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Results for Swiss vs Japanese Watchmaking

4,970 articles · 18 videos found · page 68 of 167

Honorary Patek Philippe President Philippe Stern Passes Away: 1938-2026 Hodinkee
Patek Philippe President Philippe Stern Passes Jun 15, 2026

Honorary Patek Philippe President Philippe Stern Passes Away: 1938-2026

Philippe Stern, the visionary executive who led Patek Philippe through the end of the quartz crisis, kept the family company independent and secured its position at the top of Swiss mechanical high horology, died on June 14th at the age of 88. The Geneva-based company announced Philippe Stern's passing in a statement calling the Patek Philippe Honorary President a "pioneering and visionary spirit" who "left an indelible mark on the history of the family manufacture, preserving its independence and establishing its global stature." Philippe Stern. Photo courtesy Patek Philippe. Stern led Patek Philippe as President from 1993 to 2009. During his tenure, he consolidated Patek Philippe's manufacturing at a new flagship manufacture in Plan-les-Ouates, Geneva. He integrated its production capabilities to bring as much as possible in-house. He also oversaw the launch of the Nautilus sport watch in the 1970s, the multi-year project to build the Caliber 89, the most complicated portable mechanical watch at the time, boasting 33 complications. In 2001, he inaugurated the Patek Philippe museum in Geneva, an unparalleled exhibition of not only Patek Philippe but of the entire history of horology. Philippe Stern was born in 1938 into a family already at the center of Swiss watchmaking: his grandfather, Charles Stern, had recently acquired the Patek Philippe manufacture in 1932, and his father, Henri Stern, had just joined the company. After studying economics and commerce, Philippe Ste...

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Introducing - The Arnold & Son HM London Skyline x The Limited Edition Monochrome
Arnold & Son HM London Skyline x Jun 12, 2026

Introducing - The Arnold & Son HM London Skyline x The Limited Edition

Arnold & Son, the brand founded in honour of the famous 18th-century English watchmaker John Arnold, translates his historical legacy into high-end Swiss watches powered by in-house movements – about 20 to date. Arnold & Son’s HM line is the brand’s more dress-oriented collection and is also powered by a powerful, ultra-thin, in-house calibre. A […]

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In-Depth: Patek Philippe Calibre 89 SJX Watches
Patek Philippe Calibre 89 Jun 12, 2026

In-Depth: Patek Philippe Calibre 89

In 1989, Geneva’s storied watchmaker unveiled the most complicated watch ever made – the Patek Philippe Calibre 89. The genesis of the Calibre 89 arguably started almost a century before with a watch made in Besançon, the historical heart of French watchmaking. In 1977, the Association Française des Amateurs d’Horlogerie Ancienne (AFAHA) published the first issue of its journal Horlogerie Ancienne. The watch on the cover was the Leroy 01. The caption on the inside front page read, “Montre Leroy 01, la plus compliquée du monde” – “The most complicated watch in the world”. Inside, on page 15, a short article made the case: the Leroy 01, completed in 1904 by the Parisian firm of Louis Leroy for the Portuguese collector António Augusto de Carvalho Monteiro, held a title that no other timepiece had successfully disputed. In Geneva, the claim was noted. The first issue of Horlogerie Ancienne of 1977. Image – SJX composite/AFAHA Two years later, in early June 1979, Philippe Stern was at his desk in Patek Philippe’s offices on the rue du Rhône when Max Studer, the firm’s technical director, came in for what the records describe as a routine meeting. The 150th anniversary of the manufacture was a decade away. Among the ideas being considered to celebrate the occasion was a reproduction of the Henry Graves Jr. Supercomplication, the watch Patek had built in 1932, with its twenty-four complications, that had served as the benchmark of mechanical ambition ev...

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The Atelier Wen Perception V3 Yún Proves That Something Great Can Become Even Better Fratello
Atelier Wen Perception V3 Yún Proves Jun 11, 2026

The Atelier Wen Perception V3 Yún Proves That Something Great Can Become Even Better

It’s become increasingly hard, if not almost impossible, for brands to impress us with integrated-bracelet sport watches. There are only a handful that get it right from the start. With the Perception, the Sino-French brand Atelier Wen instantly created waves in 2022. It showed that not all great traditional watchmaking has to come from Switzerland. […] Visit The Atelier Wen Perception V3 Yún Proves That Something Great Can Become Even Better to read the full article.

