Perpetual Secular Calendar with blue gold dial featuring distinctive circular guilloche

Give Me Five! The 5 Best Things I Saw At SalonQP 2016: Métiers d’Art, Svend Andersen Worldtimers, Armin Strom Resonance, Black Badger Lume Room, And Kari Voutilainen

I had the pleasure of curating a special exhibition on métiers d’art at SalonQP 2016, comprising specialist brands in their fields demonstrating the arts and crafts that they have become famous for. But what else did I particularly enjoy there? Read on to find out.

HYT Skull Axl Rose on the wrist

7 Sensational Watches Introduced At Dubai Watch Week 2016

Dubai Watch Week just closed the sun-soaked doors of its 2016 edition during which much of the watch world enjoyed discovering new watches, interesting opinions, the culture of Dubai, the United Arab Emirates’ fastest growing city, and the immense hospitality of the Ahmed Seddiqi & Sons, who staged the incredible show.

Please enjoy these 7 outstanding new watches launched during the 2016 edition of Dubai Watch Week.

Arnold & Son HM Double Hemisphere Perpetual Moon

Arnold & Son HM Double Hemisphere Perpetual Moon: Perigee-Syzygy Of A Supermoon

One of my favorite complications is the moon phase, and an appropriately magnificent example is the Arnold & Son HM Double Hemisphere Perpetual Moon. This watch is among the biggest and boldest moon phase watches in existence, and it is one of my favorite pieces from Arnold & Son.

Oblique view, Patek Philippe Reference 5078P

Behind The Lens: Patek Philippe Reference 5078P Minute Repeater

Recently, a good friend and avid collector gave me the mouth-watering opportunity to photograph two splendid Patek Philippe minute repeaters: the 5074P and 5078P. If you’re one of those people who believe in wearing a watch with your tuxedo, I don’t think you’d ever go wrong in pulling the 5078P out of the safe to wear. What else is interesting about it?

Orion by Christiaan van der Klaauw

Astronomical Design: Talking To Daniel Reintjes, CEO Of Christiaan Van Der Klaauw

In 1974 Dutch watchmaker Christiaan van der Klaauw founded his own workshop making astronomical clocks, then soon similar complications for wristwatches. He retired in 2009, passing his baton along to Daniel Reintjes, who is now in charge of the world’s only watch brand completely dedicated to astronomical watches. Quill & Pad’s Martin Green sat down with Reintjes to get a feel for where the brand is now.

Grönefeld 1941 Remontoire on the author’s wrist at Baselworld 2016

Why The Grönefeld 1941 Remontoire Won Best Men’s Watch At The 2016 Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève (Archive)

While there may be other categories in the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève (GPHG) with more complicated watches and more sparkling watches, the category that the still predominantly male mechanical watch buying public pays most attention to, is “Best Men’s Watch”. And in 2016 that prestigious award went to the Grönefeld 1941 Remontoire.

MB&F Legacy Machine Perpetual on the wrist

Why This Is The Best Calendar Watch Of 2016 (According To The GPHG) And One Of The Best Watches Ever! The MB&F Legacy Machine Perpetual (Archive)

MB&F’s Legacy Machine Perpetual took the prize for Best Calendar Watch at the 2016 Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève and I thought it deserved that accolade and more. LM Perpetual has rewritten the architecture of the perpetual calendar, transforming this oft troublesome complication into a virtual masterpiece.

Laureates of the 2016 Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève

What We Liked And What We Didn’t At The 2016 Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève

The Quill & Pad panel reflects on watchmaking’s biggest night: the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève, often described as the Oscars of watchmaking. In this segment, we chat about what we liked and what we didn’t like, which watches won and why we think they did.

We also express a bit of dismay at times.

Roland Iten RWC11 symmetrically adjustable watch clasp

Extravagant Mechanical Luxury: Roland Iten RWC11 Symmetrically Adjustable Watch Clasp

No problem is exceptionally easy to solve. Even the simplest task can sometimes take weeks of redesigns, prototypes, and problem-solving for a seemingly simple solution. The task of creating the perfectly adjustable watch clasp system is the type of problem that was irresistible for Roland Iten. So how did that turn out?

Andreas Strehler Sauterelle à Lune Perpetuelle Exacte

Blood Moons, Lunar Tetrads, And The Andreas Strehler Sauterelle À Lune Perpétuelle (Archive)

The Andreas Strehler Sauterelle à Lune Perpétuelle contains a moon phase mechanism that will only need adjustment by one full day every 14,189.538 years. And not only does the Lune Perpétuelle have an extremely accurate moon phase, but with the help of the constant force mechanism it is even more accurate for the little intervals as well.