By the late sixties Seiko dominated Swiss observatory chronometry trials, just before the contests were cancelled for good. At the end of the sixties, 226 Seiko wristwatches were certified by the Neuchâtel observatory and sold to the public as Astronomical Observatory Chronometers, making them amongst the rarest and most desirable Seiko timepieces ever.

Suwa Seikosha (now Seiko Epson) first participated in the chronometer contests organised by Observatoire Cantonal de Neuchâtel in 1963, submitting a quartz Crystal Chronometer clock in the marine chronometer category which placed tenth. That made Seiko the first company from outside Switzerland to finish in the top ten, and would mark the first of a string of chronometer contest victories.

Seiko only entered the Swiss chronometry contests after success in the domestic chronometer competitions organised by the Japanese government in the late fifties. Back in the day, in the glory days before the quartz crisis, observatory chronometer trials were important and prestigious events.

These trials – in Switzerland they were run by the observatories in Neuchâtel and Geneva – was where all the leading manufacturers of the day, amongst them Omega, Longines, Girard-Perregaux, tried to outdo each other. It was for such contests that movements like the Peseux 260, Longines 360 and Zenith 135 were developed, and also where these calibres earned their storied reputations. Success in the chronometer contests would be an important step in Seiko’s post-war development and international expansion.

After the respectable 10th placing with the Crystal Chronometer in 1963, both Seiko manufacturing subsidiaries Suwa Seikosha and Daini Seikosha (now Seiko Instruments Inc or SII) entered the 1964 Neuchâtel Observatory contest with mechanical wristwatch movements. Of all the movements submitted, the best finish was a miserable 144th, and not a single movement qualified as a chronometer.

Undeterred, both companies entered the contest a year later. That year, three movements from Seiko qualified as chronometers, with the best placing 114th. Daini Seikosha also finished sixth overall in the manufacturer rankings.

Things got even better in 1966, with 32 movements qualifying and the best placing ninth. Daini Seikosha rose to third place in the manufacturer rankings. In 1967, the best movement, a cal. 052, from Seiko took fourth place, out of a 62 movements which qualified as chronometers. The first placed manufacturer that year was Omega, followed by Daini Seikosha and Suwa Seikosha.

Interestingly, Seiko also entered cal. 052 movements running at 72,000 bph, but they did not do as well as the 36,000 bph calibres. One such 72,000 bph example, which placed 13th, is shown below.

13th place Seiko cal. 052 movement, serial no. 052123, running at 72,000 bph

The chronometer Bulletin de Marche for movement no. 052123

The prize certificate for movement no. 052123

Seiko never managed to do any better, for in 1968 the Neuchâtel Observatory cancelled its chronometer contests for good – 1967 was the last year it ran the contest. Seiko instead headed to Geneva for the Concours de Genève organised by the Observatory of Geneva.

In Geneva Seiko proceeded to take fourth to tenth place in the wristwatch movement category, with first to third place occupied by the quartz Beta 21 movement from Centre Electronique Horloger, an enterprise backed by the Swiss watch industry. That meant that the Seiko movements were the top finishers in the mechanical movement category.

After Seiko’s victories in 1968, the Geneva observatory then cancelled its contests in 1968, ending the long tradition of Swiss observatory timing trials.

The fourth place, 36,000 bph cal. R45

Example of a Bulletin de Marche from the Geneva Observatory

Despite having stopped the chronometry contests, the Neuchâtel Observatory continued to test and certify observatory chronometers. So in 1968, the same year Seiko swept the board at the Geneva chronometer competition, Daini Seikosha submitted 103 of its cal. 4520 to the Neuchâtel Observatory for chronometer certification. These were high beat movements running at 36,000 bph, just like the prize winning chronometers. Seventy three movements passed and were certified as observatory chronometers.

