2,136 articles · 366 videos found · page 52 of 84
Quill & Pad
The Watches TV presents a follow-up video of Danièla and Philippe Dufour, marking close to a year of the two working together. Philippe expresses his joy at working with his daughter, who is in a perfect position to achieve the high level of work that the master requires for his timepieces and carry on the family name.
Deployant
A new and unprecedented collaboration between Philips and Voutilainen and Zenith to restore and hand decorate a batch of Zenith Calibre 135-O movements.
SJX Watches
Having already designed its own El Primero limited edition, Phillips has collaborated with Zenith and Voutilainen to create the Calibre 135 Observatoire, a limited edition of 10 watches each powered by a cal. 135-O. The movement was the specially-regulated variant of Zenith’s flagship chronometer wristwatch movement of the mid-20th century, conceived solely to participate in observatory chronometer contests. As such, the movements were never cased and sold, until now. Contained in a platinum case, the movements were light decorated by Voutilainen, which also supplied the guilloche dial via its dial making subsidiary Comblemine. Initial thoughts The Calibre 135 Observatoire is a good looking watch. It’s evidently modelled on the vintage model and doesn’t change too much of the original design, but instead injects a few elegant details that give it more refinement, like the guilloche chapter ring. These discreet flourishes are enough to set it apart as a higher end watch than the vintage original, which are more of a functional precision chronometer. More broadly, it’s a three-way collaboration that reflects the strengths of the collaborators to different degrees. For Phillips, the Observatoire is a sensible collaboration since it chimes with its strength in selling both vintage and modern watches at the top end of the price spectrum. And it also a perfect base for the auctioneer to utilise the discerning eye of the gentlemen behind the project, namely Aurel Bacs a...
Quill & Pad
True solar time is measured by the position of the sun and can run up to 16 minutes ahead of and 14 minutes behind the time shown on our clocks and watches. Our friends at The Watches TV spent a day with Philippe Dufour to have a look at this phenomenon in a personal way.
Time+Tide
The Longines Spirit collection was one of the most instantly successful new watch releases from a big brand in years, with not a single detail out of place. It’s almost as if Longines read the collective consciousness of the world’s watch fanatics and crafted the perfect pilot-style watch, with just the right amount of vintage … ContinuedThe post INTRODUCING: The Longines Spirit Zulu Time collection is upgraded with a COSC-certified GMT calibre appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
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Quill & Pad
“I have no secrets as past watchmakers had. There are graveyards full of secrets and that’s enough.” – Philippe Dufour, 2014. That quote alone is enough to understand why he matters. But, as GaryG writes, there is much more.
Time+Tide
Philippe Dufour. It’s a name any die-hard watch enthusiast should know. Considered by many as the greatest living watchmaker today, Dufour is known for his unrivalled level of movement finishing. One of the more well-known references he creates, The Simplicity, has a bit of a misleading name. Yes, it is, on the surface, a simple … ContinuedThe post Watchmaking legend Philippe Dufour looks to one particular brand for his daily wearer… appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
SJX Watches
A quartet representing the entirety of Philippe Dufour’s repertoire went under the hammer last year, with the Grande Sonnerie wristwatch no. 1 setting the record for any Dufour sold publicly when it achieved the equivalent of US$5.2 million including fees. Sold at the same auction, but for substantially less, was the Grande Sonnerie pocket watch no. 1. Despite the relative values, the pocket watch is arguably a more significant timepiece within Mr Dufour’s work. Why? Initial thoughts In today’s wristwatch-centric era, the fact that it is a pocket watch counts against it. That was also the verdict of the market – the pocket watch sold for half as much as the wristwatch in November 2021. But the Grande Sonnerie pocket watch is the ultimate distillation of Philippe Dufour’s philosophy, the ideal synthesis of the inspiration and impetus behind his creations. He has long stated, both publicly and to me in past conversations, that his watches are a reverential homage to the haute horlogerie produced in the Vallée de Joux during its heyday before the Quartz Crisis, the period between the late 19th to the mid 20th centuries. Timepieces of that era, especially those with ebauches made by the valley’s best specialists like Louis-Elisee Piguet and Ami LeCoutre, are the best watches ever made in Switzerland in his view. And the Grande Sonnerie pocket watch can pass for a timepiece from the late 19th century, perhaps even one made by Mr Dufour’s favourite historical w...
