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Results for Tourbillon

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Flying Tourbillon

Alfred Helwig's 1920 tourbillon variant with no upper bridge; the entire cage is visible.
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H. Moser & Cie. Streamliner Tourbillon Skeleton Ceramic Alpine Limited Edition: A Ceramic Case Changes Everything

Moser's wildest Streamliner yet pairs a flying tourbillon skeleton with a ceramic case, all under the Alpine F1 banner
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Girard-Perregaux Laureato Fifty Tourbillon Micro-Rotor 39: The Octagon Gets Its Most Serious Movement Yet

Four new calibers in 12 months. The latest drops a flying tourbillon and a micro-rotor into a 39mm Laureato case, and it looks the part.
Exclusive · Guide
Panerai Luminor Tourbillon GMT Titanio PAM01784: The Softer Side of a Big Complication

A tourbillon, a GMT, and a titanium case walk into a Luminor. The result is more restrained than you'd expect.
Introducing Gagà Laboratorio, a New Independent Watch Brand with Italian Flare Worn & Wound
Bvlgari Aug 28, 2024

Introducing Gagà Laboratorio, a New Independent Watch Brand with Italian Flare

Two prominent industry insiders have recently collaborated to establish a new watch company, Gagà Laboratorio, based in Switzerland. Mo Coppoletta will serve as the Art Director, and Ruben Tomella as the owner of the Italy based Gagà Milano brand and the newly formed company, Gagà Laboratorio. Mr. Tomella has had a successful tenure with Gagà Milano for two decades. He founded brand offshoot Manufacture Gagà in Switzerland, which has focused on creating high-end products for Gagà Milano in collaboration with leading industry partners, including the development of tourbillon movements in partnership with Hysek, a Swiss independent brand. In 2020, Mr. Tomella decided to redirect the activities of the Swiss company and embarked on establishing a new brand, Gagà Laboratorio. The mission of Gagà Laboratorio is to create entry-level luxury timepieces that emphasize design while maintaining high-quality movement standards. To achieve this vision, he partnered with artist Mo Coppoletta, a long-time friend. Together, they have initiated this new chapter for Gagà. Mo Coppoletta is a world-renowned artist, designer, and tattoo artist, known for his collaborations with Bvlgari on two Octo Finissimo limited editions featuring his tattoo artwork. In my interview with Mr. Tomella, he discusses the vision of Gagà Laboratorio. “After 16 years in the watchmaking industry at the helm of Gagà Milano, in 2020, I felt a strong pull towards the world of independent watchmaking and d...

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Zenith Introduces their Third Collaboration with Artist Felipe Pantone Worn & Wound
Zenith Introduces their Third Collaboration Aug 27, 2024

Zenith Introduces their Third Collaboration with Artist Felipe Pantone

Over the past few years, Zenith’s limited edition releases made in collaboration with Felipe Pantone have been a highlight among the deluge of collaborative limited editions that have become so popular as of late. The Zenith x Pantone pieces tend to feel like little pieces of art, which is appropriate when the collaborate is a visual artist. These collaborations also seem to be right at home within the Defy line, a collection that has embraced a flair for color and the avant-garde as long as it has been in existence. The latest release from the pair is perhaps their most ambitious yet, and marks the first time Pantone has had a hand in a watch in the current Defy Skyline collection.  The Defy Skyline Tourbillon Felipe Pantone takes what is almost certainly the brand’s most exotic Defy and gives it a blast of the chromatic and optical touches that Pantone is known for. The tourbillon, of course, is the literal centerpiece of the design, and the bridge has been refashioned here as a lightning bolt, a motif found throughout Pantone’s work. Its colorful gradient and metallic finish is reminiscent of the finishing that made the first Pantone collaboration such a standout.  While the previous Felipe Pantone collaborations have featured dials that are largely skeletonized, a different approach was taken with the new Defy Skyline Tourbillon. The dial is a large sapphire disc and has been micro-engraved with a pattern of concentric circles. This “moire” effect is anothe...

