's watches in both directions. It can be used for quick-glance information, such as other time zones, measuring time intervals, or calculating speeds.

Through a particular hardening process, the hands gain a black coating that makes them highly resistant to corrosion. In the past, almost all models from NOMOS Glashütte were equipped with black oxidized hands, but nowadays only some special watches have them, such as the limited editions for Doctors Without Borders.

The lugs are the parts of the case which are used to attach the strap to the watch. These are two horns on each side of the case and can vary in width depending on the model, so there are bracelets of the appropriate size for each watch.

The dial is considered the face of a watch. In mechanical wristwatches, it is usually made of coated metal—sometimes precious metal—and is often decorated with ornamental polishing. The information provided by a dial is as varied as the watch models themselves, and ranges from the single-hand watch without any printed or applied divisions (a minimal watch), to the 12-hour variant with or without a minute track, to dials with several division units (subdials) and additional complication displays. The dials of NOMOS watches usually have a sub-seconds dial and, in the case of models with complications, different and sometimes patented forms of displaying the date, power reserve, a second time zone or world time.

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At NOMOS Glashütte, the indexes on the Orion anthracite and Orion 38 gray models, for example, are diamond-cut. A diamond-tipped tool creates the polish that gives the indexes—and so the whole dial—a particular shine.

The DUW regulation system is a fine regulation system developed by NOMOS Glashütte that does not require a regulating screw and is optimized for the special features of the extra-flat calibers of Deutsche Uhrenwerke NOMOS Glashütte.

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Say it with a watch: An engraving on the back of a mechanical watch adds a personal touch to a gift—whether for yourself or a loved one. A watch back is also the right place for important messages, because like a tattoo, these are worn directly on the skin and remain there—unlike a tattoo—unchanged for a lifetime. With stainless steel backs, NOMOS watches naturally offer particularly ample space for engravings. But engravings are also possible on the stainless steel rim of sapphire crystal backs. Engravings are a free service for watch purchases in the NOMOS online store. And if you don't yet know exactly what you want to say, the NOMOS engraving catalog holds inspiration for many occasions. It is linked on every watch page in the store, under "Add engraving".

Together the pallet fork and escape wheel form the escapement of the movement, or more precisely, the lever escapement. It connects the wheel system with the regulating balance and ensures that the energy stored in the mainspring is not transferred unchecked to the hands, but is released in a measured manner. If the escapement is ineffective, for example due to a break in the pallet fork, the hands race across the dial after being wound up and the watch runs out of time after only a few seconds. The escapement of a watch is also called "assortment." In that case, it also includes the balance.

The escape wheel has asymmetrically shaped teeth that the pallet fork can catch its two arms alternately. Each time, the escape wheel is rotated a little further—and stops briefly in between. This means that the escape wheel does not move continuously, but in small jumps. In NOMOS watches, six barely perceptible jumps happen every second.

Polished diamonds and other precious stones shimmer and shine with many different kinds of faceting. But the hands of NOMOS Zürich also have this particularly beautiful angular polishing and so appear even finer and more elegant.

Galvanization is the coating of a surface in a special electrified water bath, and is also known as electrolysis. At NOMOS Glashütte, the watch dials gain their particularly beautiful color thanks to this process.

The Glashütte Regulation, enacted by the German Federal Council on February 22, 2022, protects the status of mechanical watches from Glashütte, Germany. To carry the "Glashütte" designation, a watch must undergo at least 50 percent of its essential manufacturing stages in Glashütte—which can include movement production, assembly, and final inspection. At NOMOS Glashütte, we achieve an added value of 95 percent as defined by the regulation, with all key stages from movement development to parts production, watch assembly, and quality control occurring on-site in Glashütte.

Local watchmakers had long advocated for the implementation of this kind of legal protection. The Glashütte Regulation applies under German trademark law and is comparable to the strict legal protection afforded to Swiss watches. It marks only the second instance where German legislation specifies a geographical designation of origin for an industrial product — and is a mark of distinction for the town’s rich heritage of watchmaking, which enjoys over 175 years of history.

GMT stands for Greenwich Mean Time, the time at the meridian in Greenwich in London, England. For the current time in Germany, for example, which is in a different time zone to Greenwich, you add an hour to Greenwich Mean Time, and subtract six hours for New York.

The oldest clock hands could be considered to be the shadow rods of sundials, which were created about 5000 years ago—or rather the shadows of the shadow rods, because only these naturally moved. Watch designs with hands that moved themselves were later developed in medieval Europe, initially only a single-hand models; the minute hand only became necessary as the display became more accurate, which occured in the 18th century. Mechanical watches from NOMOS Glashütte usually have three hands, with the second hand rotating decentrally in the sub-seconds dial. NOMOS watch models without a seconds hand are called Duo.