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First Look - The Longines Master Collection Gets a Complete Overhaul Monochrome
Longines Master Collection Gets Jun 11, 2026

First Look - The Longines Master Collection Gets a Complete Overhaul

Since 2005, the Longines Master Collection has been the brand’s flagship line of traditional mechanical watchmaking. While the collection includes more complex models such as chronographs, moon phases and GMTs, the core, conservative Master Collection mainly comprises time-only models. The latest news from the winged hourglass brand is the release of the new, fully redesigned […]

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First Look - The New MB&F; HM12 The Guardian, A Sci-Fi Horological Machine with a Robot Companion Monochrome
MB&F; Jun 10, 2026

First Look - The New MB&F; HM12 The Guardian, A Sci-Fi Horological Machine with a Robot Companion

Childhood imagination and science fiction to inspire high-end watchmaking? Why not, and MB&F; is proof that it can be a successful combination. Since the launch of HM1 in 2007, Maximilian Büsser’s concept laboratory has consistently transformed memories of spaceships, supercars, aircraft and robots into complex mechanical creations for the wrist. Some of the brand’s memorable […]

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A Hands-On Introduction To The New Raymond Weil A.R.T. Collection Fratello
Raymond Weil A.R.T Collection Ever since Jun 10, 2026

A Hands-On Introduction To The New Raymond Weil A.R.T. Collection

Ever since Raymond Weil won the GPHG Challenge Watch Prize in 2023 with the Millesime, the brand has been on a roll. The Millesime collection really shows that stylish Swiss-made watches don’t have to break the bank. The same goes for last year’s dressier Toccata Heritage Series. Now, the brand, led by Raymond Weil’s grandson […] Visit A Hands-On Introduction To The New Raymond Weil A.R.T. Collection to read the full article.

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Photo Report: Inside Hermès Horloger Manufacture Hodinkee
Hermes Jun 9, 2026

Photo Report: Inside Hermès Horloger Manufacture

We've all been told at least once in life to stick to our own lane. It's an old trope that historically holds merit. Stick to one discipline, master it, and you'll succeed. But in 2026, the rulebook has changed in almost every aspect of life, and sometimes those one-trick ponies aren't the ones leading the charge; they're actually left in the stable. La Montre Hermès S.A in Brugg, Switzerland. In watchmaking, it transpires that the latest crop of brands to realize this are the names we most associate with being wider fashion houses. Empires sustained by hand-stitching legacy into cloth, amplified in the theatre of the catwalk, now play in the watchmaking arena. We've witnessed many of these names turn to watchmaking as an additional arm to their already bulletproof name, and crucially, they're delivering watches with real merit. For Hermès, despite having a presence in watchmaking since the early 20th century, with Universal Genève as the brand's watchmaking partner from the 1930s and the production of exclusively Hermès-signed pieces such as desk clocks, this rise has been built brick by brick since the 1970s. Outfitting horses came first, then their riders, and it quickly proved that true luxury comes from mastery, not scale. During the 1970s, the maison decided to build schools to train artisans the Hermès way, passing along hand-stitching, leather cutting, and scarf-printing techniques from master to apprentice. While other names pursued mass production or outsour...

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Industry News - Vaucher Manufacture Fleurier Unveils the VMF 5500, ts Upgraded Micro-Rotor Movement Monochrome
Jun 5, 2026

Industry News - Vaucher Manufacture Fleurier Unveils the VMF 5500, ts Upgraded Micro-Rotor Movement

As the EPHJ Geneva trade fair, the major annual gathering dedicated to precision industries, including watchmaking, medtech and high-tech manufacturing, approaches (from 16 – 19 June), several suppliers exhibiting at the show have started unveiling their latest developments. Among them is Vaucher Manufacture Fleurier, a movement maker well known to regular readers of MONOCHROME Watches, […]

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Auctions: Marteau & Co.'s "Heat Wave" Sale Features Unique Independents And An Education On Lesser-Known Makers Hodinkee
Furlan Marri Jun 5, 2026

Auctions: Marteau & Co.'s "Heat Wave" Sale Features Unique Independents And An Education On Lesser-Known Makers

Last year, we covered the launch of Marteau & Co., a new, small, independent-focused auction house that took a new perspective on what auction houses can (and, in their view, should) do for the watchmaking artists who have become such high-demand subjects. In Europe and the UK, artists are owed a portion of the sale fee when their work reaches the secondary market. It seems only fair, when a $100,000 watch these days can reach a million on the secondary market and the original maker doesn't get a penny. At Marteau, of the 20% fee added to the hammer price, the watchmaker receives 3% to acknowledge their work. Lot 6, a unique Voutilainen Regulator Decimal Repeater. Estimate of CHF 300,000 to 600,000. The current Marteau & Co. auction catalog recently went live, and bidding is open (online only) from June 10 to June 17. There are a lot of great watches to bid on, headlined by the return of an OnlyWatch collaboration, a unique Vianney Halter, and a unique Voutilainen Regulator Decimal Repeater. There are also a number of watchmakers who have only come to auction a handful of times, and I got to see a number of them in person. But I wanted to start with two watches that might potentially go for more affordable prices, watches from Baltic/SpaceOne and Furlan Marri. Lot 2, a Baltic x SpaceOne Seconde Majeure unique pieces. Estimate of CHF 3,000 to 6,000. Lot 1, a Furlan Marri Mechaquartz "Prototype" with a unique dial. Estimate of CHF 500 to 1,000. The Baltic x SpaceOne collabor...