The cal. 4520 Astronomical Observatory Chronometer

Notably, all 73 of these Astronomical Observatory Chronometer watches were then sold the next year. In 1969 and 1970, an additional 25 and 128 cal. 4580 movements were certified and subsequently sold, for a total of 226 observatory certified wristwatches sold publicly.

While the calibre number marked on the movement were “4580” on the 1969 and 1970 watches, all were marked “4520” on the dial at six o’clock. The watch pictured is from either 1969 or 1970, being marked “4580” on the base plate and “4520” on the dial.

Aside from Girard-Perregaux, Seiko is the only company to have retailed observatory certified timepieces made in series. Other companies did sell observatory contest winners, or observatory certified chronometers in small series like the famed Rolex Kew ‘A’ of the forties. Seiko and GP made and sold them in relatively large quantities; GP sold over 600 of its high frequency chronometers in the sixties.

Sales literature from 1969 for the Astronomical Observatory Chronometer

Each of the cal. 4520 chronometers was sold with its own Neuchâtel Observatory Bulletin de Marché, or chronometer certificate. Priced at ¥180,000, the Astronomical Observatory Chronometers were some six times the price of the basic Grand Seiko at the time.

As with all Seiko watches the calibre number is indicated at the bottom of the dial

The Daini Seikosha logo at six o’clock

Similar to the Grand Seiko 45GS which had the same cushion case, the Seiko Astronomical Observatory Chronometer cal. 4520 was entirely in 18k yellow gold – the case, crown, dial, hour markers, hands were all gold. The case is decorated with a beautiful and delicate linen finish, as is the dial. Along with its Grand Seiko cousin, this is a beautiful timepiece and I hope it will be remade; just this year the 44GS was reissued so there is hope.

The movement has a workmanlike finish, but is obviously designed for superior chronometry – take the large balance wheel with overcoil for example. Note that this particular wristwatch has an aftermarket display back, while the original case back was solid.

These observatory certified chronometers mark a fascinating and little period of watchmaking history, which seemed to have come to a close when the contests were stopped. But in 2009 the Swiss chronometer contest returned.

Organised by the great and the good of Swiss watchmaking, including the Neuchâtel cantonal government, COSC and the Besançon Observatory, the biennial Concours International de Chronométrie, or International Chronometry Competition, professed a noble aim. It wanted to continue the tradition of the chronometer contests of the 19th and 20th century, not just for movements, but for finished watches destined for the purchase by consumers.

But amongst the rules of the contest, one governing the provenance of the timepiece stands out. It reads: “All parts used to build the movement must be made within Europe.”

Addition November 27, 2016: Included the fact that the observatory chronometers produced by Seiko in 1969 and 1970 were marked “4580” on the movement and “4520” on the dial.

The IWC Ingenieur Chronograph Silberpfeil is a tribute to the Mercedes-Benz W25 Silberpfeil, which won several European Grand Prix championships in the mid thirties.

Amongst the many Ingenieurs unveiled at SIHH 2013, the Ingenieur Chronograph Silberpfeil (“silver arrow”), stood out. Not for anything else but its aesthetics, especially the version with the silver dial. It is a big, chunky and good looking watch. The dial on both versions – it is available in silver as well as brown – is finished with circular graining, or perlage. This is inspired by the circular grained, aluminium dashboard of the Mercedes-Benz W25, one of the championship-winning Mercedes race cars of the thirties known as the Silberpfeil.

On the brown dial the perlage is lost because of the dial colour, while on the silver dial it sparkles. And of course the original W25 dashboard would have been silver-toned as well.

The 45 mm case is in brushed steel, with solid construction and a good finish that is characteristic of IWC. If there is one weakness with the case, it is the embossed – instead of engraved – text and W25 race car on the case back.

Being embossed, the edges and shape of the text and motif are poorly defined and unappealing up close. High quality case back engraving used to be standard at IWC, so this is a surprising and disappointing turn of events.

