At Baselworld 2016 I heard whispered rumors at the A.H.C.I. booth of a meteor with mystical powers. I dismissed the chatter as just another watchmaker fairy tale, until one night when I was led to a thick lead safe with just one item inside: a fragment of meteorite. My question to you this week: what has been cut out of the meteorite and what powers might it bestow on its wearer?
This possibly intergalactic, underwater, time-traveling machine is actually the business end of a CNC lathe at the Uhren-Werke-Dresden manufacture in Germany. Let us know what you think this machine might really be for in the comments. May the force be with you.
This week is easy, because today I’m giving you the caption: “Nice watch, duck!” What watch was “duck” wearing and why? I’ll give extra points for the best suggestion for his favorite watch and why in in the comments below.
Prosthetic limbs have come a long way since wooden peg legs and pirate hooks. Which explains why I was surprised by the fact that this arm below looks so evidently non-lifelike. What do you think this robotic arm might be for? Not what the arm is for per se, but the fictional story this photo might reveal in your mind.
It’s that time of year again when the list of watches entered in the next edition of the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève (GPHG) is published. The GPHG is the “Oscars” of the watchmaking industry, and 2016 is the sixteenth edition of the red carpet event.
This list comprises all of the watches competing in the first round of the competition from which the jury will pre-select six in each of the 12 categories.
I’ve been trying, but have not managed, to come up with a more diplomatic way of saying this, so I’ll just come out with it: up to now, I have not generally been a fan of Bovet 1822. So I was surprised by just how much I was impressed with the Ottantasei by Pininfarina and would be very happy to wear one daily. But there is one niggle that I just can’t shake off.
In 2010 I had the pleasure of visiting a Swiss artist, whose talents spread across a broad spectrum of artistic domains. However, he would be much better known to anyone reading Quill & Pad as the designer of some of the most revolutionary wristwatches of the last century. Can you guess who he is and the watches he has designed from the clues provided?
Contemporary watchmaking has been making waves in the generally calm waters of traditional watchmaking for nearly two decades and has radically changed perceptions as to what haute horlogerie might be. But watching the superb Netflix series ‘Chef’s Table ‘ and contemporary haute cuisine, I can’t help but wonder if the pioneers and leaders of contemporary watchmaking are doing enough.
They say that money doesn’t grow on trees, but during a visit to Christophe Claret I discovered what appears to be the secret to the company’s manufacturing process: regular pruning. What story do you think explains the horological fruit that this tree bears? Please leave your suggestions in the comments.
This photo was taken in what was then Zaire, but is now the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), and it highlights what happens if a small pothole is not repaired . . . it just keeps getting larger and larger until it can literally swallow trucks whole. What other stories can you suggest for this photo? Please share your suggestions in the comments.