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What Keeps Vortic Running Worn & Wound
Hamilton some years ago Jun 4, 2026

What Keeps Vortic Running

Back in March, I found myself on an Amtrak train from Philadelphia to Lancaster, PA, a small city that many think of as the ancestral home of American watchmaking. I’d been to Lancaster before, with Hamilton, some years ago, and even though their old factory is no longer in use, the brand’s history is woven throughout the town in any number of ways. But I wasn’t traveling to Lancaster for Hamilton, I was there to see RT Custer, founder of Vortic. The coincidental nature of the line that connects Hamilton, RT, Vortic, and the city of Lancaster is almost beyond belief, and a new layer to that connection would be added in a matter of hours, as RT worked to secure a purchase of vintage pocket watch movements that would take his brand through another year (at least) of production.  RT grew up in Lancaster, and his father still lives in town. Hamilton’s history there, of course, would have been something he encountered in his younger years, working its way into his memory the way a knowledge of baseball might if you happened to grow up in Cooperstown, or movies if you grew up in Hollywood. I don’t know, though, that anything could have predicted that RT would one day find himself running a company that would be so inextricably linked to the history of American watchmaking.  A collection of very early Vortic watches Vortic is one of the most unique watch brands you’ll ever encounter. Founded in 2013 and based in Fort Collins, CO, Vortic repurposes vintage pocket wat...

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First Look - The New Laps Studio Arche, A New Direction for the Parisian Brand Monochrome
Jun 4, 2026

First Look - The New Laps Studio Arche, A New Direction for the Parisian Brand

Over the past few years, Paris-based brand Laps has been offering watches built around graphic design and artistic expression. Collections such as Signature Art Print presented affordable quartz-powered references with fun dial designs inspired by architecture, photography, illustration and contemporary culture. The emphasis was always on visual storytelling rather than traditional watchmaking. Now the brand […]

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Introducing - The 2026 Chopard Mille Miglia GTS Power Control Grigio-Blu Racing Edition Monochrome
Chopard Mille Miglia GTS Power Jun 4, 2026

Introducing - The 2026 Chopard Mille Miglia GTS Power Control Grigio-Blu Racing Edition

As the official sponsor and timekeeper of the historic Mille Miglia since 1988, Chopard enjoys one of the longest-running partnerships between a watch brand and a car event. The brand’s Mille Miglia collection is the watchmaking extension of co-president Karl-Friedrich Scheufele’s lifelong passion for the classic Italian road race. With the 44th edition taking place […]

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Going Tri-Tone With The Blue-Dial Rado Captain Cook High-Tech Ceramic Chronograph Fratello
Rado Captain Cook High-Tech Ceramic Jun 4, 2026

Going Tri-Tone With The Blue-Dial Rado Captain Cook High-Tech Ceramic Chronograph

It’s been almost a year since Rado invited me to go to the EFG Swiss Open Gstaad tennis tournament in Switzerland. It was a memorable experience, and as a lifelong tennis player and fan of the sport, I always find it brilliant to see the professionals at work. Another thing that stood out during the […] Visit Going Tri-Tone With The Blue-Dial Rado Captain Cook High-Tech Ceramic Chronograph to read the full article.

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Review: the Atelier Wen Inflection - Heavy Metal on the Wrist Worn & Wound
Atelier Wen Inflection – Heavy Metal Jun 3, 2026

Review: the Atelier Wen Inflection - Heavy Metal on the Wrist

Heavy is the arm that wears the Inflection. Sorry, there might be a few jokes in this article about how much the Atelier Wen Inflection weighs, but that’s just the cost of making a full tantalum watch. If you’re unfamiliar, tantalum, in addition to being a rare material in watchmaking due to its difficulty to machine, is exceptionally dense. Twice as dense as steel, and thus twice as heavy. When you pick up a tantalum watch, you know it. It also has a unique color. It’s dark gray, approaching the tone of blasted grade-2 titanium, but cooler, hinting at purple. Especially when polished, it has a mysterious quality that is quite beautiful, like looking into a darkened mirror. Polishing tantalum, by the way, is notoriously tough. The appeal of the metal is clear, which is why we’ve seen a little uptick in its use in the high-end by brands like JN Shapiro, Ming, and Zenith, though, to be fair, it’s been in limited use for decades. But the Inflection isn’t just a tantalum watch; it’s a tantalum watch with a tantalum bracelet, and therein lies the Inflection’s novelty, as no other brand currently makes a fully tantalum, integrated bracelet watch. Which, as per the NYT, paraphrasing Jean Arnault says, does not make economic sense. And while it’s truly a flex and fascinating to behold, why the watch succeeds, by my estimation, is actually everything else. $29800 Review: the Atelier Wen Inflection – Heavy Metal on the Wrist Case Tantalum Movement Girard Perregau...

