When my grandfather passed away, he left a watch in safekeeping for me and I treasure it to this day. Fully forty years later, I inherited a previously unseen box of my grandfather’s watches, revealing him to have been what I had become: a watch collector.
Welcome to the 2016 edition of Quill & Pad’s Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève predictions in which the team picks favorites and explains why. The pre-selected finalists are: Ulysse Nardin Skeleton Tourbillon Pearl, Bulgari Serpenti Incantati Tourbillon Lumière, Christophe Claret Marguerite, Girard-Perregaux Cat’s Eye Tourbillon with Gold Bridge, Louis Vuitton Tambour Color Blossom Spin Time, and Ludovic Ballouard Upside Down Art Deco.
Patek Philippe gathered the largest grouping of its rare minute repeaters in one place in mid-2016. This unique event was broadcast live via the Internet as the focus of Robb Report’s first Master Class, in which the magazine’s editors partnered with the esteemed watch brand to present eleven rare and exceptional minute repeaters. Here we recap the exceptional timepieces.
Sometimes, searching for simplicity is the hardest route to take, especially when complexity arising from simplicity is the goal.
But some people like a challenge.
Ludwig Oechslin’s challenge to himself has resulted in one of the simplest perpetual calendar mechanisms in existence in the new Ochs und Junior Perpetual Calendar. And you’ll love its minimalist look, too.
It is often hard to obtain is a second-hand watch by an independent watchmaker. But now, you can go to Contrapante.com, a division of vintage dealer Analog/Shift and the first retail website for pre-owned independents. And here is the best bonus: it is headed up by an enthusiast watch collector who perfectly understands the needs of someone looking to buy one of these pieces.
Meet the sublime Soberly Onyx, a beautiful compilation of taste, design, rarity, and supreme talent by Raúl Pagès, an extremely skilled independent watchmaker and restorer. Upon successfully completing a modern automaton, he set his sights on a more universal object and a functional design: his first watch.
What is the real difference between a novelty watch and a classic timepiece? Is it possible to make a watch providing a novel and entertaining display of time that is wearable in a variety of settings and will be respected years from now? I believe that I own such a piece: the Ludovic Ballouard Upside Down.
Some meals are memorable for the food, some for the company, and some for a watch at the table. And then there are those meals that hit the ball right out of the park by getting top marks in all three. Make up any story you like to explain how a very contemporary De Bethune DB28 and a very traditional Philippe Dufour Simplicity came to be sharing a bowl of molten cheese in the Swiss Jura mountains.
For many years, high-end luxury brands have flirted with courting women as an untapped consumer group of prospective buyers. Two events set to take place in late 2016 underscore this movement: Eve’s Watch Awards and the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève.
Cartier actually has quite a rich history when it comes to driver’s watches, but has never been very outspoken about it. Until the new Drive de Cartier came along.