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Introducing - The Bianchet B1.618 Grand Date Sapphire Edition Pulls Back All Covers Monochrome
Bianchet Aug 26, 2024

Introducing - The Bianchet B1.618 Grand Date Sapphire Edition Pulls Back All Covers

Bianchet has been carving out a name for itself for crafting high-tech shock-resistant sports tourbillon watches, with a signature tonneau shape. The curved profile, integrated rubber straps, and ultra-resilient construction ensure optimum comfort and performance under pretty much any circumstance. To showcase its watchmaking capabilities well beyond the complex openworked movements, Bianchet now presents the […]

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REVIEW: Hands On With The TAG Heuer Aquaracer Professional 300 GMT WatchAdvice
TAG Heuer Aquaracer Professional 300 GMT Aug 14, 2024

REVIEW: Hands On With The TAG Heuer Aquaracer Professional 300 GMT

TAG Heuer has refined their Aquaracer collection and with many improvements, we wanted to see what all the hype was about. Here’s what we thought… What We Love: Better proportions and size On-the-fly micro-adjust New colours and dial aesthetics What We Don’t: Being a Caller GMT rather than a Flyer GMT Cyclops window over the date aperture Some may find the clasp isn’t as sturdy as other pieces on the market Overall Rating: 8.75/10 Value for Money: 9/10 Wearability: 9/10 Design: 8.5/10 Build Quality: 8.5/10 TAG Heuer has been on a run of late. At the start of 2023, they brought us a new look Carrera Chronograph “Glassbox” for its 60th anniversary and seemed to knock it out of the park with these. This run continued through 2023 with new variations of the Carrera, but then mid-year, a range of new Monaco’s in titanium with skeleton dials popped up and we saw Max Verstappen sporting a unique version of one of these on his wrist for much of the year. This year, 2024 saw new Carrera variants come out at LVMH Watch Week, including the Dato and a teal green Tourbillon Chronograph and then at Watches & Wonders 2024, the Monaco Split Seconds Chronograph based on TAG Heuer’s Only Watch entry was released to much applause. Oh, and let’s not forget the Formula 1 x Kith collaborations. But, all this left us wondering, what about the Aquaracer? We saw smaller versions of the Aquaracer Northern Lights models at LVMH watch week, which gave us a small taste of what’...

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Delma Releases a Limited Edition Chronograph to Continue their 100th Anniversary Celebration Worn & Wound
Aug 2, 2024

Delma Releases a Limited Edition Chronograph to Continue their 100th Anniversary Celebration

Earlier this year we told you about Swiss brand Delma’s 100th anniversary celebration, which kicked off with the release of a limited edition tourbillon. Of course, plenty of brands release tourbillons and they are a natural for a celebratory watch, but very few come in at under $10,000, which the Delma did during its pre-order period (the full retail price is $13,900, which is still quite affordable for a Swiss tourbillon). Their latest effort, announced last month, has also been released to coincide with the brand’s centenary, but it’s a bit more modest in its focus. The new Heritage Chronograph 100 Years Limited Edition pays tribute to Delma’s long history of making chronographs in a handsome package that’s a bit more under the radar (and more affordable) than their release from earlier in the year.  Delma traces their history of making chronographs to the mid 1940s when the brand’s focus began to shift to sport oriented watches. Over the years, they’ve made watches for just about every sporting discipline that a well rounded watch brand would ever attempt, including dive watches, timepieces meant for racing of all kinds, as well as travel watches. The new Heritage Chronograph has several clear vintage cues meant to tie this watch to the brand’s earliest sports watches.  Like many WWII era and later mid century chronographs, the Heritage Chronograph features both tachymeter and telemeter scales at the dial’s outer perimeter. Red accents within the te...

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First Look - The Zenith Defy Skyline White Ceramic Skeleton Monochrome
Zenith Defy Skyline White Ceramic Jul 3, 2024

First Look - The Zenith Defy Skyline White Ceramic Skeleton

Released in 2022, the Defy Skyline collection was Zenith‘s answer to the large demand for sports watches with integrated design and bracelet. Since its initial introduction, we have seen multiple new editions of this watch, including compact versions, ceramic models, a chronograph and even a high-frequency tourbillon. But one of the most impactful models was […]

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Hands On: Lange Datograph Up/Down 25th Anniversary SJX Watches
Casio n worth marking Lange Jul 2, 2024