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Introducing: The Seiko Astron GPS Solar Dual-Time Chronograph In Crystal Green And Crystal Pink Summer “Flavors” Fratello
Seiko Astron GPS Solar Dual-Time Jun 2, 2026

Introducing: The Seiko Astron GPS Solar Dual-Time Chronograph In Crystal Green And Crystal Pink Summer “Flavors”

Shortly after Seiko released four revamped Astron GPS Solar Dual-Time Chronographs for its 145th anniversary, the Japanese brand drops two fresh new summer “flavors.” No, they’re not pistachio and raspberry ice cream —although, come to think of it, matcha (green tea) and sakura (cherry blossom) ice cream would make more sense — but instead, Crystal […] Visit Introducing: The Seiko Astron GPS Solar Dual-Time Chronograph In Crystal Green And Crystal Pink Summer “Flavors” to read the full article.

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Introducing: The Zenith G.F.J. Calibre 135 Double Signed with Naoya Hida & Co Hodinkee
Voutilainen Jun 2, 2026

Introducing: The Zenith G.F.J. Calibre 135 Double Signed with Naoya Hida & Co

What We Know Today, Zenith introduces a new "Double Signed" program for its Calibre 135-powered G.F.J. collection, and its first entry in this series is a collaboration with a Japanese independent that might not require all that much introduction around these parts—Naoya Hida. The evolution of the G.F.J. line has not taken all that long, with its origins starting in 2022 with the Zenith Caliber 135 Observatoire Limited Edition, where ten Calibre 135 movements from the 50s were restored by Kari Voutilainen and introduced in watches done as a triple collaboration between Zenith, Voutilainen, and auction house Phillips. Just three years later, the Calibre 135 was revived as a modern caliber for a line called the G.F.J. (after Zenith's founder Georges Favre Jacot). In just a little over a year, we've seen three small runs of this watch introduced in different stone-dial and metal combinations—platinum with a lapis lazuli dial, tantalum with an onyx dial, and an upcoming yellow-gold GFJ with a bloodstone dial. In the meantime, this new Double Signed concept with Naoya Hida takes the G.F.J. in a very different visual direction. The hefty 39.15mm platinum case, with a thickness of 10.5mm and a compact lug-to-lug of 45.75mm, remains the same as other G.F.J. models. But that dial is unabashedly Naoya Hida, constructed out of solid silver with the distinctive hand engraving coming from the hand of master engraver Keisuke Kano, the man responsible for the hand engraving across al...

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The Oris Hölstein Edition 2026 - A New Artelier Paying Tribute To Oris’s Home Fratello
Oris Hölstein Edition 2026 — Jun 1, 2026

The Oris Hölstein Edition 2026 - A New Artelier Paying Tribute To Oris’s Home

On June 1st of every year since 2020, Oris has introduced a homage to Hölstein, the Swiss village that the brand calls home. According to Oris CEO Rolf Studer, it’s also a “thank you” from Oris to the Oris community. For this year’s edition, Oris used its new Artelier model, introduced at Watches and Wonders […] Visit The Oris Hölstein Edition 2026 — A New Artelier Paying Tribute To Oris’s Home to read the full article.

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Introducing - Audemars Piguet Brings Summer Colours to the Royal Oak Offshore Chronograph Monochrome
Audemars Piguet Brings Summer Colours Jun 1, 2026

Introducing - Audemars Piguet Brings Summer Colours to the Royal Oak Offshore Chronograph

More than three decades after its debut in 1993, the Offshore remains arguably the version of the iconic Royal Oak best suited to an active summer lifestyle. Nicknamed “The Beast” when it was launched, the Royal Oak Offshore challenged the conventions of luxury watchmaking with its oversized proportions, visible rubber elements and bold, muscular design… […]

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SJX Podcast: Inside Roventa-Henex SJX Watches
Jun 1, 2026

SJX Podcast: Inside Roventa-Henex

For episode 42 of the SJX Podcast, we visited Roventa-Henex chief executive Jérôme Biard at the company’s secretive manufacture in the sleepy Swiss village of Tavannes. The discussion covers the emergence of the ‘micro-brand’ (including whether that term is still relevant), the factors facing the Swiss watch industry today, the role suppliers play in shaping trends, and what it takes to start a watch company. Listen now on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and YouTube.  

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