F.P. Journe Octa Réserve De Marche Ref. A Brass Rose Gold Grey Dial

This is the watch that started the Octa line in 2001, in its original name and its original 38 mm case. Journe later renamed it and grew the case to 40, so the early ones are a distinct thing rather than a smaller version of the current model. White gold on the dial against a rose gold case was the launch combination, and the one photographed for most of the early press coverage. Few were built before the movements changed.

The rose gold case is 38 mm, which reads as genuinely compact next to anything in the current collection. A white gold plate holds whitened guilloché silver registers, the time off center, a large date at the upper right and small seconds below. A cool plate inside a warm case gives the dial its only real contrast, and the layout has not been redrawn since. It wears like a far newer watch than it is.