Hands On: Lange Datograph Up/Down 25th Anniversary

A. Lange & Söhne marks the 25th year of its landmark chronograph this year, with two commemorative editions so far – a tremendously expensive all-in-one edition and the relatively more accessible Datograph Up/Down 25th Anniversary. The first Datograph with a white gold case and also the first regular production model with a blue dial, the anniversary edition the result of a relatively modest cosmetic makeover – but unexpectedly compelling. Initial thoughts The Datograph in an imperfect watch – amongst other things it’s top heavy with a somewhat dated dial design – but it has an intrinsic appeal because its movement is outstanding. Even though it’s already 25 years old, the movement remains exceptional in terms of aesthetics. The fact that it’s 25 years old also makes the Datograph important, because Lange created such a movement long before such things became a thing. So the 25th anniversary of the Datograph is an occasion worth marking. Lange debuted two watches for the anniversary (with perhaps a third one to come): the complicated and expensive Datograph Perpetual Tourbillon Honeygold Lumen, and the more accessible Datograph 25th Anniversary. On its face the Datograph Up/Down seems a bit mundane for an anniversary watch. Both the blue dial and white gold case are unique for the Datograph, but together the watch doesn’t look or feel that different. But like the Datograph as a model, the anniversary edition is imperfect yet appealing. Though it is plain...

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Hands-on - The Bold and Ultra-Modern Roger Dubuis Excalibur Titanium Monotourbillon Monochrome
Roger Dubuis Excalibur Titanium Monotourbillon Mr Jul 1, 2024

Hands-on - The Bold and Ultra-Modern Roger Dubuis Excalibur Titanium Monotourbillon

Mr Roger Dubuis founded his eponymous brand in 1995, swiftly achieving success with timepieces that deftly balance traditional watchmaking craftsmanship and bold, expressive designs. Since 2003, the brand has been renowned for its expertise in tourbillon watches, starting with the calibre RD03. This fully integrated manufacture has since become a specialist in architectural skeletonised tourbillons, […]

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H. Moser & Cie. Unveils Its Most Complicated Streamliner to Date SJX Watches
H. Moser & Cie Unveils Jun 28, 2024

H. Moser & Cie. Unveils Its Most Complicated Streamliner to Date

The most complicated H. Moser & Cie. sports watch to date, the Streamliner Concept Minute Repeater Tourbillon Blue Enamel is derived from the unique Streamliner Pandamonium created in collaboration with MB&F;. The new Streamliner retains both the minute repeater and tourbillon, but without the panda figure and the oversized balance wheel. In typical Moser “concept” style, the blue grand feu enamel dial is free of any markings and finished with a fumè gradient effect that darkens towards the periphery. Also found in the Endeavour, the movement was developed in collaboration with specialist Manufacture Hautes Complications (MHC). Initial thoughts Since Moser released the Streamliner four years ago, the sports watch has become the brand’s bestseller – unsurprisingly given the popularity of the integrated-bracelet-sports-watch category in general. The new repeater-tourbillon fills in a gap in the Streamliner range, which is to say a top-of-the-line, flagship complication. Both minute repeater and flying tourbillon are visible on the dial If you like the Streamliner design, as I do, the new repeater-tourbillon is a handsome watch. The addition of the visible mechanisms on the dial add greater detail and depth to the visuals, while the fired enamel dial is a nice tough, though a fragile enamel dial is somewhat paradoxical in a sports watch. The repeater-tourbillon is similar in dimensions to the Streamliner chronograph, a good size for a sports watch of this design. The ...

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First Look - The New Grey Dial Louis Erard x Alain Silberstein Smile Day Monochrome
Louis Erard x Alain Silberstein Smile Jun 27, 2024

First Look - The New Grey Dial Louis Erard x Alain Silberstein Smile Day

Alain Silberstein and Louis Erard are at it again! One of the brand’s most veteran collaborators, Alain Silberstein has collaborated with Louis Erard since 2019, dialling up the colour of watches with his original design language. Following the Tourbillon Regulator, Silberstein’s latest Smile Day collaboration continues in the wake of earlier three-hand with day and […]

