Matteo Ricci, an Italian missionary, brought clocks to
Beijing in 1580s. Chinese artisans gradually learnt the clock manufacturing
technique. Emperors in Ming and Qing dynasty were enthusiastic about these
gadgets, especially fond of chime clocks. Many imperial poems were composed to
chant these western marvels. The noble and rich put great emphasis on clock
import and production.
In late 1954 two major clock factories in Tianjin formed
a watch trial production team primarily made up of four experienced workers who
were capable of repairing watches, but had never produced a single piece. The
trial production was actually a process of imitation on Swiss Sindaco. Except
the gemstones, balance and main springs, all 140 parts were hand-made, some of
which were thinner than paper, as fine as needle tip, smaller than a grain of
rice, margin of errors in wheelbase distance, hole diameter was smaller than a
human pair.
At 5:45pm, 24 March 1955, this milestone masterpiece was
born with a rhythmic ticking sound. It was beating 18000 times per hour, -90
seconds per day facing up, -60 seconds per day facing down, 24 hour power
reserve.
The name was called “five-star” because there were five
stars on the national flag. This watch announced the end of China’s “able to
repair, unable to produce” history. Meanwhile it laid a technical foundation
for the mass production of WuYi.
A close examination of this “five-star” reissue reveals
the following,
l Antique creamy yellow front face
l Polished sliver hour, minute and second hands
l Polished sliver hours – even numbers in digits, odd numbers in stripes
l Date calendar at 3, which is an add-on feature for modern demand.
l Above 6 o’clock prints “China-made”
l Below 12 o’clock is a
shining silver star, underneath prints “17-jewel
waterproof watch”
l 38mm diameter, 10mm thickness, black leather band
In summary, “Five-star” is claimed to be the 1st watch
trial-produced; “WuYi” is claimed to be the 1st watch mass-produced
commercially.