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The Only Watch auction is a great place to see (and bid on!) unique pieces by some of the most talented artisans and watchmakers in the world. Here Joshua Munchow highlights five watches from Only Watch 2021 that feature a variety of spectacular artistic crafts.
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The GPHG foundation describes the Aiguille d’Or as “. . . rewarding the best overall watch among all the categories (best in show), also deemed the most representative of the watch industry as a whole. It is the most prestigious award.” In this last GPHG prediction discussion of the 2021 edition, our panel reveals who we think might win the 2021 Grand Prix d'Horlogerie de Genève's big prize.
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Petite Aiguille is a fun Grand Prix d'Horlogerie de Genève category with a diverse set of contestants offered at a retail price equal to or under 3,500 Swiss francs. These include rising stars anOrdain, Furlan Marri, and independent specialist Massena Lab. Oris is also present here with the chic Divers Sixty-Five Cotton Candy, and Doxa represents the affordable diver corner with a SUB 200 model. Last but not least, there is Ciga Design’s interesting Blue Planet.
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Featuring watches in the price segment from 3,500 to 10,000 Swiss francs, the Grand Prix d'Horlogerie de Genève's Petite Aiguille category is extremely competitive. High quality and a little something extra are, or should be, a given; but here we are looking for a lot of something extra. The great thing about this category is that these are all very wearable, affordable, and accessible watches. So how did our panel do in choosing a winner?
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In November 2021 collectors have the chance to see (and possibly buy) all four Philippe Dufour watches in one place, making Phillips' Geneva Watch Auction: XIV what could well be the watch auction of the decade. Joshua Munchow takes a look at each of the four Philippe Dufour models on the block and examines why this is likely to leave its mark on the auction world for years to come.
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De Bethune's Dream Watch 5 is more a beautifully sculptured piece of jewelry than a wristwatch, and its organic shape looks fantastic from every angle. The latest Dream Watch 5 Maestri’Art Cempasúchil honors and celebrates Mexico's Day of the Dead with a colorful, exquisitely engraved case that is also a metallurgic wonder. Horological art doesn't get better than this!
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Creating a watch like the Chopard L.U.C Full Strike Día de los Muertos is walking a thin line, but it perfectly demonstrates how whimsical haute horlogerie can become. It is the eye for detail and the execution of those details that make the difference. Happy Halloween!
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Bell & Ross’s unique BR 01 Instrument stole the spotlight at its launch in 2005 thanks to its unusual circle-in-a-square case, becoming an instant hit. The BR 01 was then used as a jumping-off point for a variety of designs, beginning in 2009 with the then-trendy skull motif – which in Elizabeth Doerr's eyes was a perfect addition. How has the skull motif evolved at Bell & Ross? Find out here!
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It could not be a more diverse bunch of crafts in the 2021 Grand Prix d'Horlogerie de Genève Artistic Crafts category! We have exquisite guilloche combined with rare blue gold, peacock marquetry, an art dial made of enamel and silk thread, an automaton with exquisite enameling and engraving costing half a million, and two more engraved masterpieces. How to choose a winner from all this art?
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Many brands participating in the 2021 Only Watch auction took inspiration from the orange-colored livery of the 2021 auction and worked it into their watches. While all of these watches are very different, what they have in common is their highly creative approach. Here Martin Green highlights five watches with orange in them from the 2021 Only Watch auction.
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Today's high-end automata beautifully illustrate that extraordinary engineering can be combined with impressive artistic crafts to wonderful ends. But even in the highest quality examples, the principles of what drives automata are largely the same as they have been for centuries because most are based on very straightforward mechanical principles to create motion. Everything you ever wanted to know about automata is right here.
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The rules for the GPHG's Jewellery category state that the watches must demonstrate exceptional mastery of the art of jewelry and gem setting and are also distinguished by the choice of stones featured in them. Once again our panel has a favorite, but there's no consensus.
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One of Martin Green's favorite watches of 2021 is the Louis Vuitton Tambour Carpe Diem. At rest, the time is not visible on this watch. However, after pushing a snake-shaped button the entire dial comes to life as a rattlesnake begins to move and the skull begins to laugh at you. And finally you can see the time (but only if you need to).
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A. Lange & Söhne launches the Zeitwerk Lumen in a limited edition Honeygold case on October 24, 2021. The brand’s own special gold alloy adds fresh appeal to one of its technically most complex pieces. But there is much more to this launch rooted in history as Sabine Zwettler notes.