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A New Collaboration Between Louis Erard and Alain Silberstein is Meant to Make You Smile Everyday Worn & Wound
Louis Erard Jun 27, 2024

A New Collaboration Between Louis Erard and Alain Silberstein is Meant to Make You Smile Everyday

The last time we brought you news of a Louis Erard x Alain Silberstein collaboration, it was one of their most ambitious efforts to date, a Swiss tourbillon coming in under CHF 16,000, which brings a different angle to Louis Erard’s stated goal of making luxury watchmaking accessible. When that watch was released, Louis Erard promised additional collaborations to follow, and today we see the next step in their partnership. The Louis Erard x Alain Silberstein Smile-Day adds a new colorway to a fan favorite format, and shows that there’s still gas left in the collaboration tank.  The Smile-Day is a stand-alone version of the “La Semaine” concept that we’ve seen Louis Erard and Silberstein experiment with a few times now. This watch essentially takes a day-date complication and replaces the “day” with a series of smiling emojis. It doesn’t actually help you keep track of the calendar, but it’s a fun and whimsical idea, and has always felt like a great match to Silberstein’s playful use of color and shape. The wearer is invited to adjust the “day” to the emoji that most fits their mood, or perhaps the emoji that most fits the mood they want to be in.  Previous versions of this watch have appeared with black and drab green dials, but this has a very different personality with a light gray dial. It’s complemented by light blue hour markers and a matching oversized minute hand, with a red hour hand and bright yellow seconds hand. As with earlier exampl...

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Hands On: Louis Vuitton Escale Métiers d’Art “Cabinet Of Wonders” SJX Watches
Louis Vuitton Escale Métiers d’Art “Cabinet Jun 17, 2024

Hands On: Louis Vuitton Escale Métiers d’Art “Cabinet Of Wonders”

The recent debut of the Escale Time-Only was actually the second instalment of the design’s revival. Earlier this year, Louis Vuitton presented the Escale Métiers d’Art “Cabinet Of Wonders”, also time-only but with exceptionally elaborate dials decorated in a variety of artisanal crafts – all executed in-house at La Fabrique du Temps (LFT), the brand’s Geneva manufacture. The “cabinet” is a trio of watches with dials featuring Asian motifs inspired by a collection of tsuba, or Japanese sword guards, owned by Gaston-Louis Vuitton, the grandson of Louis Vuitton. Ranging from enamelling to marquetry to hammering, the dial decoration is intricate and three-dimensional. From left: Koi’s Garden, Dragon’s Cloud, and Snake’s Jungle Initial thoughts Like the Voyager Flying Tourbillon Plique-à-Jour, the Cabinet of Wonders is a tangible realisation of LFT’s swift buildup of an in-house métiers d’art workshop that encompasses enamelling, engraving, and guilloche. The métiers d’art workshop is just one facet of Louis Vuitton’s ambitious, wide-ranging development of its watchmaking division, a project that is still a work in progress but advancing at a pace rapid enough that it will go far quickly. The dials are lavish, complex, and finely executed. Although they are each decorated with a variety of techniques, the different textures, colours, and styles complement each other perfectly. The quality of the work is comparable to that of Van Cleef & Arpe...

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De Bethune Launches Two New DB Eight References Worn & Wound
De Bethune Launches Two New DB Jun 14, 2024

De Bethune Launches Two New DB Eight References

A little over a year on from the release of the DB Eight, De Bethune is following up the mono-usher chronograph with two new variants, each in gold, and each of which offers a welcome look back at the early days of the brand.  De Bethune is a brand well-versed in the avant-garde. The name alone tends to conjure images of remarkably blue tourbillons with spring-loaded lugs, and other sci-fi-esque watches. In the last few years, De Bethune has become well known for pushing the boundaries of watchmaking in both a technical and aesthetic sense - they even sent a watch to (near) space on the wrist of Michael Strahan. If you’re only familiar with De Bethune thanks to watches like the DB28 Kind of Blue Tourbillon or the DB28GS Yellow Submarine, looking back at the early days of De Bethune might come with a bit of a surprise. Early De Bethunes stood out not because of any outrageous architecture or wild case finishing, but rather thanks to a refined - and very traditional - look, backed up by the technical prowess of Denis Flageollet, the brand’s founder. The DB8 was one of these early, very traditional watches. Though still identifiable as a De Bethune thanks to its bullet lugs and three-part case, the DB8 was (in most senses) a very traditional take on the concept of a mono-pusher chronograph dress watch. The new DB Eight is a fitting follow up to that watch, holding on to much of the original’s concept and charm, but with each and every detail refined and update...

