Nothing can stir up the watch world these days quite as much the launch of a new Apple watch. For some it’s a must-have gadget, for others it just isn’t a real watch. But perhaps quartz watches face more competition from smartwatches than mechanical watches. Does quartz even have a real future?
Why watches? Ask what makes a watch enthusiast tick and the idea of the “soul” of a watch might well feature in the response – the idea that something elevates the watch from a cold object of engineering to something of greater import. Here Ryan tracks “soul” down and gets contemplative on its nature along with some very special imagery.
In its brief existence, the Fondation de la Haute Horlogerie (FHH) awards in homage to passion and talent have already managed to reward some of the greatest personalities in the world of watches for their “passion” and “talent.” In 2016, the awards deservedly went to Ludwig Oechslin and François-Paul Journe.
F.P. Journe is celebrating a big one: the tenth anniversary of all of the boutiques with the rolling release of the Centigraphe Souverain Anniversaire. Read on to find out what is so special about this chronograph with displays able to measure 1/100th of a second and what’s different on the anniversary edition. Also find out what a rolling release is.
Have you ever wanted to ask François-Paul Journe, one of the world’s greatest living watchmakers, anything? Anything at all? Quill & Pad is offering you the opportunity to have your question(s) asked during a live Q&A session on October 28 in the brand’s Miami boutique. No taboos, just anything you ever wanted to know will be answered by the famous watchmaker.
As much as I love watches, I love the people who are occupied with our specialized hobby even more! So, you can imagine that I immediately began scheming about how to route my travels through New York when I opened my inbox one morning several weeks ago to find this message: “You are invited: invitation to the F.P. Journe Tourbillon Anniversary Event.”
When you hear the name François-Paul Journe spoken out loud, the vision of a men’s quartz watch is probably not what immediately springs to mind. Essentially, the Élégante 48mm is an upsized addition to F.P. Journe’s Élégante collection, which made its debut two years ago as a ladies’ watch. As far as high-end analog quartz watches go, this one is pretty darn neat. It’s also quite polarizing.
If you’ve never been to visit François-Paul Journe’s atelier in the heart of Geneva, now would be a very good time to visit it. Aside from the astounding watches you will likely encounter on display, there are a great number of other interesting objects a fan of good watchmaking shouldn’t miss. Including the nearly one thousand books, historical manuscripts, letters, and catalogs once belonging to the extensive horological library of departed historical expert Jean-Claude Sabrier.
One of the most incredible timepieces François-Paul Journe has ever created is the Sonnerie Souveraine. This chiming masterpiece took six years to develop and warranted ten patents. Joshua Munchow revisits the reasons why this masterpiece and its maker are legends in their own time, while Ian Skellern provides original photography and video of the stainless steel-encased grand sonnerie.
Only Watch, the biennial charity auction on behalf of Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy research, has firmly established itself as a landmark event on the watch scene. This year’s sixth renewal of the event, serving as the kickoff for the autumn Geneva watch auction week, saw Patek Philippe donating the landmark piece for the event, a blue-dialed, steel-cased Reference 5016A-010, which hammered for more than $7 million.