watches

“The world we have is a gift to cherish”, says Archbishop Desmond Tutu. “We should not only protect its elements but also the people who inhabit it. We should all strive to live in a place where people not only respect, but also love the differences in one another. I am very thankful for Girard-Perregaux’s support in achieving these goals.” Girard-Perregaux was proud to partner with Nobel Peace Laureate Archbishop Desmond Tutu for a conversation with author Robert V. Taylor. HOW TO BE HAPPY, CHANGE THE WORLD AND EMBRACE A NEW WAY TO BE HUMAN. Held in LACMA’s Bing Auditorium in Los Angeles with over 500 guests attending the conversation, Archbishop Tutu was presented with an engraved 1966 collection watch in honor of his philanthropic accomplishments around the world after which. “The leadership example that Archbishop Desmond Tutu has laid before us through his efforts with the Desmond Tutu Peace Foundation is worthy of much recognition”, says Sowind CEO Michele Sofisti. “It is in our youth that we can find the hope needed to live in a peaceful world. Through the foundation’s activities, Archbishop Tutu instills a feeling of love and unity in each child that will permeate everyone they come in contact with”.

While we've shown you some of our favorite pieces from Panerai at SIHH 2012 (including this badass ceramic tourbillon, the very first watch in a new case style, and two special edition Radiomirs) there was one piece noticeably absent piece from our coverage, a watch that seems to have re-energized some dormant Panerisiti with its black on black on black ceramic look.  We are, of course, talking about the The Panerai Tuttonero Luminor 1950 3 Days GMT Automatic Ceramic, or just the Tuttonero.  Even if you have a mild interest in Panerai, this is one you'll want to see.

Short video of a limited edition Double Tourbillon 30° taken at the Greubel Forsey Time Art Gallery in Shanghai

Last weekend, the 24 hours of the Nürburgring were raced and Fratellowatches was there with Jaeger-LeCoultre and Aston Martin. Besides enjoying the race and the finish of the Aston Martin team, there was also some time and room to view the Jaeger-LeCoultre collection and follow a short master class in watchmaking.

Before entering the Aston Martin terrace in the Dorint Hotel at Nürburgring with the most perfect view on the racing track, I followed the short master class on watchmaking given by one of Jaeger-LeCoultre’s watchmakers from Le Sentier. They brought their work bench to the racing track and with the sound of super sports cars in the back ground, I tried disassembling and assembling the power-reserve gear work of one of their Reverso movements.

After doing so successfully, a short tour around the Jaeger-LeCoultre watches who were on display was given to me by their marketing manager of the Benelux. Besides a number of AMVOX watches (including the Tourbillon), Jaeger-LeCoultre also showed the new Master Control models. More about those in another blog post. The AMVOX watches are the product of a long lasting relationship between Jaeger-LeCoultre and Aston Martin.

Some of the AMVOX watches are even on the option list when buying an Aston Martin car, like the JLC AMVOX Rapide Transponder.

The AMVOX Rapide Transponder, pictured above, can be used to control the 4-door Aston Martin Rapide. Opening and closing of the doors can be controlled with this watch, even as turning on (and off) the headlights.

After a tour along all the JLC watches, we headed to the terrace to see the 24 hours of Nürburgring. At exactly 16:00, the race ended and the Aston Martin cars passed the finish line. The Aston Martin V12 Zagato and two Vantage GT4S took podium places.

A big thank you to Jaeger-LeCoultre for the invitation to join them during the event at the Nürburgring in Germany.

Hublot, Ferrari Official Watch, Partner of the Ferrari Tribute 2012 138 Ferrari – all carefully selected by Ferrari and built between 1958 and 2012 - were assembled last weekend for the occasion, each vehicle painted in Hublot's colours. As Official Watch of Ferrari and its various ventures in Italy and throughout the world, Hublot was delighted to be partnering the Italian constructor for the Ferrari Tribute 2012. No fewer than 138 Ferrari vehicles were brought together to celebrate this exceptional "Ferrari Tribute 2012". The cars – all built between 1958 and 2012 - were chosen by a committee of excellence appointed specially for the occasion and in accordance with clearly-defined criteria: year of production, model, list of trophies and prizes won by the car, place of origin, etc. They were all painted in Hublot's colours for the event. Programme highlights… Head to Brescia on Wednesday 16th and Thursday 17th May to admire the cars on show and the parade. Starts on Friday 18th May. First car departs at 8.20am. First car scheduled to arrive in Rome at 7.50pm, public parade in the evening. Saturday 19th May, first car departs for Brescia at 5.30am with stops at Modena and Maranello. First car scheduled to arrive in Brescia around 8.45pm. Sunday 11am, "Ferrari Tribute 2012" honouring ceremony in Dezenzano followed by a cocktail party.