Inside is the cal. 89361 movement with flyback function. It has a 68 hour power reserve, wound by IWC’s signature bidirectional Pellaton winding system. It is made by IWC, though the movement architecture, primarily the base plate and gear train, is similar to that of the Valjoux 7750. Both watches are fitted to rubber straps covered in brown calfskin. Each is limited to 1000 pieces, but is not individually numbered out of 1000. In Singapore, the retail price is S$17,000 including 7% tax, while in the US it is US$13,100. While this is not a technically interesting watch, I really like the look. – SJX

Bremont’s latest limited edition is the Codebreaker, a flyback GMT chronograph dedicated to the WWII Bletchley Park decryption centre, with the watch itself containing actual elements from Bletchley Park.

Bremont specialises in military-themed timepieces, which are surprisingly popular with actual military personnel. It just announced the Codebreaker, a flyback chronograph with GMT, to commemorates the United Kingdom’s codebreaking effort during the Second World War. Actual elements from Bletchley Park, the UK’s main codebreaking centre, are embedded inside the watch. The site of the Government Code and Cipher School (GC&CS), Bletchley Park was tasked with decrypting the codes generated by the German Enigma and Lorenz machines. This enterprise played a major, if less publicised role in the Second World War.

The enigma machine

Enigma machine rotors

The Codebreaker with rotors from the Enigma machine

The Codebreaker chronograph has several original relics from Bletchley Park. One is a component from the rotor of the Enigma machine, which is integrated into the winding rotor of the watch. 

Another are the five punch cards inside the case, which are used to display the serial number of the watch on the case side.

BTM machine punch cards

These punch cards were used in the British Tabulating Machine Company (BTM) machines, essentially primitive computers, which analysed the German code.

The serial number on the case side composed of punch cards

Lastly, a tiny bit of pine from the floor of Hut 6, a building in Bletchley Park dedicated to deciphering codes from the German Army and Air Force, is embedded in the crown of the Codebreaker. Inside the watch is the BE-83AR movement, with the rotor shaped like the drum of the Bombe machine, a machine designed by Alan Turing which helped break the codes. The calibre is actually a Valjoux 7750 modified to feature the flyback and second time zone display, which is indicated by the red-tipped hand on the dial.

Rows of drums of the Bombe machine

The case is 43 mm wide, available in either hardened steel or rose gold. The steel version is limited to 240 with a steep retail price of US$18,500, while only 50 pieces in rose gold will be made with an even steeper price of US$33,995. – SJX

Bletchley Park

Codebreaker in rose gold

Just this afternoon some friends of this blog gathered over lunch. There was food, but once the watches were rolled in, attention was diverted elsewhere…

Eight of our readers, two from foreign lands and the rest Singaporean, came together for lunch today. Between them there were 15 watches present.  The assembled watches were diverse, a good balance between mainstream brands like Rolex and Panerai, and the independents; notable because two Philippe Dufour Simplicities turned up, one having flown here.  Here are a couple of table shots of the great and the good. Pardon the tablecloth. 

And now to honour the individual timepieces:

Audemars Piguet Offshore Rubberclad in rose gold – the Offshore fad has cooled somewhat but this is still appealing. And unlike some other watches from the same genre, it doesn’t look dated.

FP Journe Souverain Tourbillon – still one of his best products

Grand Seiko 130th Anniversary SBGW033 – probably the best known limited edition Grand Seiko

The MIH watch – great value but not my cup of tea design-wise

A rare Lange Datograph made for Italian retailer Pisa Orologeria

Kari Voutilainen’s Observatoire – many variants were made and most look good as this one does

Philippe Dufour Simplicity – 34 mm (left) and 37 mm

The beautiful view from the back. Interestingly the rhodium plating on the bridges of each watch is a different shade.

Simplicity (bottom) vs. Observatoire

Grand Seiko GMT SBGM003 – though traditional in design, one of the most distinctive GS

Panerai Black Seal PAM292 on an elephant hide strap – mechanically uninteresting but great looking on the wrist

Patek Philippe Ref. 5035 Annual Calendar – the first generation of the brand’s annual calendar

Doing the same thing differently

Patek Philippe Ref. 5078P minute repeater in platinum

Rolex Deep Sea

Superb piece of engineering…

but why so thick?

