This jumbo steel Omega embodies what we love about vintage watches here at analog/shift.Its timelessness speaks for itself, and it looks as good now as it did decades ago. Better yet, its looks won’t be fading anytime in the next 50 years. As Europe entered into the post-WW2 recovery period, the Swiss watch industry began its transition back to fine timepieces after years of fulfilling defense contrast.

The 1920s Art Deco style faded away to a more utilitarian aesthetic inspired by military timepieces, resulting in beautifully clean and understated watches to suit the tastes of returning G.I.’s. This Omega Reference 2272 is a perfect example of the post-war design language we so admire.

The 38mm jumbo steel case (jumbo by the standards of the day) and Arabic numerals evoke the pilots watches of the wartime years, while the Champaign dial, gold hour and minute hands and blued steel seconds hand add just a bit of panache to the otherwise spartan design.

This Omega Jumbo is an elegant piece of horological history whose understated and classic styling fits today’s fashionable gentleman as well as it did those in the late 1940s. It’s a truly beautiful watch.