Roy Hodgson, Manager of the England national football team, discovers its new Hublot “Euro 2012™ Limited Series” presented by Rick Delacroix, President Hublot South America in London Roy Hodgson (right)

Great Video. Take a look. [www.thetimetv.com] www.worldofwatches.com

Raising a 1,800 square foot mainsail is an exhausting task, even if you have five other guys helping out. Doing so on a sultry Miami afternoon after a hearty breakfast didn’t help matters. This past weekend, a few journalists, retailers and one lucky contest winner got to see what it’s like to sail on an ocean racing yacht, including what it takes to hoist and trim sails and man the tiller, all the while avoiding losing a finger in a winch or tripping over a rope and falling overboard.

Few television shows have been as loudly or consistently praised for the quality and authenticity of its costumes, sets and props as AMC’s Mad Men. Now in its fifth season, the show continues to go to great efforts to source appropriate accessories to showcase a hyper real version of New York in 1966.

This obsession with historically accurate physical culture extends to the wrists of the characters, and for years watch fans have eagerly paused DVDs on partially blurred wristshots of Don Draper and his co-workers. The ability to accurately identify a watch from 50 paces (or a blurred screengrab) is a highly prized skill among watch fans. James Enloe, founder of Watches In Movies (the premier watches on screen website), attributes the desire for fans to identify watches as an extension of watchnerds' passion, and an important way to show off their otherwise esoteric knowledge. Of Mad Men, Enloe suggests that the there’s a double appeal for fans; “It makes for good watching simply for the ‘did they get it right?‘ factor. Are the watches worn proper for the period, or did something more modern slip in that shouldn’t have been there?” Today we’d like to take a closer look at some of the lesser stars of Mad Men: Four watches used in the most recent season.

TAG Heuer has partnered Oracle Racing Team USA in the 34th America’s Cup, and here are the commemorative Aquaracer watches we knew were coming.  There are two “limited edition” chronographs here — one with “Team USA” logo and one with “Defender” logo.  Each model is available on a rubber strap or steel bracelet.   If you are not up on yacht racing (like me) you may be wondering what “Defender” is all about.  In short, it means that Oracle Racing Team USA won the last America’s Cup (in 2010, it was then ‘BMW Oracle USA’ beating Hublot sponsored Team Alinghi) and thus they are defending, rather than challenging for, the cup this time around.   Back to the watches:  of note you will see the touches of red, the official “Team USA” color, and the superbly looking “Oracle Racing Team” boat stamped on the caseback (also pictured below).  In addition to the models shown here, there is also a non-chronograph “Team USA” version being produced as well, if you prefer a simpler look.  All in, this is a nicely styled and respectably spec’d watch that many watch enthusiasts will be clamoring for.

TAG Heuer Aquaracer “Team USA” / “Oracle Racing” Watches

Limited Edition ? pieces

44mm stainless steel case, 500 meter water resistant, black rubber bezel, automatic mechanical TH Calibre 16, rubber strap or steel bracelet

a beautifully stamped caseback — “Oracle Racing”

note the “Team USA” logo

 note here the “DEFENDER” logo rather than “Team USA”

the “GGYC” stands for Golden Gate Yacht Club

One last note:  I say “limited edition” in quotations because TAG Heuer conveniently has not stated how many will be produced, which probably means it is a fairly high number (i.e. thousands+) by my definition of “limited edition”.

My trusty Seiko 5 with me on my holiday. Rugged enough to take the rigours of holiday travels - the sun, the sand and the sea! Cheers! :)-D

Clearly the highlight of Antiquorum’s Geneva auction of May 13, 2012, the Patek Philippe World Time (Ref. 2523) with guilloche gold center you see here hammered for an impressive 990,000 CHF (about $1.05 million at current f/x).  The extremely fine and extremely rare Patek Philippe watch was made in 1953 and sold on October 10, 1956 by famed French Patek retailer Jean Guillermin.  The watch remained in the original owner’s family until being offered at auction last week.  As you can see from the close-up photos below, the piece remained in amazing unpolished condition for 55 years.  In particular note the sharp and well defined lugs and the deep and clearly visible hallmarks (see photos below for more info).  The piece was overhauled by Patek in May 2011 under very specific instruction from the owner that the watch should only have the movement serviced to ensure good timekeeping but to leave the case in its original untouched condition.   An amazing Patek Philippe and collector’s piece!  Read on for more details and photos.