Time+Tide
Anniversaries are monumental moments in all aspects of life and they’re certainly no different in watchmaking. It has been no secret that this year marks the 50th anniversary of the Royal Oak, originally conceived by Gérald Genta and manufactured by Audemars Piguet in 1972, and that a successor of some form was on the horizon. … ContinuedThe post HANDS-ON: The Audemars Piguet Royal Oak “Jumbo” Extra-Thin ref. 16202 with new in-house calibre 7121 appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
SJX Watches
Omega’s opening act for the year is a splendid reinterpretation of the first-ever Speedmaster, the ref. 2915-1 of 1957. More accurately, it’s a splendidly luxurious take on the vintage original. The Speedmaster Calibre 321 in Canopus Gold is equipped with (almost) the same movement as the ref. 2915, and retains the same dimensions – but it’s entirely in Omega’s proprietary white gold alloy and enhanced with extras like an onyx dial and enamelled tachymeter scale. Entirely in Canopus gold, Omega’s own white gold alloy Initial thoughts Omega is starting 2022 in a big way with a heavyweight timepiece that perfectly encapsulate the brand’s historical greatness – which naturally means a Speedmaster. And it’s not just any Speedmaster, but arguably the ultimate iteration of the Moon Watch: the cal. 321 in a CK2915-1 case. The result is a watch that seems straight out of 1957 at a glance, but one that’s definitely heftier and shinier up close. The new Speedmaster does a good job at evoking a perfectly preserved example from the 1950s, thanks to clean dial that avoids faux patina. The purely modern aesthetic makes sense, since it gives the watch its own identity and clearly distinguishes it from the vintage originals and later remakes, most notably the 1957 Trilogy Speedmaster released in 2017 for the 60th anniversary of the model. That said, the new Speedmaster isn’t particularly creative – it does feel a little like yet another Speedmaster – since i...
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Quill & Pad
In this video, Philippe Dufour and Claude Sfeir discuss the results of the November 2021 Phillips auction featuring the Grande et Petite Sonnerie No. 1 pocket watch (1989), the Grande et Petite Sonnerie wristwatch (1992), the Duality (1996), and the Simplicity (2004). And they drop a hint that something new might well be in the works.
Quill & Pad
The Phillips' Geneva Watch Auction: XIV in November 2021 was one of the watch auctions of the decade. Here are the eye-watering results raised by the four historical Philippe Dufour watches.
SJX Watches
One of the most anticipated sales during Geneva’s watch auction week just concluded with a big number – the Philippe Dufour Grande Sonnerie wristwatch sold for CHF4.749 million, or about US$5.2 million, including fees. While bidding was steady, it was restrained. Three bidders were the key movers behind the result – a phone bidders represented by Yong Ho and Alex Ghotbi of Phillips in Hong Kong and Geneva respectively, as well as an online bidder in Singapore. At the end it was down to the Singaporean buyer and Mr Ghotbi’s phone bidder, who clinched the watch with a hammer of CHF3.9 million. I wrote just earlier this week that I expected the Grande Sonnerie to sell for between US$4.0-5.0 million, so the result was well within my expectation. While there was talk of a far higher number prior to the sale, a variety of factors led me to that range, including the number of known potential buyers as well as the values of comparable watches. And that was how it turned out.
Quill & Pad
In November 2021 collectors have the chance to see (and possibly buy) all four Philippe Dufour watches in one place, making Phillips' Geneva Watch Auction: XIV what could well be the watch auction of the decade. Joshua Munchow takes a look at each of the four Philippe Dufour models on the block and examines why this is likely to leave its mark on the auction world for years to come.