Romain Jerome Spacecraft

Seiko Presage 100th Anniversary with enamel dial – the lowest cost fired enamel dial watch today

For those who are numerically inclined, here are some of the figures from the evening. 

Total – 15

Independent – 6

Mainstream – 9

Japanese – 3

German – 1

Swiss – 11

Top 3 brands by representation: Seiko (3), Philippe Dufour and Patek Philippe tied (2)

Ratio of lowest cost (Seiko Presage) to highest (Patek Ref. 5078P) – 1:500

Stayed tuned for the next one.

– SJX

Omega has just announced the Seamaster Diver ETNZ Limited Edition, created for Emirates Team New Zealand, one of the challengers for the 2013 America’s Cup.

As a partner of Emirates Team New Zealand, Omega has created a limited edition for the team, which will soon take part in the Louis Vuitton Cup yachting contest to determine the challenger for the 34th America’s Cup. Sailing cutting edge AC72 catamarans, three teams will compete with each other for the right to challenge the current holder of the cup, Oracle Team USA. The watch is a Seamaster chronograph with the cal. 3330 inside. It is equipped with the Co-Axial escapement as well as column wheel and vertical clutch, but is actually the previous generation of Omega chronograph movements. The current flagship chronograph calibre is the cal. 9300, as found in the black ceramic Speedmaster “Dark Side of the Moon”. That being said, the cal. 3330 based watches are more accessibly priced and represent solid bang for the buck. Though the movement is a standard chronograph movement, the five minute countdown markings on the minute sub-dial at three o’clock means this can function as a regatta countdown timer as well.

The five minute countdown function on the red-ringed minute counter

The case, which has a helium escape valve, is 44 mm in diameter with a water resistance of 300 m. An Emirates Team New Zealand logo in relief decorates the case back.

2013 numbered pieces will be made, with a price of S$8550 including 7% tax, or about US$6800. They will be available in stores next week. – SJX

Emirates Team New Zealand AC72

The Emirates Team New Zealand AC72 sailing past the Golden Gate Bridge

In 2013, Jaeger-LeCoultre marks the 180th anniversary of the founding of Antoine LeCoultre’s workshop in Le Sentier. Amongst the watches created for the jubilee is the Master Grande Tradition Tourbillon Cylindrique à Quantième Perpétuel Jubilee in platinum.

As its name implies, the Tourbillon Cylindrique à Quantième Perpétuel features a tourbillon with cylindrical hairspring as well as a perpetual calendar. The case is platinum, while the dial is silver with a grained finish. The perpetual calendar is displayed in the conventional with three sub-dials, no surprises there. 

At 12 o’clock is the four digit year indication, an uncommon feature in perpetual calendars, as well as “1833” which is the year Antoine LeCoultre established himself in Le Sentier. 

Because of its cylindrical hairspring, the tourbillon cage is considerably higher than a typical carriage, leaving the the tourbillon more prominent than usual. The aperture for the tourbillon is also set one step down from the main dial above, enhancing the effect.

Another highlight is the 42 mm case. Though this is part of the Master Grande Tradition line of high complications, the case is a new design which makes it premiere with the Jubilee  ollection. The case features a more detailed design than the previous Master Grande Tradition cases.

With a stepped bezel and lugs, the case is much more attractive than the simplistic and chunky cases previously used for the Master Grande Tradition. In addition, it is made from a platinum alloy that has a whiter sheen than usual, which has never been used before in watchmaking. Turn the case over and the cal. 985 movement is revealed. The solid gold rotor, unique to the Jubilee collection, is decorated with a relief of the gold medal won by LeCoultre at the 1889 Universal Exposition in Paris.

