This is not only a book about watches. This is a book about the faces behind the watches made by horological master minds Philippe Dufour, Paul Gerber, Dr. Ludwig Oechslin, FP Journe, Kenji Shiohara, Kari Voutilainen, Vianney Halter, Beat Haldimann, Volker Vyskocil, Thomas Prescher, Roger Smith and Felix Baumgartner.

I own and have read a great number of books on watches: books about specific brands, specific uses, specific complications and so on. For this reason, perhaps, I’m not sure this is a book suited to people with no interest in haute horlogerie; it is a book that suits the desire of many advanced collectors and watch aficionados to have more information on the subject. 12 Faces of Time is a book at a whole new level that what is already in existence, providing insight into the creative and inspiring minds of today’s watchmaking legends. This masterpiece of watch literature is certainly more than just a coffee table book.

The authors of this book, Elizabeth Doerr and Ralf Baumgarten, did an excellent job capturing the personal stories and excellent (and most creative) photographs of these watchmakers in their own environments. The authors needed to travel to four different countries to be able to make that possible. If they hadn’t done so, the watchmakers likely could not have been portrayed in as they are in 12 Faces of Time, at ease and passionately speaking about their work.

This is a unique book in many ways, but one thing that really sets it apart is the choice of the twelve watchmakers portrayed. These were carefully selected by the authors of the book, without any influence of marketing from brands or luxury groups. As an avid reader of watch magazines, I thought I would be able to name them all, but some of the names were new to me. Kenji Shiohara, for example, is one I had never heard of before, even though he has created some tremendous timepieces for Seiko’s mini-department of high watchmaking. The book includes a few legendary names as well, of course: Ludwig Oechslin, former creative head of Ulysse Nardin, and François-Paul Journe with his impressive FP Journe timepieces.

Not only the interviews make this book worthwhile, the photos are also simply stunning. The interplay of double-page photograph spreads and smaller pictures is wonderful, and amazingly enough it doesn’t distract you from the text with its careful wording.

When I finished reading this book, I caught myself screaming ‘wow!’ out loud. This has never happened before, and I immediately looked over my shoulder to make sure nobody else was there. Just to be sure.

This book has a price tag of 79.90 Euro. More information through www.teneues.com.

As an avid reader of the FratelloWatches blog you probably know that I write for some other websites and magazines as well. MotoringExposure.com is one of them, every wednesday they publish the ‘Wednesday Watch’-article. Today, the Wednesday Watch is about the Grönefeld GMT-06 Tourbillon Minute Repeater. I have written this article with a bit of pride, since the Grönefeld brothers are Dutch AND are located in the same area as where I am originally from.

Above you see Bart Grönefeld (right) and myself during the opening of the Grönefeld Exclusive Timepieces Boutique in Oldenzaal. Besides creating their own time pieces, they now have a boutique for other independent watchmakers (McGonigle, Sarpaneva, Kees Engelbarts, Cornelius & Cie) as well.

However, to me, the most special time piece of their boutique is their own GMT06 Tourbillon Minute Repeater. As you can see above, I was even allowed to try it on under heavy supervision. The platinum version (limited to 10 pieces only) has a price tag of 385.000 Euro. Below, you’ll see a close-up of the GMT06 in platinum.

Anyway, for the full article on the Grönefeld GMT06 Tourbillon Minute repeater, click http://www.motoringexposure.com/761/grnefeld-gmt06-wednesday-watch. An article on the opening of their boutique will follow soon.

A few months ago, I got an e-mail from Michael Clerizo, telling me that he had written a book called ‘Masters of Contemporary Watchmaking’. I hooked him up with Ernie Romers of WatchUseek to see if there was something possible with regards to the watch event WATCH2009 in Maastricht (on the 14th and 15th of November).

Two weeks ago, I received the Masters of Contemporary Watchmaking book by Michael. The book contains coverage on a lot of brands, the so-called independent watchmaking brands so to speak. Michael spend a lot of time listening to George Daniels, Svend Andersen, Vincent Calabrese, Philippe Dufour, Antoine Preziuso, Franck Muller, Aniceto Jiménez Pita, Alain Silberstein, Marco Lang, Vianney Halter and Roger Smith. In addition, Michael introduces 20 other remarkable brands in his book, a.o. Christiaan van der Klaauw from the Netherlands and Stepan Sarpaneva from Finland.

The book – printed by Thames & Hudson – is  a fairly large (12×11.9×1.4inch) and heavy (almost 5.5 pounds) and features a very nice pocket watch movement by George Daniels. With over 672 illustrations, covering 11 watchmakers and 20 other brands, Michael Clerizo tried to be as complete as possible when working on this book.

The 20 watch makers are very well covered by the author, each and everyone has its own chapter in Masters of Contemporary Watchmaking. A thorough introduction of the master watchmaker is followed by a nice overview of their work (see an example of George Daniel’s work above). The high quality images used are accompanied by detailed descriptions. Clerizo did a very nice job on reflecting the thoughts of the watchmakers, without using too many quotes. It really is Michael’s story, using the input of these great master watchmakers from our time.

