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Purnell’s latest model, Escape II, features two spherical tourbillons developed by Eric Coudray, the definitive expert in the field of three-dimensional multi-axis tourbillons. This is just one example of how the independent brand works with the best of the best in the watch industry to achieve such monumental timepieces. Martin Green reports after visiting the Swiss workshops.
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Our friends at The Watches TV recently visited Laurent Jolliet, the last “chain maker” in business in Switzerland according to Marc-André Deschoux. As Jolliet crafts his bracelets and chains fully by hand, Deschoux and crew were able to find out in detail how Milanese bracelets are made, an art form no longer formally taught, and share the secrets with us here.
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Glashütte Original dial factory manager Michael Baumann guided Bhanu Chropa through the complex process of manufacturing dials. He explained that depending on the complications of a given watch model, it takes 70 to 80 steps to manufacture a perfect dial. See for yourself in this interesting personal tour behind the scenes in Pforzheim, Germany.
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Elizabeth Doerr has attended the odd auction. She has even gone to auctions with the intent to bid on a watch. But that hadn’t yet worked out for her. Not until she saw that Parisian auction house Artcurial was auctioning off what was left of Alain Silberstein’s inventory and put in an absentee bid on a long shot. She had little hope, but then . . .
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There are clocks that deserve to be talked about, written about, bought, and enjoyed. And this goes double for any and all of the unique timepieces by independent horologist Miki Eleta. Elizabeth Doerr had the pleasure of seeing Eleta’s latest masterpiece, Natuhrzeit, at Baselworld 2019 and she has not been able to get it out of her mind since. Enjoy the show!
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If John Keil was to recommend a brand-new functional diver’s watch to a friend who was looking to spend within a certain price range, these would be his suggestions. Or, more specifically, here is what he would purchase himself in a variety of price categories.
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As the Chanel J12 turns 20 years old, the brand more famous for its fashion than its high-quality watches releases a modern marvel: a very transparent version of the J12 called X-Ray that features a world premiere in the form of a full sapphire crystal bracelet.
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Our friends at The Watches TV have published a beautiful three-part video series on manufacturing a watch fully by hand as demonstrated by Greubel Forsey’s recent Hand Made 1. In this series, Marc-André Deschoux and his team get deep into the manufacture and talk to all of the artisans involved, beginning with founders Stephen Forsey and Robert Greubel.
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While H. Upmann usurped the famous British leader’s name for this cigar, Ken Gargett has no doubt Winston Churchill would have loved the tribute. After having smoked two, Ken thinks it a truly glorious cigar (99/100) and one that should be in every serious cigar lover’s rotation.
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Watch bracelets are often as underrated as housekeeping in a good hotel: they are commonly taken for granted. Collectors usually focus on the shape of the case and look of the dial first, with the movement coming in a close second. Here Martin Green takes a closer look at four new watches of 2020 whose full-metal bracelets significantly change the look of them.
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The newly released Antarctique is Czapek’s first foray into the steel sport watch market, a market segment that has exploded over the last couple years, by dipping its toes in with a “subscription” strategy for the first limited model. Find out what is so special about this particular addition to the sporty steel bracelet watch market.
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Tool watches continue their evolution among the watch industry’s most luxurious and coveted brands. Here, Chris Malburg explores where their evolution has gone and might still go.
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The mechanical watch works just like a metronome, with its isochronic balance maintaining a steady rhythm and the delicate tick-tock of its pallet jewels providing a rhythmic beat to our oft-frantic lives. If we ramp up the power and swap the metronome for a drum kit and a few electric guitars we have rock and roll! But which watches do rock-and-roll icons wear?
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Phillips’ Geneva Watch Auction: XI will be led by a great selection of fine collectible timepieces hailing from powerhouses including Patek Philippe and Rolex as well as independent watchmakers such as F.P. Journe and Kari Voutilainen. And there's even a near-mythical Harry Winston Opus 3 by Vianney Halter on offer here. Check out what other unusual timepieces by independent watchmakers you might find.
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Very, very rarely does Elizabeth Doerr see a watch book where everything fits together in the way a book should: engaging, well-written text; very obviously carefully copyedited; great paper quality; good, clear, pleasing-to-the-eye design; super photography, and an engaging subject matter. And she's happy to report it does here. 'Retro Watches' by Josh Sims and Mitch Greenblatt is a must-read for those interested in affordable, design-focused watches of a quirky bygone era.