The Tourbillon Cylindrique à Quantième Perpétuel Jubilee is limited to 180 pieces, with a retail price of S$209,000 including 7% tax. That is equivalent to approximately US$164,000. This, along with the rest of the diverse JLC 2013 collection, will be on show at Watches&Wonders, the mini-SIHH for Asia, in Hong Kong at end September. – SJX

H. Moser is known for its restrained designs and ingenious complications – so far. These Mayu prototypes maintain the typical Moser style, but with a surprising palette.

H. Moser CEO Edouard Meylan was recently in town, bringing with him the Baselworld 2013 collection (which includes the Nomad Dual Time we covered last week) as well as these prototypes of the Mayu, the brand’s entry level model. Are they a tantalising hint of what H. Moser might do in the future? Though H. Moser didn’t invent the fumé dial, it has almost become a signature for the brand. The graduated colours of the dial give it the appearance of being slightly charred. So far the fumé dials used by Moser are in the usual subtle colours favoured by the brand, like the chocolate tone of the Perpetual 1 Golden Edition.

These Mayu prototypes use the same fumé effect, but with totally unexpected colours. The red is extremely striking, but my favourite is the pale blue. Notice the distressed leather strap used on the pale blue Mayu, another interesting possibility for the future.

That being said, these are just prototypes, so there is no certainty they will make it into production. They do, however, offer up some intriguing possibilities. – SJX

Launched at Baselworld 2013, the HM Perpetual Moon from Arnold & Son is one of the largest moon phase displays available today, with a moon phase disc of 29 mm.

Today is the date of the “Supermoon”, when the moon appears larger than normal, thanks to it being closest to the Earth during its elliptical orbit. In horology the HM Perpetual Moon from Arnold & Son is a contender for the wristwatch equivalent. A simple, but somewhat romantic, timepiece, the HM Perpetual Moon has the hours and minutes, and also a moon phase in grand detail and scale.  The watch case is 42 mm in diameter, but the moon phase disc is 29 mm and the moon itself is 11.2 mm, taking up half the dial. It depicts the moon in realistic detail, craters and all. The moon itself is cast from a hand-engraved die and then inserted onto the moon phase disc.

Set via a pusher in the case, the moon phase is mirrored by another moon phase display on the movement. This has an easy to read graduated dial for more accurate setting of the moon phase. Like most moon phase watches, this is accurate to a day in 122.5 years.

Inside is the A&S1512 manual wind calibre, with double barrels and an 80 hour power reserve. It was developed and manufactured by movement specialist La Joux-Perret, the sister company of Arnold & Son, both of which are now owned by Citizen.

Pictured above is the HM Perpetual Moon Elegant in rose gold with a brilliant blue lacquered dial that is extremely striking, and a retail price of SFr26,200. More restrained is the Classic model (shown below), also in rose gold but with an eggshell dial; this retails for SFr25,520. Additionally, a steel version with a black dial, the HM Perpetual Moon Modern, is also available with a retail price of SFr14,000. All prices exclude taxes. – SJX

HM Perpetual Moon Classic

HM Perpetual Moon Elegant

The Cartier Tank celebrates its centenary in four years (or six, depending on the date regarded as its birth). One of the first form wristwatches, the Tank has grown and shrunk, and also had various complications added, though mostly simple ones. The Cartier Tank has multiplied into dozens of forms, maybe even hundreds, but all retain the basic format of wide brancards framing the dial on each side.

ouis Cartier devised the Tank in 1917, during the Great War, which saw the first modern tanks in action on the Western Front, or so the legend goes. Two years later the first Tank wristwatch was sold.

What follows is a sampling of Tank wristwatches over time, starting with one of the earliest known Tank watches, a Tank Normale from 1921. The vintage and discontinued Tank timepieces pictured here – there are a dozen in total – are all exceedingly rare and almost impossible to photograph in the metal. I was privileged to be able to photograph and examine these up close last year.

