IWC SCHAFFHAUSEN INTRODUCES ITS FIRST PORTOFINO IN TRIBUTE TO THE LITTLE PRINCE
Schaffhausen/Geneva, 14th April, 2026: IWC Schaffhausen unveils the Portofino Automatic Day & Night 34 Le Petit Prince at Watches and Wonders in Geneva. Crafted in durable stainless steel and featuring a deep blue dial with a sunrise finish, this elegant dress watch marks the Swiss luxury watch manufacturer’s first Portofino model paying tribute to “The Little Prince”. As a charming nod to Antoine de Saint-Exupéry’s world-famous novel, the Little Prince is depicted standing on the golden moon in the watch’s day and night display at 6 o’clock.
Since it was first published over 80 years ago, “The Little Prince” has remained immensely popular with both children and adults. The enchanting story follows a Little Prince as he embarks on a journey through space to faraway planets, gaining valuable insights along the way. In his most famous literary work, Antoine de Saint-Exupéry explores profound philosophical themes such as love, loss, and friendship. One of the book’s iconic quotes is, “It is only with the heart that one can see rightly; what is essential is invisible to the eye.” It serves as a potent reminder that true understanding and beauty come from emotions and feelings, rather than merely seeing. IWC Schaffhausen now introduces its first Le Petit Prince edition in the Portofino collection.
The Portofino Automatic Day & Night 34 Le Petit Prince (Ref. IW459806) features a compact 34-millimetre case crafted in durable stainless steel. The design of this elegant and timeless dress watch is complemented with a deep blue dial with gold-plated hands and appliques. These dials, which are treated with an elaborate sunray finish, are a signature feature of IWC’s special editions honoring Saint-Exupéry’s timeless tale. A highlight of this watch is the day-and-night indication at 6 o’clock, which visualises the continuous transition between day and night and completes one full rotation every 24 hours. At noon or at midnight, either the sun or the moon appears in the upper section of the small disc, indicating whether it is currently day or night. As a charming design detail, the Little Prince is depicted standing on the moon, gazing at the starry night sky. The stainless steel case back also features an engraving of the Little Prince.
This watch is powered by the Calibre 35180, which features an automatic winding system and has a power reserve of 50 hours. It is paired with a hand-coloured blue alligator leather strap from the Italian leather artisan Santoni, which is equipped with a quick-change system and a butterfly folding clasp.
IWC Schaffhausen is the Engineer of Watchmaking. In 1868, the American watchmaker and engineer Florentine Ariosto Jones established the ‘International Watch Company’ in Schaffhausen in the German-speaking part of Switzerland. By combining the best of human craftsmanship and creativity with cutting-edge industrial technology and processes, he laid the foundation for IWC’s unique engineering approach to watchmaking.
IWC’s distinctive and pure design is brought to life through collections ranging from elegant dress watches to sports and luxury sports watches, notably the Portugieser, Portofino, Pilot’s Watches and Ingenieur. Over its more than 150-year history, IWC has earned a reputation for creating professional instrument watches and functional complications, especially chronographs and calendars, which are ingenious, robust and easy to use.
A pioneer in the use of titanium and ceramic, IWC specializes in performance materials such as Ceratanium®. IWC’s advanced engineering division XPL develops technologies that enhance the durability of mechanical watches and extend their applications to environments with extreme conditions such as jet aviation and human spaceflight.
IWC is a leader in luxury watchmaking, crafting timepieces built to last for generations and continuously improving every aspect of how it manufactures, distributes and services its watches responsibly. Empowering the next generation of engineers, the brand also partners with organizations that work globally to support children and young people. IWC. EngineeredTM.