In honor of ‘The King’s Man,’ the next instalment of the entertaining Kingsman film series, which is finally getting released, Elizabeth Doerr takes a look at the watches that starred in each of the three films – three watches that are as diverse as if they had come from Marvel’s multiverse!
Deciding whether or not to restore a vintage watch is a tough decision to make. The internet is awash with tales of watches butchered by an incompetent independent watchmaker or, worse still, the brand itself. Even more confusing is deciding which options offered should be accepted. Refinish the case? Change the hands? Replace the crystal? Here is some help for you.
If you follow the world of independent watchmaking, by now you’ve almost certainly heard of watchmaker Rexhep Rexhepi and his Akrivia watches. Since arriving on the scene in 2012 with its first tourbillon-based watch, Akrivia has continued to delight. But is this independent bound for glory? GaryG predicts the future.
With twin orbiting tourbillons and a highly mechanical display, the Louis Moinet Astronef builds on stylistic spacecraft origins and creates something entirely fascinating. Joshua Munchow heads into space to take a closer look.
Launch yet another me-too blue-dialed steel sports watch today and you can expect flack. The Vacheron Constantin Overseas Tourbillon is, you guessed it, a blue-dialed steel sporty watch. But as Joshua Munchow explains, it’s much more than that. And you’ll probably really like it.
What does Patek Philippe mean to you? For GaryG, Patek Philippe is a firm both mindful of the traditions of horology and clearly focused on its own legacy. This is exemplified by the brand’s Rare Handcrafts: watches and clocks displaying traditional arts, including engraving, enameling, micro mosaics, and a favorite of his: wood marquetry. Here Gary gets behind the lens to shoot Reference 5089G-018, a 175th anniversary limited edition with wood marquetry dial.
Ferrari had already teamed up with quite a few different watch brands to feature the Prancing Horse logo on the wrist: Cartier, Girard-Perregaux, and Panerai are forces to be reckoned with, yet it was Hublot who enjoyed the greatest success in partnering with the famed car brand from Maranello. And Martin Green thinks that this might be the most successful car/watch partnership that the industry has seen so far. What do you think?
At the recent premiere of ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’ in Los Angeles, Benedict Cumberbatch, aka Doctor Strange, had a Jaeger-LeCoultre Master Ultra Thin Perpetual on his wrist. Elizabeth Doerr explains the WIS-worthy significance of him wearing this particular model, which calls back to an earlier film in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
To celebrate the 300th anniversary of the birth of its founder, Jaquet Droz commissioned a big, beautiful book written by Swiss historian Dr. Sandrine Girardier. Elizabeth Doerr reviews ‘The Worlds of Jaquet Droz’ here.
The Phillips watch auction in New York on December 11, 2021 sold a brand-new Patek Philippe Nautilus Reference 5711/1A-018, double signed “Tiffany & Co”. The hammer fell at a jaw-dropping price of $5.35 million. The buyer’s premium on the sale was an additional $1.153 million. Brendan Cunningham reflects on that auction result and the possible wider implications for the market.