Tank Normale, Cartier Paris, c. 1920 In platinum with yellow gold case back, sapphire cabochon on crown, leather strap Cartier was a pioneer in using platinum for jewellery, and subsequently in watches.

Tank, Cartier Paris, c. 1921 Platinum, set with rose-cut diamonds, satin strap

Tank Louis Cartier, Cartier, c. 1925 Platinum with white gold back, sapphire cabochon, leather strap This is probably the archetypal Tank wristwatch. Note the extremely poorly printed original dial (which is also in poor condition), early Cartier watches had beautiful cases and styling but mostly terrible dial quality.

Tank Cintrée, Cartier Paris, c. 1924 Platinum, yellow gold, pink gold, sapphire, leather strap So named because of the curved case, Cintrée means curved.

Tank Normale, Cartier Paris, c. 1927 Platinum, pink gold, sapphire cabochon, white gold mesh bracelet

Tank à guichets jumping hours, Cartier Paris, c. 1928 Yellow gold, pink gold, leather strap Bought by Sir Bhupinder Singh, Maharajah of Patiala, a great patron of Cartier.

Tank Cintrée, Cartier London, c. 1929 Yellow gold, pink gold, sapphire cabochon, leather strap Sold to Fred Astaire who presented it as a gift to Felix in 1929, as indicated by engraving on the case back

Tank Chinoise, Cartier, c. 1930 Yellow gold, sapphire, leather strap

Reversible “basculante” watch, Cartier Paris, c. 1936 Yellow gold, pink gold, leather strap Though Cartier reissued the Tank Basculante in 2000, in the form of a Tank Louis Cartier, the original reversible form watch was not a Tank but just a rectangular watch.

Tank with eight-day movement, Cartier, c. 1938 Yellow gold, pink gold, leather strap This is not strictly a Tank due to the case shape; the lugs have a sharp downward curve when viewed from the side. This is one of my favourites because it has an outstanding LeCoultre movement and is also quite modern in size due to the large calibre.

Tank à vis, Cartier, c. 2002 Yellow gold, sapphire, leather strap Part of the Collection Privée Cartier Paris, this Tank displays two independent time zones.

Tank Louis Cartier Noctambule, Cartier, c. 2006 Platinum, white gold, sapphire, leather strap A piece unique made for the Cartier’s own archives collection, with the bridges of the skeleton movement coated with Luminova so the movement glows in the dark.

Tank Louis Cartier XL, c. 2012 Rose gold, diamonds, leather strap This is the thinnest Cartier wristwatch ever, with a height of just 5.1 mm.

Tank Anglaise, c. 2013 Rose gold, leather strap A radically new form for the Tank was unveiled in 2012 with the Tank Anglaise which sports a crown integrated into the case brancard.

The very latest Tank to join the family is the new Tank MC, demonstrating the continued longevity of this classic.

The latest addition to the Romain Jerome Moon-DNA collection, the Moon Orbiter is a flying tourbillon with a tiny bit of alloy from the Apollo 11 spacecraft as well as touch of moon dust.

Romain Jerome’s second intergalactic timepiece after the warmly received and well priced Spacecraft is the Moon Orbiter flying tourbillon. Made by La Joux-Perret, the automatic movement has a the rocket-shaped tourbillon carriage on the left of the case, and the time display at right. And at the bottom is the indicator for the 42 hour power reserve.

At 48.5 mm wide and 44.5 mm, the case is extremely large, but thanks to the lugs mounted on four pneumatic cylinders it clings closely to the wrist. 

Fitted with five sapphire crystals revealing all of the movement and dial, the case is steel with mixed with alloy from the Apollo 11 spacecraft. And the dial is made from alloy impregnated with moon dust, then engraved with a cosmos-inspired motif. The same decoration extends to the base plate of the movement visible from the back of the watch.

The Moon Orbiter is a limited edition of 25 pieces, priced at US$115,000 or €99,000, excluding taxes.

– SJX