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Shell Cordovan is leather derived from the hind of Texan workhorses, long-lasting and more robust than any other. Only a small part of the shell can be used to produce the fine leather of NOMOS Glashütte straps. The more often you wear it, the better it becomes.

The lug-to-lug measurement of a watch is the distance between the two outer ends of the watch’s lugs. Not to be confused with the lug width, which is the distance between the two sides of the lugs and corresponds to the width of the matching watch strap. Among watch enthusiasts, the outer lug size and the lugs of NOMOS watches are the subject of much debate. One of the reasons for this is the variety of shapes of NOMOS lugs—and for that matter, the watch cases. Each watch model from NOMOS Glashütte has a different case, with the lugs as an integral part of the overall design.

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The mainspring is a small powerhouse: it stores the winding energy and transfers it evenly to the gear train. To be able to do this optimally, it must be unbreakable, resistant to kinking and bending, anti-magnetic, corrosion-resistant, and fatigue-proof. At the same time, it should be as small as possible so as not to take up too much space in the movement, but as large as possible in order to store a particularly large amount of force and ensure a long power reserve. The mainsprings for NOMOS watches are made especially for NOMOS Glashütte.

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Médecins Sans Frontières (MSF), known as Doctors without Borders in English-speaking countries, is an international and independent medical humanitarian organization. MSF provides medical assistance to people affected by conflict, epidemics, disasters, or exclusion from healthcare. Furthermore, MSF provides a voice to those in need, by reporting on humanitarian situations that are not receiving media coverage. NOMOS Glashütte is helping to help in the way we know best—with watches. We have been producing special editions in support of Doctors Without Borders since 2012. To date, we have raised over one million Euros for MSF with a series of limited-edition versions of our classic models Tangente and Tetra. Our latest release, Tangente 38, celebrates a particular milestone: 50 years of Doctors without Borders. As red is the color of Doctors Without Borders—and of emergency aid—a red twelve on the dial is a subtle reference to both. Small inscription at six o’clock and a special engraving on the back also pay tribute to the essential work of this organization.

More about Tangente 38 – 50 ans de Médecins Sans Frontières

Models with “neomatik” in their name have one of the two new automatic calibers from NOMOS Glashütte ticking inside: DUW 3001 or DUW 6101. With and without a date, these automatic movements are extremely slender and highly precise—and the NOMOS swing system ensures they keep good time.

The balance spring is a particularly remarkable component. Created from the most delicate strip of steel, much thinner than a human hair, it is the inner part of the escapement and represents the beating heart of a watch movement. The inner end is connected to the axis of the balance wheel; a part known as the balance staff. The outer end is attached to the balance cock via the stud. The balance spring ensures that the balance oscillates evenly and thus ensures the overall accuracy of the watch. Its length, elasticity, and curve determine the precision of the escapement.

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This is the digital family book of our watches. When they were born, who bought them, what experiences they have had in their long lives, and how their siblings are doing... Well, not quite: It's actually where you can register your ownership of a NOMOS watch. With the help of the reference and the registration or movement number, which can be found on the watch and in the warranty documents, each watch can be identified, which can be quite helpful in the event of loss. In addition, this way you become even more closely connected to the watch; you become part of its history for generations to come.

Click here for the NOMOS family book

The NOMOS slide viewer, also known as a plastiscope, allows you to visit our watchmaking facilities from the comfort of your living room. Five different stations can be explored by the click of a button—including the turning shop, precision machining, and assembly. Originally a popular travel souvenir in the late 1950s to 1980s, plastiscopes still enjoy widespread popularity today. Usually in the shape of a television set, it contains a disk with images that can be viewed against the light through a magnifying lens. A simple click mechanism moves the wheel with the images forward by one position—presenting watches from NOMOS Glashütte on television!

The escapement, comprised of the balance, balance spring, and pallet, sets the pace of a mechanical watch and has a huge influence on the accuracy, robustness, and longevity of a watch. The in-house escapement known as the NOMOS swing system was researched, developed, and built in-house by NOMOS Glashütte. Producing such a perfect watch heart is considered to be a work of considerable skill in the world of fine watchmaking—until now, only one Swiss company could do it—and it is also a declaration of independence for the brand.

The pallet fork in the movement is a two-armed lever that is quite similar in shape to a ship's anchor. Inward angled ruby pallets are attached to the ends of both anchor arms, which alternately engage the escape wheel to ensure that the movement runs smoothly—regardless of whether the watch is fully wound or about to stop.

The power reserve of a watch indicates how long it can run without external influence until the mainspring has released all its stored energy and must be rewound via the crown or by moving the rotor. Watches from NOMOS Glashütte have a power reserve of 42, 43, 50, or 84 hours, depending on the exact model.