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Hands-On Impressions of the New Credor Locomotive Worn & Wound
Grand Seiko s Madison Avenue boutique Jun 7, 2024

Hands-On Impressions of the New Credor Locomotive

Walking into Grand Seiko’s Madison Avenue boutique last week, I was ready for a fun evening with great company. After all, that’s what you expect anytime you go to an event hosted by Complecto. What I wasn’t expecting was the opportunity to check out the latest and greatest from Credor, the recently relaunched Locomotive, just a day after its public launch. Timed to celebrate the 50th anniversary of Credor, the revival of the Locomotive resurrects a long-dormant design from probably the most influential and well-known watch designer of the 20th century, Gerald Genta, and it more than lives up to both his name, and that of Credor. And speaking of names; when is a Seiko, not a Seiko? I admit, it’s a slightly odd question, but it bears asking. Seiko sells watches at just about every conceivable price point for every conceivable customer. But whether you’re picking up a Seiko for $79.94 on Amazon or a Kodo Constant Force Tourbillon for $350,000, every watch in the Seiko lineup will always have something in common - the word “Seiko” on the dial. It’s hard to think of another watch brand that not only sells watches at such dramatically different prices, but that doesn’t shy away from putting the same name on their entire collection. Sure, there are slight differences we learn to decode. Grand Seiko and Prospex elicit different reactions from collectors than Seiko 5 or Astron but, fundamentally, Seiko proudly declares just about every watch they make a Seiko. ...

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Introducing - The Rose Gold & Brown Dial Version of the Piaget Polo Date Monochrome
Piaget Polo Date Piaget has Jun 4, 2024

Introducing - The Rose Gold & Brown Dial Version of the Piaget Polo Date

Piaget has been busy celebrating its 150th anniversary this year. As a precursor of ultra-thin movements since the 1950s, Piaget has recovered its throne and is basking in the limelight with its world record-breaking 2mm-thin Altiplano Ultimate Concept Tourbillon. While it does not hold a world record, Piaget’s flamboyant 1979 Polo watch has also been […]

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Just Because - Audemars Piguet Unveils an Unprecedented Polychrome Camouflage Gold Alloy Monochrome
Audemars Piguet Unveils May 31, 2024

Just Because - Audemars Piguet Unveils an Unprecedented Polychrome Camouflage Gold Alloy

Earlier this year, alongside multiple new watches such as the RO Perpetual with John Mayer and the Sand Gold alloy applied to an RO Openworked Tourbillon, Audemars Piguet also presented an unexpected and entirely novel multi-coloured ceramic called chroma ceramic featuring a polarising but cool camouflage pattern. In the same vein, Audemars Piguet now applies […]

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Richard Mille Unveils the RM 27-05 Rafael Nadal SJX Watches
Richard Mille Unveils May 30, 2024

Richard Mille Unveils the RM 27-05 Rafael Nadal

Described by the brand as the “climactic conclusion” of the line of ultra-light watches made for the tennis champion, the RM 27-05 Flying Tourbillon Rafael Nadal weighs just 11.5 g without its strap – or about two sheets of A4 printer paper. Like many of Richard Mille’s watches, the RM 27-05 is cased in carbon composite, specifically Carbon TPT B.4. More compact than the brand’s typical watches, the tonneau-shaped case is a compact 37.25mm by 7.2 mm. And according to Richard Mille, it is shock resistant to about 14,000 g. Initial thoughts Richard Mille was the first to make ultra-light a thing in watches with the RM009 ALUSiC that was introduced almost 20 years ago. The brand took the concept to the extreme with the RM 27 that debuted in 2010. Weighing just 13 g without the strap, it was conceived for Rafael Nadal to wear while playing tennis. The watches have gotten even lighter since then, and the RM 27-05 is the final chapter in the series. Weighing essentially nothing at 11.5 g without the strap, it is as lightweight as it gets for a mechanical watch of this type. Besides being the most extreme example of Richard Mille’s ultra-light philosophy, the RM 27-05 is also quintessential Richard Mille in terms of style. The notched outline and vents on the case, and the hyper-mechanical appearance of the skeleton movement, are very much typical of the brand’s current design ethos. In short the watch is very much Richard Mille. That also holds true for the price, ...

