34
WATCH YOUR TIME |
The human dimension
“A mechanical watch helps us find balance between
the technological and the human and that’s reassuring,”
notes Geoffroy Ader, watch and auction expert. Today’s
mechanical watch collectors are looking for understated
sophistication – something wearable every day, yet reas-
suring in its familiarity. There is a desire to feel grounded
through the things we buy, to choose reliable values and
regain a sense of stability in uncertain times.
That desire was fed and satisfied initially by semi-
nal auctions such as the 1960s Salomon Collection at
Christies in London and Antiquorum’s sales from the
1970s onor or through certified pre-owned boutiques,
collectible mechanical watches are more often found in
the current catalogues of top manufacturers. “Today’s
brands cultivate the mythology of the mechanical watch
as both collector’s piece and concentrated expression of
humanity, shaped by horological genius. That means rar-
ity, craft, the intelligence of the hand, of the movement,
and its complications. These are the only true guaran-
tees of horological excellence,” adds Ader.
In other words, we seek reassurance through the
mechanical watch — a timeless object that highlights
tradition and craftsmanship. This is illustrated by watch-
making prizes such as the Cartier Young Watchmaking
Talent Award, or the international competition organised
by La Fabrique du Temps Louis Vuitton. “The mechani-
cal watch no longer simply tells the time, it tells a story.
It expresses a universal, ancestral savoir-faire,” Ader
concludes.
Ne plus ultra
The Latin phrase has rarely felt more accurate: ne
plus ultra — the very best. As bold and high-performing
as they are rare and expensive, today’s finest mechani-
cal watches, crafted by Swiss and international houses,
speak to a discerning clientele of aesthetes and collec-
tors who wish to stand apart.
Take Audemars Piguet, celebrating its 150th anni-
versary this year. The Le Brassus-based Manufacture
remains faithful to its deep-rooted love of complica-
tions, with a strong focus on ergonomics. Its mission:
to make even the most complex watch as easy to use as
possible. A mission brilliantly fulfilled in the latest Royal
Oak and Code 11.59 perpetual calendar models, which
allow all settings — day, month, year, moon phase — to
be adjusted via a single crown. This breakthrough sig-
nals a new chapter in the brand’s mastery of grand com-
plications.
→
1. FERDINAND BERTHOUD FB 3SPC. Celebrating its 10th
anniversary, Chronométrie Ferdinand Berthoud introduces four
limited editions of the FB 3SPC chronometer in platinum. This
diamond-set version (with bezel, crown, and strap buckle set)
is limited to 5 pieces.
2. BREGUET Classique Double Tourbillon Quai de L’Horloge.
Beyond technical prowess, this interpretation of the double tour-
billon housed in a 46 mm rose gold case celebrates the brand’s
artisanal skills, particularly guilloché, engraving, and chamfering.
3. PATEK PHILIPPE 5308G-001. A new Quadruple Complica-
tion for connoisseurs, featuring a minute repeater, split-seconds
chronograph and instantaneous perpetual calendar all highlighted
against a glacier-blue sunburst dial in a 42 mm white gold case.
4. A. LANGE & SÖHNE Minute Repeater Perpetual. Combining
two prestigious complications (minute repeater and perpetual cal-
endar), it features a four-part dial in white gold with black enamel,
housed in a 40.5 mm platinum case. Limited edition of 50 pieces.
5. CARTIER Tank Louis Cartier. The latest version of the Tank LC,
originally created in 1922, is larger than ever. The 38.1 × 27.75 mm
model in yellow or rose, as shown here, hosts the new automatic
manufacture movement, Calibre 1899 MC.
6. CHOPARD L.U.C Quattro Mark IV. Celebrating 25 years of
the Quattro movement with its four barrels stacked in pairs that
deliver 216 hours (9 days) of power reserve, this 39 mm rose gold
model bears the prestigious Geneva Seal.
7. ZENITH Chronomaster Original Triple Calendar. For Zenith’s
160th anniversary, this 38 mm steel watch features the brand’s
iconic blue on a lapis lazuli dial. The El Primero 3610 calibre, which
has a 1/10th of a second chronograph, full calendar and moon-
phase functions, is visible through a sapphire caseback.
8. MONTBLANC 1858 Geosphere Annual Calendar Limited
Edition. Driven by a new, manual-wound Minerva movement
(with annual calendar, large date, Worldtimer) visible through
a sapphire caseback, it features a hand-painted sapphire globe
depicting the Northern Hemisphere. Presented in Lime Gold and
limited to 30 pieces.
COLLECTOR