NOMOS Glashütte has developed a power reserve indicator for those who tend to forget to wind their watches. This patented mechanism shows when a watch is running out of power and needs to be rewound. The caliber with a power reserve indicator on the dial ticks within Tetra and Tangente (with and without a date), Metro and Tetra Kleene. The gold model Lambda also reveals when it needs rewinding with a generous power reserve indicator sweeping across the dial.

The hands and appliqués of many NOMOS watches are rhodium plated. Rhodium is a rare and sought-after platinum metal that is very hard, but also easy to shape. In the rhodium-plating process, an electroplating bath is used to apply a thin layer of rhodium to the surfaces to protect and refine them. The result is a wonderful white-silver sheen.

The ring date—exclusive to NOMOS Glashütte—features on the dials of the Tangente Update series, whether white silver-plated or refined with ruthenium. It is placed around the edge of the dial and features two red dots that frame the current date. This innovation is made possible by neomatik date caliber DUW 6101, which has the date ring placed around the edge of the movement itself.

Roman numerals are a classic feature on the dials of mechanical watches. It is striking that the Roman four, which we know today as "IV", is often shown on dials as four dashes: IIII. A detail that can also be found on the dial of the NOMOS Ludwig model. This is a watch tradition for which there are various explanations.

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We refine the dials of some of our models with ruthenium, a rare platinum metal—such as Tangente neomatik 41 Update ruthenium. This gives them a wonderful warm gray tone.

A particular sign of quality in every NOMOS watch is that each one is equipped with sapphire crystal glass, both on the dial side and, where applicable, on the back. Sapphire crystal glass is characterized by its particular hardness; only a diamond can scratch it. This guarantees the best legibility for life.

A screw-down crown allows a watch to withstand greater pressures, making it water-resistant to 20 atm or more. The screw-down system holds the crown so firm that no water can leak into the watch, even during swimming and surfing. For the water sports fans among NOMOS aficionados, we have the watches of the Aqua series; these models take every wave with ease.

Tangomat GMT and Zürich world time have a second time zone. So if you travel to Bangkok, for example, you can also keep track of time back home where your loved ones are.

NOMOS Glashütte uses stainless steel 316 L for its watches, also known as surgical steel. This does not deposit nickel on the skin; allergic reactions almost never occur.

The first wristwatch is said to have been made in 1810 for the Queen of Naples: for Caroline Murat, the youngest sister of Napoleon Bonaparte. She was the one who introduced the idea of wearing a watch on the wrist. The strap itself was then knitted from hair and gold threads. Even today, the straps that hold mechanical watches on the arm deserve attention.

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Superluminova is a luminous paint that significantly improves the readability of watches in low-light conditions. It is applied to the hands and used for the numerals and indices. Unlike the radium-based luminescent material that was used until the 1960s, Superluminova poses absolutely no health risks.
Superluminova is used on many NOMOS watch dials, particularly on sports models, where the metal is sometimes even milled out to allow more luminous material to be added. But everyday watches, like Club and Club Campus, can also be easily read in the dark for a period of time.

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Cornflower blue—that is the color of the tiny screws inside the watch and the hands of some of our models. These small parts are kept in an oven at a certain temperature until this particularly beautiful blue is achieved.

Tonneau, French for “barrel,” describes a shape of watch case. At NOMOS Glashütte, Lux is the name of the model with this wonderful case from white gold. Available in two versions, this watch stands for exquisite watchmaking craft from Glashütte.

A mainspring barrel ensures that a watch can store reserve power, and so run for longer. This specialty is only found in our golden watches, Lux and Lambda. These watches, in contrast to all other models from NOMOS Glashütte, do not have to be wound up again after two days, but run for three-and-a-half days—84 hours—until they need more power.

Velour leather has a textured, yet soft surface. For more delicate wrists and smaller watches, NOMOS Glashütte offers a velour strap made of fine calfskin, as well as a vegan alternative made of high-quality Alcantara.

White and rose gold are particular gold alloys, where gold is mixed with another metal (such as silver, copper, or palladium). Watches with white and rose gold cases are completely new at NOMOS Glashütte: the Lambda and Lux models.

At the end of the 19th century, it was agreed to divide the earth into 24 time zones. From west to east, time advances one hour every 15 degrees. On mechanical watches with a world time mechanism, all of these zones can be displayed simultaneously; a feature that is fun, adventurous, and inspires wanderlust. The NOMOS caliber with a world time function and the in-house assortment NOMOS swing system is the DUW 5201 automatic movement, which powers the watch model Zürich world time, for example. It has a city ring and includes a 24-hour display for telling the time in places you're not, so you know immediately whether it's day or night there.