Date Complications

The Date Complication stands as the most simple of the complications available in watches. Date complications come in a variety of types and sub-types.

Types of Date Complications:

• Digital Date

The digital date complication displays the date in numerical form. This is made possible through the aperture, a window cut out on the dial. The digital date display position usually was at the three o’clock mark. However, in today’s watches, the digital date position varies dependent on watch design.

Some noticeable varieties of the digital date complication are the;

Big Date Display – this complication presents the wearer with a much larger view of the date. Date legibility is better with this complication type as compared to the conventional date window. Variations of the big date display sometimes have two separate apertures. The left aperture, displaying numbers 0 to 3 while the right aperture displays numbers 0 to 9.

• Analog Date

The analog date complication brings in a twist in the date display on watches. From the center of the watch, a hand points out to the periphery of the dial. On the dial are the date markers. The center hand may in some watches feature a crescent or an arrow which distinguishes its role as a date indicator. The Analog date complication is in other instances referred to as Pointer Date or “Bankers” Date.

• Day-Date

The day-date complication, as the name suggests, has the day of the week in addition to the date complication. You will generally see the day aperture located at the noon position while the date is either at the three o’clock or six o’clock position.

Moreover, a turning of the crown will enable you to set the day and date. The crown will give you control over the adjustment of day and date. A turn it in one direction will change the day while a turn in the opposite direction will change the date for you. Some watches achieve day-date setting via a stylus found in an indented button located on the side of the watch case.

• Triple Calendar

The triple calendar takes the previous analog and day-date complications a notch higher. In the triple calendar complication, the month of the year appears as an additional aperture on the watch dial. Depending on the watch model the display positions of these apertures will vary. The triple calendar complication is also referred to as “complete calendar”.

More Information

The date complication may seem paltry with all gadgetry and technology that surround us today. However, coming across a timepiece lacking a date complication is a quite a rarety. Even those watches categorized as “no date” have a crown position for setting the date with a date wheel hidden underneath the dial.

In addition to this, the dial placement with the date complication wasn’t done by mere guesswork. The placement was determined such that a slight tug would reveal the watch and allow checking of the date from underneath a shirt or jacket. In present times aesthetics have a much greater role in determining watch buying decisions. Therefore, the placement and location of the date complication are as significant as its functionality.