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Martin Green still vividly remembers admiring the Minimatik in the comfort of the Nomos booth at Baselworld 2015. Other watches were presented to him during this appointment, but he kept reaching for the Minimatik. Now he has bought one for himself, and here Martin explains why.
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In the 2021 Grand Prix d'Horlogerie de Genève Diver's category we see a mix of tool watches that one might actually choose to use underwater as a dive computer backup and “desk divers” that will see their toughest duty during a light rain shower on the way to the office. In this round table, our panelists pick their choices as the best dive watch of 2021.
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The Louis Moinet Space Revolution for 2021 displays two tourbillons orbiting the dial in opposite directions. But that’s not all: each of these tourbillons carries a little titanium spaceship on its “tail” to create an epic science fiction space battle on the wrist!
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Our pals at The Watches TV went hands on with three of the unique timepieces on offer at the upcoming Only Watch 2021, which takes place on November 6, 2021. The unique watches featured are the F.P. Journe x Francis Ford Coppola FFC Blue, the Moser Streamliner Cylindrical Tourbillon Only Watch, and the Urwerk UR-102 Gaïa. Enjoy this rare treat!
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WatchTime New York is back! With 28 participating watch brands set to showcase their latest watches, the fair takes place at Midtown Manhattan’s Gotham Hall from October 22 through 24, 2021. Here Sabine Zwettler highlights three new timepieces from A. Lange & Söhne, Armin Strom, and Bovet that will be showing for the first time in North America there.
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That the tourbillon hasn't lost any of its appeal in this new era of wristwatches becomes crystal clear at Only Watch 2021. The mechanical ballet of the tourbillon remains mesmerizing and highly appreciated by watch connoisseurs. Here are five very special examples that you can bid on in the upcoming Only Watch auction taking place on November 6, 2021.
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Timepieces entered into the Chronograph category are mechanical watches comprising at least one chronograph indication, and here only two of the entries are brand-new models. Our panel has very differing opinions as to which of these six chronographs will (or should) win. Follow the discussion here!
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When Brendan Cunningham learned of Jaeger-LeCoultre’s Sound Maker exhibition in New York, he quickly decided to attend and participate in the accompanying Atelier d’Antoine, a 1.5-hour workshop to discover why watches go "tick tock" and how time can be expressed. He shares his experiences here.
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Gérald Genta's claim to eternal horological fame is closely connected to the rise of high-end stainless steel watches: he designed both the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak (1972) and the Patek Philippe Nautilus (1976). While those two watches alone are enough to make Genta a legend, he did much, much more than that as Martin Green shares here.
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Ahead of the ninth edition of the biennial Only Watch auction taking place on November 6, 2021 in Geneva, Elizabeth Doerr highlights all 53 of the unique watches going under the hammer.
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To this day, when most people think about luxury watches they picture a wizened, white-haired man in a white lab coat bent over a workbench against the backdrop of snowy Alps busily filing away at watch parts. It’s a lovely picture, but not very representative of the modern – or even necessarily traditional – watch industry as Elizabeth Doerr explains here.
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What a diverse bunch of tourbillons in this Grand Prix d'Horlogerie de Genève category: two of them are beautifully transparent, while one of them is combined with a chronograph. Yet another contains a constant-force device, while one example here can be flipped around. And, finally, the sixth is involved in a space war. Oh, to choose a winner!
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The Maurice Lacroix Simon Nogueira x Aikon Urban Tribe adds even more spice to the Aikon collection with its cool engravings and amazing price/performance ratio. But Martin Green thinks you'll just be wowed by its looks.
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A. Lange & Söhne sponsors the world's most luxurious vintage car event, the Villa d’Este Concorso d’Eleganza, and has done so since 2012. The event has taken place every year (except one) on gorgeous Lake Como in Italy since 1929. Elizabeth Doerr went to the 2021 event and shares her impressions of the elegant event with us here.
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In this video, The Watches TV’s Marc André Deschoux goes through Bovet’s latest watches from Geneva Watch Days 2021. These include the beautiful new turquoise collection featuring the 19Thirty, Récital 23, Récital 27 triple time zone, Monsieur Bovet, and the Virtuoso VIII Chapter Two Reimagined in pink gold.
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As Sir Winston Churchill said, "My tastes are simple: I am easily satisfied with the best." He would surely have been more than satisfied with this brilliant Pol Roger Sir Winston Churchill 2012 champagne. The great man also thought that a magnum of champagne is the perfect size for two gentlemen to have over lunch, especially if one isn’t drinking. But what is his relationship with this great champagne house?
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