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Up Close: Philippe Dufour Duality No. 3 SJX Watches
Audemars Piguet Offshore models selling easily May 29, 2024

Up Close: Philippe Dufour Duality No. 3

The most significant example of independent watchmaking in Phillips’ upcoming New York sale is Philippe Dufour Duality no. 3 in white gold. One of just nine made, this Duality is unusual in several respects. For one, it is delivered with two dials, each representing one of Mr Dufour’s trademark style – silvered and a white lacquer resembling enamel. Besides being an exceptionally rare watch, this Duality is also significant for its provenance: the current owner is both a gentleman and a collector with a discerning eye. In fact, he recognised the importance and appeal of the Duality well before most others did. At the time he bought this watch, now almost 20 years ago, a Philippe Dufour Simplicity was selling for barely more than a Lange Datograph. In fact, there were sought-after Panerai and Audemars Piguet Offshore models selling easily for more than a Simplicity. The owner’s discerning and forward-thinking taste in watches can also be inferred from his other watches in the sale. Amongst them is an F.P. Journe Tourbillon Souverain ref. TN – with a special-order 38 mm case instead of the conventional 40 mm, as well as a matched, three-piece set of the F.P. Journe Vagabondage in platinum. A tribute to the Vallée Launched in 1996, the Duality is one of the two landmark double balance wheel watches in contemporary watchmaking, alongside the F.P. Journe Resonance that debuted four years later. While the Resonance is arguably more abstract and inventive in its concep...

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Time Through the Ages, Part 2: Abraham-Louis Breguet’s Genius of Invention Worn & Wound
Breguet s Genius May 28, 2024

Time Through the Ages, Part 2: Abraham-Louis Breguet’s Genius of Invention

Editor’s Note: Time Through the Ages is a four part series written by Andrew Canter, member of the British Horological Institute, Alliance of British Watch & Clock Makers, and the British Watch & Clock Makers Guild. In this second installment, Andrew examines the life and career of Abraham-Louis Breguet, inventor of the tourbillon and many other important watchmaking advancements. For more from Andrew, check out his work at Mr. WatchMaster.  Abraham-Louis Breguet (1747–1823) was a designer, inventor, and watchmaker. Being a master craftsman in the field of watchmaking earned him a prestigious clientele that included Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette, alongside other international nobility, and the elegance and technical innovations of his designs were considered the height of style and fashion. Portrait of Abraham-Louis Breguet. Image courtesy of Manufacture Breguet Breguet was born in Neuchâtel on the 10th January 1747, but it was in Paris that he spent most of his productive life. He is credited with the development of the successful self-winding perpétuelle watches, the introduction of the gongs for repeating watches, the first shock-protection for balance pivots and of course the tourbillon. Every watch that left his workshops demonstrated the latest horological improvements in an original movement, mostly fitted with lever or ruby-cylinder escapements that he perfected. He was a great entrepreneur and marketed his magnificent watches brilliantly. Perhaps his most ...

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Highlights: Complicated Wristwatches at Phillips Hong Kong SJX Watches
Girard-Perregaux Opera Two May 21, 2024

