The Watch My Dad Gave Me: Why Some Watches Become More Than Watches

There are watches you buy because you like them, watches you have wanted for years and watches you probably did not need but bought anyway. Then there are watches that become something much more important.

This weekend, my dad gave me his Bulgari Diagono Calibro 303, reference DG42SWGCH, a 42mm Swiss Italian chronograph he bought new in 2011.

I remember seeing the watch in the window of Parkhouse and Whyatt on Southampton High Street around 15 years ago. I thought it was one of the most special watches I had ever seen. At the time, being in my mid twenties, spending £12,000 on a watch was firmly out of reach. A few months later, my dad announced that he had ordered one.

I was envious at the time, although I now wonder whether he had already decided that, one day, it might become mine. Perhaps I will ask him.

A Watch With A History

My dad is celebrating 50 years of marriage and, to mark the occasion, decided to give both my brother and me a watch from his extensive collection.

What makes the gesture particularly special is that these were not watches bought specifically for the occasion. They had already been part of his life.

The Bulgari has spent 15 years on my dad's wrist. Now it is on mine, and that history makes it far more meaningful than any brand new watch could ever be.

It is almost entirely like new, but any tiny signs of wear are now part of its story. They are evidence that my dad actually wore it, and that is something you cannot recreate.

The Most Personal Watch In My Collection

I have always loved watches for their design, engineering, history and variety, but this has made me think about the difference between collecting watches and owning one that genuinely means something.

The Bulgari is now, without question, the most personal watch in my collection. When I look at it, I do not just see a Bulgari Diagono. I see my dad.

That is one of the most fascinating things about watches. We can spend hours discussing movements, finishing, case sizes and complications, but a watch can ultimately become a record of someone's life. It can accompany you through marriages, births, careers, holidays and countless ordinary days before eventually passing to someone else.

From One Generation To The Next

That is what makes this gift feel so significant. After 50 years of marriage, my dad has started passing pieces of his collection to his sons, giving two watches a new chapter in the story of our family.

My brother has his watch. I have mine.

The Bulgari was not an heirloom when my dad bought it in 2011. It was simply a watch he loved enough to buy and wear. It has become an heirloom because of everything that has happened since. That, to me, is what makes an heirloom. It is not necessarily the age of an object, but the story attached to it.

This One Is Staying With Me

There are plenty of watches I would happily buy, enjoy and eventually move on from. This one is different.

The Bulgari is the first watch in my collection that I know I will never part with. Not because of what it is, but because of who it came from.

I can imagine wearing it for decades, adding a few marks of my own and eventually watching my children recognise it as the watch that belonged to their grandfather.

Hopefully, one day, I will be able to hand it to the next generation. By then, its story will stretch across our family rather than simply belonging to one owner.

Why Watches Make Such Good Heirlooms

There is something particularly fitting about passing down a watch because it is designed to be worn. It does not need to sit in a box to be treasured. You put it on your wrist and take it with you. Knowing that the object on your wrist has previously been worn by someone you love makes it incredibly personal.

It also explains why vintage watches and watches with a history are so fascinating. We naturally wonder who wore them, where they went and what happened while they were on someone's wrist.

With my Bulgari, I already know the answer. I know exactly who wore it.

Winding Things Up

I will continue to review watches, discover interesting microbrands and inevitably find new watches that I convince myself I need.

But this Bulgari occupies a different place in my collection. It represents my dad, 50 years of marriage and a collection that has been built over many years. More importantly, it is a reminder that watches can carry memories in a way few other possessions can.

He bought it in 2011, wore it and looked after it. This weekend, he put it in my hands. One day, I hope I will do the same with someone else.

Until then, it will remain on my wrist, gathering a few more marks, telling a few more stories and becoming an even bigger part of our family's history.

Some watches tell the time. Some watches tell a story. This one tells mine.