Akrivia AK-06

Quill & Pad Team Members Pick Their Top 5 Watches From Baselworld 2017 Plus Special Mentions And Biggest Surprises. Warning: Modem-Burning Photo Fest!

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The year 2017 wasn’t just good for both interesting and exciting new wristwatches at Baselworld: I’d go so far to rate it as a vintage year. This article started as a pure Top 5 rundown, but the sheer number of superb watches soon had us reaching for our “Special Mention” over spill. And that’s all without the really big surprises. So without further ado, welcome to our team’s top picks of Baselworld 2017.

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Vallée de Joux style: movement detail of the Philippe Dufour Simplicity

Does Hand Finishing Matter? A Collector’s View Of Movement Decoration (Archive)

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Anyone who visits online watch forums with any frequency very likely comes across at least a few heated discussions of “finishing,” a topic that seems to fascinate, and divide, enthusiasts. What is it and why are opinions divided?

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Breguet Grande Complication No. 1160, on rare display in Tokyo at the beginning of November 2016

Breguet Supports Versailles’ Marie Antoinette Exhibit At Tokyo’s Mori Art Museum

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The Mori Art Museum has organized a special exhibition on Versailles starring Marie Antoinette. This is the very first retrospective exhibition on the life and times of the young queen to ever take place in Japan, and it does so using more than 150 items from the French castle. Additionally, two beautiful unique piece creations were launched in celebration.

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Breguet Grande Complication No. 1160

Let Them Eat Cake: The Intriguing Story Of Marie Antoinette And Her Legendary Breguet Pocket Watch No. 160

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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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Breguet Reference 1907 pocket watch

Breguet’s Modern Million Dollar Pocket Watch: The Classique Grande Complication Reference 1907

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Several years ago, Breguet quietly introduced a complicated vintage-style pocket watch into its collection: the Reference 1907 Classique Grande Complication. It displays the time in regulator style, chimes the time in the form of a minute repeater with grande sonnerie, and provides extra precision thanks to the one-minute tourbillon. So where does the reference number 1907 come from? That’s a mystery, for sure. And while I have no official explanation, I can make an educated guess. So I will.

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Breguet, The Story of a Passion 1973 – 1987

Book Review: ‘Breguet, Story Of A Passion 1973 – 1987’

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This fascinating book closely examines a crucial 15 years in the life of the long, long career of Breguet, the brand. This is the unadulterated story of how the modern Breguet brand was created after the Chaumet brothers, Jacques and Pierre, acquired it in 1970 “for a modest sum.”

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Good enough to eat – literally

You Are There: Breguet’s Art And Innovation In Watchmaking Exhibition

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I had the privilege of being invited to the recent pre-opening gala for the San Francisco exhibition of the works of Abraham-Louis Breguet.

Since the foundation of my collecting passion has a lot to do with gaining access to the behind the scenes world of watches, I made a point of shuffling my “day job” schedule to attend. And now you can come along.

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Breguet Reine de Naples Haute Joaillerie

Queen For A Day: Breguet Reine De Naples Haute Joaillerie

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The Breguet Reine de Naples collection launched in 2002 following the historic description of an “oblong (repeater) for bracelet.” This now-iconic feminine shape was resurrected 190 years after Caroline Murat, Queen of Naples, commissioned Abraham-Louis Breguet to make the repeater for her royal wrist. The Reine de Naples’ oval-shaped case is a rare sight in watchmaking, but it serves to make one of the most memorable watches in production today.

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Breguet Rêve de Plume

Breguet’s Rêve De Plume Haute Joaillerie: A Quill By Any Other Name

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As the resident pen writer at this publication, and since ‘plume’ is the French word for both quill and pen, I thought I’d share my thoughts about Breguet’s Rêve de Plume. This haute joaillerie timepiece is part of the Breguet Plumes collection, and it is a tribute to Queen Marie Antoinette.

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Breguet 7077 La Tradition Chronograph Indépendant

Breguet La Tradition 7077 Independent Chronograph: Twins Or Not?

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Sometimes watchmakers come up with something that appears to come straight out of a medical textbook. Like a mainspring that’s not a mainspring, even though it’s a mainspring. And this is the kind of incredible thing present inside the Breguet 7077 La Tradition Independent Chronograph, which, as its name implies, has a chronograph gear train independent of the main going train even powered by its own spring. And they are designed to do two very different things.

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