Highlights: Complicated Wristwatches at Phillips Hong Kong

Having covered the highlights from independent watchmakers and historical pocket watches at The Hong Kong Watch Auction: XVIII on May 24 and 25, we now turn to complicated watches past and present. Amongst the historical are an Omega 30I tourbillon wristwatch tested at the Geneva, Neuchatel and Kew observatories, as well as a pair of chronographs with historical movements, an Excelsior Park with the Venus 179 split-seconds chronograph calibre and a Montblanc with the large, 17”’ Minerva monopoussoir chronograph movement. More recent is the Patek Philippe ref. 5059R London edition with applied Roman numerals and the Girard-Perregaux Opera Two, an ultra-complicated watch that’s a value-buy. The auction is scheduled for May 24 (lots 801-934) and May 25 (lots 935-1083), with online bidding and the catalogue available on Phillips.com. The Patek Philippe ref. 5059R made for the Grand Exhibition in London. 822 – Lange Zeitwerk Honeygold “Lumen” Launched in 2021 to overwhelming demand, the Zeitwerk Honeygold “Lumen” was the A. Lange & Söhne’s second luminous digital-display watch after the “Phantom” of 2010. It was a limited edition of 200 watches and based on the second-generation Zeitwerk, which is visually almost identical to the original model but enhanced with several technical upgrades, including a longer, 72-hour power reserve. Like the earlier “Phantom”, the Zeitwerk Honeygold “Lumen” has a tinted sapphire dial that reveals the luminous numer...

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Highlights: Complicated Pocket Watches at Phillips Hong Kong SJX Watches
Audemars Piguet all May 19, 2024

Highlights: Complicated Pocket Watches at Phillips Hong Kong

The upcoming Phillips watch auction in Hong Kong includes the expected offerings from establishment brands and independent watchmakers, but more unusually an impressive line-up of complicated pocket watches – almost all from the same owner. Though the number of pocket watches is small, the selection is particularly notable in terms of quality, complications, and condition. We look at a quartet of impressive pocket watches in the sale, including two important watches that are not Swiss but built on Swiss ebauches: a 1930 L. Leroy grand complication with a four-digit year indicator and the massive, 63 mm Charles Frodsham minute repeating split-seconds chronograph with tourbillon. With the exception of the Audemars Piguet, all the pocket watches were consigned by the same collector, who also owns the unique Patek Philippe ref. 767 grand complication with double-split seconds. The auction takes place on May 24 (lots 801-934) and May 25 (lots 935-1083), and the online catalogue is here. The Frodsham double complication with tourbillon 876 – L. Leroy & Cie. Minute Repeating Perpetual Calendar Chronograph “Leroy” is a storied name in French watchmaker that began with Basile Le Roy (1765-1839), who was a contemporary of Abraham-Louis Breguet (1747-1823). Like Breguet, Le Roy was clockmaker to royalty, including Napoleon. But this Leroy pocket watch was made by the firm of L. Leroy & Cie. founded by Louis Leroy (1859-1934), who was not related to Le Roy but worked for the ...

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Sartory Billard and Grail Watch Collaborate on the New SB07 “Ghost” Worn & Wound
May 17, 2024

Sartory Billard and Grail Watch Collaborate on the New SB07 “Ghost”

The trajectory of Sartory Billard over the last few years has been one of the most unusual and interesting stories in the world of independent watchmaking. The brand had long been established as a leader in fully bespoke watches. The entire premise of the brand was built on the idea that every piece is unique, with wide customization options available to virtually every aspect of the dial. They’ve also been associated with great value, and were generally seen as an affordable option for adventurous fans of independent watchmaking who wanted something literally unique well under five figures. None of that has changed, really, but Sartory Billard’s recent output has seen them upping the ante considerably, with a new tourbillon movement and plans for an even more complex caliber featuring jumping hours and jumping minutes. Another example: a new collaboration with Grail Watch featuring an incredibly ornate and over-the-top mirror finish on nearly every visible surface.  Grail Watch 11, the Sartory Billard SB07 “Ghost,” takes the brand’s integrated bracelet sports watch design and a design motif they’ve become known for and turns the proverbial volume up past the breaking point. Of the many options Sartory Billard offers to customers in their customization program, one particularly popular one is their fully polished dial. The SB07 seen here takes that idea and expands it to the case and bracelet, effectively making the steel components “invisible,” hence the ...

