Today, Roger Dubuis is most readily associated with the Excalibur, openworked movements and an unapologetically contemporary aesthetic. Yet when the manufacture was founded in 1995 by master watchmaker Roger Dubuis and Carlos Dias, its identity was considerably more classical. Having previously worked at Longines and Patek Philippe, Dubuis built his early watches around traditional Geneva watchmaking, with the Hommage collection serving as perhaps the purest expression of that philosophy.

The Hommage H37 Ref. H37.57.0 series captures this early period beautifully. Its restrained 37mm case in 18k white gold surrounds a silver-toned dial whose design recalls mid-century dress watches. Applied Arabic numerals at 12, 3, 6 and 9 are complemented by faceted hour markers, sharply formed hands and a finely graduated outer track.

Particularly evocative is the inscription “horloger genevois” beneath the Roger Dubuis signature—a declaration of the brand’s identity as a Geneva watchmaker. At six o’clock, “Bulletin d’Observatoire” points to another defining characteristic of early Roger Dubuis: an unusually serious emphasis on chronometry and traditional certification.

Inside is the automatic Calibre 57, visible through the sapphire caseback and distinguished by an oscillating weight bearing the early RD emblem. The surrounding caseback engravings reinforce the artisanal character that defined the manufacture before its later transformation into a far more extroverted brand.

The appeal of the H37 lies not in complication, but in context. Its compact white-gold case, traditional proportions and understated dial preserve a moment when Roger Dubuis was still a young independent manufacture deeply rooted in classical Geneva horology. Today, it stands as one of the clearest windows into the watchmaker’s original vision.