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Richard Mille – the man – is the FIA Endurance Commission president, so a Richard Mille Racing Team taking part in the FIA World Endurance Championships with an LMP2 Oreca 07 prototype is perhaps not surprising. What is surprising, however, is that this brand-new team is all female and preparing to take on the mythical 24 Hours of Le Mans.
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What happens when form dominates function nearly completely and the watch itself becomes a canvas for art? What if artistic freedom can be enjoyed without time being the primary purpose? Martin Green highlights three great examples here.
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The release of the thrilling 2012 Cristal heralds the culmination of Louis Roederer’s efforts in biodynamics. The vineyard has released champagnes in the recent past that have been biodynamic, or part thereof, but this is the first time the flagship, the legendary Cristal, is 100 percent biodynamic. And what a vintage for it!
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Alexander Doerr had never really paid much attention to opals before, but upon closer inspection he realized this gemstone is extraordinary – shrouded in mystery and well worth learning more about. Looking at an opal is like looking at fireworks or even looking into a galaxy. And, as he learned, two Swiss watch brands specialize in using the fiery gemstone in watches: Jaquet Droz and Piaget.
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In 1783, just as the queen of France, Marie Antoinette, was sitting for a portrait, an officer of the queen’s guard visited Abraham-Louis Breguet’s workshop: Queen Marie Antoinette desired a pocket watch containing all known horological complications at the time. It took 44 years to complete and is perhaps the most famous watch in history, as much for its intriguing story as its ingenious mechanics.
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Strong stories and captivating histories constantly seduce watchmakers to create various special editions, and ballooning is one of those adventurous feats that has captured some horological imaginations. Here Jan Lidmaňský highlights a few watch brands that have floated through the sky, both literally and figuratively.
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Here our panel members discuss the watches they've seen launched in the first half of 2020 thus far and pick their favorites. So sit down, grab a glass of your favorite tipple, and settle in for a rich feast of new watches.
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IWC CEO Christoph Grainger-Herr thinks that the COVID-19 pandemic will have a lasting effect. “The digital proximity we are experiencing right now may have a lasting effect on how we communicate with our customers, partners, and journalists. I think it is likely that we will put an even bigger emphasis on video content in the future.” Not only does Martin Green discuss this topic with the manager, he also discovers Grainger-Herr's all-time favorite Portugieser.
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Talking about exceptionally thin mechanics leads us to world-record-holding thin watches, which inevitably leads to Piaget. These days constantly in battle with Bulgari for thinness world records, Piaget has recently released the production version of the Altiplano Ultimate Concept, which now holds the record for thinness at just 2 mm. How is this even possible?
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Vintage watches are becoming more and more of a subject in our little world of ticks and tocks. So Elizabeth Doerr set out for Frankfurt very early one Saturday morning to meet up with an old acquaintance, vintage watch dealer Ron Geweniger, to attend the Dr. Crott auction and learn a bit of what goes on behind the bidding.
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Wempe Glashütte, the watch brand from Germany’s most famous retailer, has recently introduced a new team to the sporty steel-encased league: the Iron Walker. Sabine Zwettler takes a closer look at the three flagship models at debut.
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The Bohematic Graphic Sutnar is an homage to Ladislav Sutnar, the most significant artistic figure in Czechoslovakia's interwar period of modernism. Sutnar was chosen as the historical figure to launch this brand-new micro brand and its first line. However, the Graphic Sutnar watch bears not only the name of the world-renowned artist, but also his unique font for the numerals. Find out what all that means right here!
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GaryG loves a surprise! And in the case of the newly-minted H. Moser x MB&F; Endeavour Cylindrical Tourbillon and MB&F; x H. Moser LM101, he is surprised not once, but twice: two distinctive watches that somehow manage the tricky task of maintaining the core brand identity of the lead brand for each, while successfully integrating identifiable cues from the other.
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Martin Green likes the new Admiral 42 Automatic Bronze models because Corum presents the bronze of the case in a rawer form. If he owned one, he would be excited about seeing the hues of the case change along with his voyage through life. What about you, do you agree?
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Following part one and two of this series of auctions, the third in this four-part series by Sotheby’s called Masterworks of Time is entitled "Abraham-Louis Breguet, Horologist Extraordinaire." Extraordinarily, this auction comprising only pocket watches by Breguet and other masters will take place online, beginning on June 3, 2020 at 4:00 pm CET.
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