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In-Depth: Patek Philippe Grand Complication with Double Split-Chronographs Ref. 767 SJX Watches
Patek Philippe Grand Complication May 16, 2024

In-Depth: Patek Philippe Grand Complication with Double Split-Chronographs Ref. 767

One of the most fascinating timepieces in Phillips’ upcoming Hong Kong auction is the Patek Philippe grand complication pocket watch ref. 767. Made in 1950 and sold in 1952, this one-of-a-kind pocket watch boasts a minute repeater, perpetual calendar, and double split-seconds chronograph. More accurately, it is a mono-pusher, double split-seconds, or even triple-split seconds. This ref. 767 features not two, but three, chronograph seconds hands. As a result, it can simultaneously measure three elapsed times of up to one minute. The complication is possibly unique amongst Patek Philippe watches. A historically significant watch in itself, this ref. 767 also has notable provenance: it once belonged to Seth Atwood, the American industrialist who founded the now-closed Time Museum. According to Philips, this ref. 767 was Atwood’s everyday watch, not surprising since he was a legendary collector of his day with a collection that included the Patek Philippe Graves Supercomplication and the Duc d’Orléans Breguet Sympathique. Three seconds hands, two in blued steel and one in gold Initial thoughts I’ve been impressed by many pocket watches – some that come to include a Patek Philippe observatory tourbillon and the Philippe Dufour Grande Sonnerie – but I’ve rarely been surprised. This ref. 767 was, however, entirely unexpected. When it was first described to me, I was confused and immediately thought of the Lange Double Split. But as it turns out, this is entirely d...

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Jaeger-LeCoultre Facelifts the Master Grande Tradition World-Timer SJX Watches
Vacheron Constantin May 14, 2024

Jaeger-LeCoultre Facelifts the Master Grande Tradition World-Timer

Jaeger-LeCoultre (JLC) unveils a new variant of the Master Grande Tradition Calibre 948 World-Timer, combining an 18k pink gold case with a domed, champlevé enamel dial depicting the Northern Hemisphere. As the name suggests, the watch features the cal. 948 with an orbital tourbillon that makes one revolution around the dial every 24 hours in conjunction with the map, mimicking the Earth’s orbit around the Sun. Dial and case metal aside, this is essentially identical to the white gold model released in 2022. Initial thoughts As a variation of an existing model, the new Calibre 948 World-Timer is not entirely novel. It is, however, a quite a stunning watch in both looks and mechanics. The enamel dial and pink gold case are in a rich, complementary colours, resulting in a striking, warm aesthetics. And the level of execution is also high, reflecting JLC’s strength in industrial-artisanal high-end watchmaking. That said, with JLC’s storied history, it feels like the brand can do more than rehash this tourbillon (and the Duometre as it did at Watches & Wonders earlier this year). The watchmaker’s watchmaker Sometimes known as the watchmaker’s watchmaker, JLC historically supplied calibres to many notable brands, including the “Holy Trinity” of Audemars Piguet, Patek Philippe, and Vacheron Constantin. As a result, it has a manufacturing know-how that is amongst the best in the mid- to high-end of Swiss watchmaking. A world-time orbital tourbillon with a champlev...

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H. Moser Introduces a Pair of Streamliners on Rubber Straps with the Alpine F1 Team Worn & Wound
H. Moser Introduces May 8, 2024

H. Moser Introduces a Pair of Streamliners on Rubber Straps with the Alpine F1 Team

One of my favorite Watches & Wonders experiences these past few years was the brief time I got to spend with the Moser Pioneer Cylindrical Tourbillon. All tourbillons are special, of course, but this one is especially unique and I found it to be genuinely kind of awe inspiring in person. As the name of the watch implies, the cylindrical hairspring wraps around the balance spindle vertically, giving what is already a fairly dramatic watch an even more profound sense of depth. It’s a particularly challenging watchmaking feat to pull off, but pays dividends, according to Moser, in reducing friction and improving isochronism, both of which play a role in a more stable rate through the duration of the movement’s power reserve.  In the last few weeks, Moser has been busy introducing two new versions of their most impressive tourbillon, this time as part of the Streamliner collection of watches, and in both cases in partnership with the BWT Alpine F1 Team. The watches take a similar aesthetic approach seen in the Pioneer Cylindrical Tourbillon, with a skeletonized dial that prominently highlights the flying tourbillon at 6:00, and a decentralized dial at the 12:00 position. The difference of course is that now we have this complication in a Streamliner case (and on a rubber strap) for a watch (a pair of watches, actually) that might just be the sportiest Moser has ever made. Both versions of the watch use synthetic, translucent minerals for the small decentralized dials. For...

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