Patek Philippe Ref 2523 Worldtime

sold at auction for 990,000 CHF (Antiquorum May 13, 2012)

“World Time”, 36mm 18K yellow gold case with two crowns and guilloche dial with an 18K yellow gold Patek Philippe buckle

The lugs still exhibit their sharp definition and angles as they would have had upon original sale in 1956:

 

The hallmark on the left is on the lug;  on the right we see the caseback hallmarks:  two owls representing the gold importation hallmark for 18k and “JG”, denoting Jean Guillermin, the famed French Patek Philippe retailer:

According to Antiquorum’s research, there has only ever been one other yellow gold 2523 with gold guilloche center bearing the movement number 722700 (only 2 numbers from this example) sold at Antiquorum (lot 410, 15th December 1990).  This leads them to further conclude that the gold Guilloche center examples are the rarest, found less often than both the cloisonne and regular silver dial versions.

 

Last week Art Hong Kong, back for its fifth year, opened the doors for an exclusive preview to art lovers from around the world. The high-end German watchmaker Glashütte Original is already in its third year as a partner of the exclusive art fair, which opened today is runs through May 20th. The German company welcomes visitors to Art Hong Kong this year with a large, spacious booth. For the first name following the Baselworld fair, Glashütte Original presents its new products for 2012, under the motto “Art and Technik”; visitors may also wish to take a closer look at the German manufactory’s most recent masterpiece, the Grande Cosmopolite Tourbillon. This world first for world travelers will begin a road show next month that will take the masterpiece to admirers of fine German watchmaking around the world. ------> Grande Cosmopolite Roadshow 2012 Opening day at the fair for the Saxon watchmaker called for an exclusive presentation of its new products to numerous members of the press, who will be welcomed on site by Glashuette Original’s vice president of sales, Mr. Dieter Pachner. Following the presentation and interviews he will introduce the Grande Cosmopolite Tourbillon in an interactive illustration of its features and benefits. A professional watchmaker at the stand will offer visitors to the fair a closer look at the art of German watchmaking and its precision. Visitors will be encouraged to do more than just watch — they will have the opportunity to take up watchmaking tools and discover the world of a mechanical movement at first hand. Glashütte Original is proud to be a partner of this renowned art fair and look forward to demonstrating its traditional craft to guests through the 20th of May, 2012.

Thought you might like to see a montage of how one of the world’s most famous and recognizable watch dials is made.

Making of the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Tapisserie Dial

The Royal Oak Dial:  “Grande Tapisserie” pattern, white gold applied hour-markers with luminescent coating,white gold Royal Oak hands with luminescent coating

A Ref 15202

yummy :)

The talented actress and Jaeger-LeCoultre feminine face looked stunning at the opening of the Festival. She choose a beautiful 101 Joaillerie at the day press conference and a unique vintage Jaeger-LeCoultre ‘couvercle’ watch at the opening night ceremony. Ever since the 16th century, ladies’ watches have delighted in reinventing the rules of the game of seduction: exploring the full spectrum from invisible to dazzling and from concealment to revealment, while engaged in a perpetual quest to strike the perfect balance between beauty, refinement and telling the time. Jaeger-LeCoultre has enriched this tradition by creating “secret” watches with covers, as well as swivelling and pivoting models, rings and pendants, covering a range of styles stretching from the purity of Art Deco to the most expressive floral motifs. Radiating ultimate aesthetic appeal and supreme elegance, these creations unite the twin arts of exceptional watchmaking and fine jewellery. Such masterpieces could only be created in the workshops of the Manufacture that so fully masters the subtle intricacies of mechanical perfection and the most exquisitely delicate gem-setting techniques.

Of all the stunning lots in this week's Christie's sale in Geneva, one that particularly caught our eye, and the eye of some serious watch collectors, was a mythical prototype Zenith El Primero. This watch was one of 25 prototypes, of which an unknown number survive to this day. Turns out that intrest in the watch ran beyond the typical collector, with Zenith themselves getting right in the thick of bidding. 

Dear Cartier lovers, Because I am new here on the forum, I would like to introduce myself to you. I am Paolo, live and work in one of the great cities here in Netherlands. I have had a few years ago a steel / gold Cartier Panthere watch and a gold / steel Cougar. Then I switched to Rolex, a number of which I have had. Currently I have my Gold steel Submariner with blue plate remains. A number of months back, the Cartier virus struck again and I bought a Santos 100 steel. That this happend, I have due to this informative forum and not forget to mention the extensive posts not to surpass photos of moderator Geo. I hope I still can learn a lot of you all and myself also occasionally adding what you guys have what appeals. Greetings Paolo (sorry, my english is not perfect)(:P)