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Oris Big Crown Watches: A Classic Throwback 

The Oris Big Crown Collection takes you down memory lane by rendering several interpretations of the classic Big Crown 1938 — the watch that made Oris the highly-esteemed brand it is known today. Vintage-inspired designs such as the Cathedral hands, textured lacquer dials, brushed stainless steel cases, and suede-style calfskin leather all come together nicely in this timepiece. 

Of course, the feature that made it distinguishably vintage is the pointer date. Luminous materials, domed crystal, and coin-edged bezels were added to create a modernized look. Most importantly, like the Oris Big Crown Propilot, the Oris Big Crown is characteristic of its function-based design. This stylish timepiece, where the crown was made to be oversized, is the best tool watch for glove-wearing aviators.

Prices at a Glance: Most Popular Oris Big Crown Watches

How much does an Oris Big Crown watch cost? 

Prices for the Oris Big Crown Collection range from $1,650 USD to $1,850 USD for stainless steel models. Bronze models are priced around $2000 USD per piece. 

All 21 stainless steel models are a combination of black, blue, green, and red paired with either a stainless steel or leather bracelet. The bronze models, for one, comprise three watches that come with different leather straps and green or brown dials.

For the rest of the timepieces in this collection, the design and features are uniform, bearing the same fluted bezel, domed crystal, and the ORIS logo engraved on a large crown. Some models are topped with a bronze top ring. All these watches operate on the same Caliber 754 movement with a power reserve of 38 hours. They beat at 4hz or 28,800 vibrations per hour. 

Starting with the black-dialed stainless steel watches, you have the Oris Big Crown Pointer Date Ref. 0175477494064-0751767 ($1,350 USD), a 36mm case watch that comes with a brown leather strap, ladies tapering, and stainless buckle. For a bit over this price at $1,399 USD, you can get the 40mm men’s version in dark brown leather. For the same amount, you can also purchase an all-black version. 

The 36mm blue-dial stainless steel models like the Oris Big Crown Pointer Date Ref. 0175477414365-0752058 come in a brown leather strap and bronze top ring, available for $1399 USD. On a 40mm case, replacing the bronze top ring with silver on a dark brown leather strap, you’ll have the Oris Big Crown Ref. 0175477414065-0752063, retailing at $1,600 USD. For $1,499 USD, get this on a stainless steel bracelet and a 40mm case with the Oris Big Crown Ref. 0175477414065-0782022.

Le Corbusier-inspired green dial leather watches only come in 36mm case sizes. The Oris Big Crown Pointer Date Ref. 0175477494067-0751768 available for $1,559 USD has a ladies tapering on its strap. While Big Crown Pointer Date Ref. 0175477494067-0751768G has gents tapering on it to cater to the male wearer. 

The bordeaux red lacquer dial watches are only available in 40mm case versions. The stainless steel model Ref. 0175477414068-0782022, for one, retails at $2000 USD. You can also get this watch with a brown special calfskin leather that has an almost vintage-style suede texture, retailing at $1,310 USD. 

Oris Big Crown Limited-Edition Models

The Oris Big Crown 1917 Limited Edition watch is designed as a nod to the Oris’ birth year. Oris watch collectors may instantly recognize its obvious similarity from the original model. The grain-textured dial on a brown leather NATO strap gives this timepiece a distinct archaic quality. The addition of a blue-tinge SuperLuminova and a special leather cuff strap give this watch its own modern charm. This 1917-piece limited edition watch comes in a special leather pouch with two different strap options and is priced at $2,600 USD. 

To pay tribute to the first Latin American baseball legend to reach 3000 hits and announce its partnership with the Roberto Clemente Foundation, Oris released the Roberto Clemente Limited Edition watch. At first glance, your attention is immediately drawn to the special fluted coined bezel perched atop the 40mm case. The black and gold numerals are the same color as the player’s uniform. For the seconds counter, the number 21 which is Clemente’s number, is painted in gold. Limited to 3000 pieces, this can be availed for $2,044 USD. 

The last of the limited edition pieces in the current catalog is the Oris Big Crown Pointer Date 80th Anniversary Edition. This piece is a green-dialed 40mm bronze-leather watch with an automatic winding movement and pointer date function. It was released to celebrate the brand’s 80th anniversary. Probably the most interesting feature of this watch is its bronze case that patinates naturally. The case back reveals the Caliber Oris 754, an in-house movement with a power reserve of 38 hours. This watch can be bought for $2,000 USD. 

Oris Big Crown 2021 Models: What’s New?

Released in June of 2021, the Oris Big Crown Holstein Edition Ref. 01 403 7776 4083-Set is a fresh rendition of the Big Crown original model, paying tribute to the brand’s place of origin. It became the first Big Crown watch of the century and also the first to house the Caliber 403. This movement is part of Oris’ Caliber 400 series, which boasts a power reserve of 120 hours and elevated levels of anti-magnetism. 

Adding more features to the 403, this limited edition piece contains the same small seconds’ clock at 6 o’clock, as well as a pointer date function. Over the matte grey dial are white numerals and a pointer with red-colored tips. Luminous sword-shaped hands and a flat bezel are features that are new to this collection. On the case back, you can see an Oris bear and a limited edition number engraving. Lastly, this 38mm watch retails at $3,900 USD and is limited to just 250 pieces.

History Behind the Oris Big Crown Collection

The Oris Big Crown collection was first released in 1938 as the first watches produced for aviation. As aviators typically wear leather gloves on the job, setting a watch was very likely a bit tricky due to the crown’s small size. Thus the crown was oversized, allowing for the pilots to make their own adjustments with ease. This function-based design of the Big Crown has been a success, which Oris continues to produce even to this day.

From brushed stainless steel case, domed crystal, and skeleton case back down to legible dial face, this collection draws on many design cues from its predecessor. The cathedral-style hands, the sharp serif that gives a shadow effect to the Arabic numerals, as well as the painted railway-inspired black chapter ring may all seem familiar for Oris Big Crown collectors. Here, we get to see a modernized (still oversized) onion crown, as well as the button for winding that sits right beside it. The collection boasts its modernized look in several interpretations as well. First of those features is the coined-edge bezel finish, brushed lugs, and of course, symmetrically clean and beautifully desaturated tones of the dial.

Reasons to Buy an Oris Big Crown Watch

Forget about versatile sports watches or dressy timepieces, because Oris has really done well on reinterpreting its best creation. Inserting a vintage style on a stylishly modern sports watch, combined with an excellent movement, and offering it at a great value is an opportunity not to miss out on. It’s the perfect everyday watch that wears very nicely on the wrist. The thin bezel, curved lugs, and overall case shape also give the watch a defined structure that hugs perfectly on the wrist. Many collectors recommend the watch for this very reason. If you are out searching for an everyday watch at a reasonable price, you won’t regret including the Oris Big Crown in your collection.

Oris Big Crown: A Must-Have Vintage Pilot Watch

The Oris Big Crown combines ready-functionality and decidedly vintage aesthetics on an accessible timepiece. Stuffed with subtle details both vintage and modern, the Big Crown is creatively positioned just in the middle between a classic dressy watch and a sporty casual one.