tempus automatic

The Pope Gets A Free Erhard Junghans Watch

The German-born Pope gets a German-born watch. Recently, watch company Erhard Junghans gifted Pope Benedict XVI a shiny new Tempus Automatic watch with an enamel dial and a fine automatic mechanical movement. The watch company has been around since 1861, which is apparently the year that the previous Pope was born (I jest).

The watch was presented to the Pope by a German politician, Volker Kauder, who presides over the electoral district where Erhard Junghans is located in the Black Forest region in Germany. The watch was specially engraved to commemorate Kauder's visit to the Vatican and was described as a personal gift to Pope Benedict XVI. It is unclear whether the gift is directly from Kauder himself or as part of a joint gift from Erhard Junghans as well. The watch brand is more or less unknown in the US, and is a higher-end brand from the more basic named "Junghans" brand in Germany.

The gifted timepiece is the stainless steel version of the Tempus Automatic watch that is 42mm wide with an automatic mechanical movement inside and a display caseback. The white enamel dial has black lacquer Roman numerals on the dial and is priced at about 1,900 euros. The watch is also available with a black colored dial, and also in a limited edition 18k rose gold model that goes for about 7,800 euros. It will be seen whether or not the Pope will wear the new watch, but if so, will make for excellent PR for the watch brand.

Ariel Adams publishes the luxury watch review site aBlogtoRead.com.

Gallery: Erhard Junghans watch for the Pope