Hodinkee
"When you have a fantastic brand like Patek, you have to protect the brand and not just one product." – Thierry Stern
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Hodinkee
For Patek, history isn't just something you remember – it's something you make.
Time+Tide
In recent years, there’s been a noticeable trend for watch cases returning to the smaller and more classical sizes of old. Robbie Jones (@robbiethepainter) takes it to a whole other level. The artist creates impeccably detailed models of miniature watches. How tiny? They have diameters under 5mm wide. “When I was five-years-old, my grandmother used … ContinuedThe post From Patek to Omega, the artist creating the tiniest watches in the world appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
Revolution
Coming Up For Sale: Four Stunning Philippe Dufours at Phillips Geneva Watch Auction: XIV
Quill & Pad
A collaboration between renowned watch designer Alain Silberstein and the founder and director of the Utinam Besançon clock manufacture, Philippe Lebru, this imposing, colorful timekeeper meets the eye and runs away with it.
Quill & Pad
Philippe Dufour's daughter Daniela has now completed her formal watchmaker studies and has begun working with her famous independent watchmaker father. Notably, she just completed her first new-generation Simplicity.
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Quill & Pad
It’s no secret: GaryG is an immense admirer of Philippe Dufour. Part of greatness, of course, is leaving a legacy; not only through one’s works, but in the skills and inspiration passed on to those who follow, which Dufour has liberally done. But who, if anyone, will history regard as the lineal heir to the Dufour tradition? Gary has reached what may seem a counterintuitive conclusion: Romain Gauthier.
Quill & Pad
Philippe Dufour is the epitome of traditional watchmaking, and it was his time-only Simplicity that really brought the Vallée de Joux-based watchmaker horological fame. Here The Naked Watchmaker deconstructs three examples of this watch for our pleasure.
SJX Watches
Appropriately for the 90th anniversary of famed reversible wristwatch, Jaeger-LeCoultre (JLC) has debuted the ultimate Reverso. Boasting 11 complications, including a tourbillon, minute repeater, and instantaneous perpetual calendar, the Reverso Hybris Mechanica Calibre 185 Quadriptyque is a monumental wristwatch with four faces and a movement made up of 800 parts. Initial thoughts The Calibre 185 Quadriptyque is smaller than the Reverso Grande Complication à Triptyque – which was so big as to be almost unwearable for most – but still sizeable enough to be clunky. It measures 51.2 mm by 31 mm, while standing 15.15 mm high, making it larger than the biggish Nonantième that was launched at the same time. Granted, the size is necessary for the ultra-complex, four-faced movement. Majority of the complications within the new grand complication can be found in past JLC watches, making the Calibre 185 Quadriptyque something of a greatest-hits compilation for the brand. Impressive as it is, the Calibre 185 feels dated, in the sense that watches with numerous complications stacked up were a “thing” in the 2000s; the Triptyque was launched in 2007 and truly exotic in its day. Now that such watches are fairly common, with many leading brands having their own grand multi-complications, the concept is less impressive, regardless of the technical achievement. It’s also worth pointing out that the watch is elaborately decorated – mainly with Clous de Paris guilloche ...
Time+Tide
The tide seems to be shifting in the auction world towards scarcity and craftsmanship, rather than scratched-up provenance and movie-star affiliations. We could see results of this theory already in our story on the latest Antiquorum auction here. In Monaco, the auction darlings of the last five years, steel sports Rolex, did OK, whereas the … ContinuedThe post Recommended Reading: Dufour and Journe are basically the Patek and Rolex of the Indies, and they are on a tear appeared first on Time+Tide Watches.
Deployant
Now that the Patek Nautilus 5711/1A is officially retired, what are some alternatives in the genre that one can aspire to?
Video
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