Explore Gruen

A long, curved Gruen case has a particular grace on the wrist: less a miniature pocket watch than a shape drawn to follow the arm. That sensibility runs through the brand’s best-known work. Founded in 1894, Gruen joined Swiss watchmaking with an American market eager for slimmer, more stylish watches, eventually making shaped wristwatches a central part of its identity.

The Curvex, introduced in 1935, is the name to know. Its movement curved along with the case, allowing the mechanism to occupy space that a flat movement could not use as effectively. The resulting watches could be slender and dramatically arched, with elongated dials, expressive numerals, and case details that reward a second look.

The Veri-Thin family tells another side of the story, carrying Gruen’s pursuit of thinness from pocket watches into wristwatches. Precision appears across a wider range, including restrained round dress watches—a quieter counterpoint to the sculptural cases that make vintage Gruen so immediately recognizable.