Between you and me: Design thoughts about the new topic Timeless

First of all I just got back from Sardinia and I have got to catch up with posts! I couldn't use internet, I just had a quick look at my facebook from my cellphone randomly, but I had a little time to think about this new topic that I love and needs a few thoughts if we are talking about design.
What would you define a timeless product? Is it something really old that lasts till nowadays? Is it about style? Shape? Colour? Perception? Importance? Fuction?

I would say all of them and none. Let me explain: When I saw the new topic I start thinking about objects that are still great design exaples over the years, but then, I thouhgt that the most timeless products are the Archetypes (An archetype (pronounced /ˈɑrkɪtaɪp/) is an original model of a person, ideal example, or a prototype upon which others are copied, patterned, or emulated; a symbol universally recognized by all.). It doesn't mean that they must be old objects, they could be contemporary archtypes: objects that have been simplified to their essencials. When I think of an Archetype I think of forks and matches...I don't know why, but are great examples, because there's no simpliest way to design them and there is no designer, they are part of our culture. This is an italian book that shows somecommon objects whose designers are unknown.
The list of them is pretty much endless, but it would be interesting to find some contemporary archetypes. I would dare say that the IPod is an archetype: it's simple, it changed the approach to the object by introducing a new movement for objects: the thumb rotation. And, white hearphones, a symbol, a status, a lifestyle.
But I can't deny that there are some famous objects that I would call endless because of their history, of their shape, of their innovation.