English watches are becoming very vogue right now. For a while (though it was a long time ago), England was the place to be a watch maker. Even Rolex has British roots. Then for a long time the English were OK with just buying watches, and not making them as much. With today’s resurgent popularity of the mechanical watch and the impressive marketing increases in the consumption of luxury watches, things are changing in England with more and more watch makers setting up shop. A good deal of them are older watch companies making a “comeback.”

Dent is one of those historical English watch and clock makers that has now resurfaced thanks to a couple of enterprising individuals in England. And what a wonderful brand to bring back. Back in the mid 19th century, Dent was awarded the contract to build the clock at the top of the tower at the Palace of Westminster. The clock was later known as Big Ben, and is one of the most recognizable clocks on the planet. Dent has more than enough history, and too much for me to go into now. Further, the “Dent” name is really cool, even though it is just the name name of the original founder.

The new Dent watches recall the history of British watch making along with London’s architecture. There are several models split between two lines, the Ministry watches (round cases), and the Parliament watches (square cases). The pictured model is ref. 01-001-H01, and is based directly on the look of Big Ben from the color of the face, along with the Roman numerals and hands. Added to the watch are a seconds hand and date which the clock tower lacks.

The case is really spectacular. The top of the case has what is known as crenelation (also spelled “crenellation”) which resembles the balustrade-like elements at the top and bottom of the large clock, but look like battlements on castle designs. The sides of the cases have deeply reliefed horizontal lines that look excellent and are a variance from the typical vertical case lines. The case itself is available in white gold or rose gold, and there are various different color options for the face (white, off-white, and black). Inside the watch is the Dent automatic caliber 101.

I love the integration of the black or brown alligator strap which is of course top quality, and is styled after the strap on the Bell & Ross BR-01 line of watches. That is actually not the only resemblance to Bell & Ross. In addition, both the BR-01 and the Dent Parliament share a round face in a square case, which is an excellent hybridization of the best of both worlds, for style and legibility.

The new stream of luxury British watches are all highly stylized, but in a more conservative manner. Items you don’t have to worry about in almost any setting. Which is actually a commonality of most traditionally British designs; always tasteful, never offensive. I really like most of the new Dent watches in both the Ministry and Parliament lines, and will likely give them more coverage. I can’t say as much for the retail prices which are in the $20,000 + range. Look for something more akin to $12,000 – $15,000 after a bit of haggling with a retailer in store on online.

See Dent watches on eBay here.

See Dent watches on Amazon here. [phpbay]dent, num, “14324”, “”[/phpbay]