If you are a bit seriously interested in independent watchmaking and watchmaking in general, you will have to read this book. It is not just there to look impressive (due to its size, weight and cover photos), it is there to be read and consumed by the fanatical watch lover. It is also a nice to give to your watch friends, who are holding on to the ’standard’ brands and timepieces and need some insight in other watches and watchmaking thoughts, according to you

Besides containing photographs of timepieces and movements, the author was also able to include fantastic photographs of the master watchmakers and their workshops. It is very nice to actually see who’s behind these great names of watchmaking and where all the magic happens.

Are there any negative points about this book? Of course, not all interesting & current master watchmakers have been covered in Masters of Contemporary Watchmaking, but this leaves some room for a possible next title. I think Michael Clerizo did a tremendous job in covering a large number of interesting timepieces created by these Masters of Contemporary Watchmaking, using great photographs and very clear and detailed descriptions. The book also uses a handy to use index and glossary. The only thing that was challenging to me, was to read the white printing on the gold-ish background, but this could perfectly be a case of one of my own short comings to distinct colours

To summarize, this coffee table sized book will not let you down if you are interested in watchmaking and getting to know some of the greatest heroes of 21st century watchmaking. For novice and advanced collectors or fans of watches, this book is suited for both of these groups. For 53.55 USD at Amazon (see link below), this book can be yours or that of your watch friend, fiancé with passion for watches or whoever is interested in watchmaking.

As written before, Michael Clerizo will be one of the lecturers during the Watch2009 event in Maastricht on the 14th and 15th of November 2009. If you are interested, please visit www.watch2009.nl. My thanks go out to Michael Clerizo and his publisher for introducing this superb book to me. Also an extra thank you since FratelloWatches.com got included in the ‘Resources’-part of the book.

There is no doubt that sovereign city-state Monaco breathes magic for a lot of people. Cannes, Nice and St. Tropez are all nice places to visit, but Monaco is the crown on every trip to the Côte d’Azur. Besides being a tax heaven, Monaco is famous for the Monaco Grand Prix, the Monte Carlo Rally and ofcourse the number one source of income for this constitutional monarchy is tourism, the Monte Carlo Casino to be more precise. Did you know that citizens of Monaco are not allowed to gamble in the casino at all?

The few times I visited Monaco, I really enjoyed the view (as pictured below), the enormous yachts, the Riva boats and the passing Lambos/Ferraris/Maseratis. Driving around in Monaco gives a magic feeling, knowing that you are on the same track as some of the fastest and most special cars in the world.

And Monaco recently got more interesting for watch freaks like you and me. On the 25th of April 2009,  Pim Koeslag and Robert van Pappelendam launched new haute horlogerie brand Ateliers DeMonaco together with H.S.H. Prince Albert II of Monaco. These two Dutch guys, founded Ateliers DeMonaco together with another Dutchman Peter Stas (founder of Frederique Constant and Alpina Geneve) on the 6th of April 2009.

About a week ago, I got in touch with Pim Koeslag and his wife Susana. Their enthusiasm for watches and their own Ateliers DeMonaco brand in particular is contagious for watch lovers. The official Ateliers DeMonaco website and the pictured watches on there make you want to know more about the Carré d’Or timepiece and its creators.

Pim Koeslag is master watchmaker and responsible for the innovative tourbillon construction as well as for the whole design of the Carré d’Or watch. This is something you’ll see more often with independent watchmakers. This is a huge advantage over the existing (big) brands that need to bring all involved parties together to get a common consent with respect to design, technology, marketing etc. Pim Koeslag doesn’t have to make concessions when it comes to the design of the timepiece and the used technology.

The first noticeable detail about the Carré d’Or is the sapphire tourbillon bridge. The patented Grand XP 1 minute tourbillon has been developed and manufactured in-house and it is one of the most accurate tourbillon movements in the world. XP stands for eXtreme Precision, which can be guaranteed because the used technology allows the 28.800 beats per hour to be translated into pure accuracy that is regulated to have a tolerance of only zero to 2 seconds per 24 hours. Ateliers deMonaco uses three supporting innovations to be able to achieve this kind of tolerance for their Carré d’Or XP tourbillon timepiece. These innovations are: a perfect balance cage, silicium escapement and lever and the use of a few super precision manufacturing methodologies.

A perfect balance cage is established by using small metal weights on the sides of the escapement. By adding or removing these small weights, the watchmaker is able to balance the weight of the tourbillon cage until it is perfect. This means that the gravity point of all components should be brought to the center of the cage.

Being an IT guy for profession, I am familiar with the use of silicium for microprocessors. However, just (fairly) recently, the watch industry also found its way to this light weight, extreme hard and corrosion resistant material. In the most recent edition of Revolution Magazine (US edition), the use of silicium for mechanical movements is being further examined and discussed by several watch makers. The only problem some companies seem to have is the fact that it is technology meant for electronics and not for the traditional watchmaking craft. Basically, creating the escapement wheel and lever from silicium, will result in improved efficiency of energy. Since this material is very hard (twice as hard as regular stainless steel), there is only low friction and therefore no need for lubrication. Silicium is also anti-magnetic, which solves the old problem of interference that causes deviations in accuracy.

Although Pim Koeslag is the only watchmaker at Ateliers DeMonaco, he does source some help from only the best available parties in Switzerland. The sapphire tourbillon bridge for example, is just like any other small part, very hard to create out of sapphire. I have heard this complaint before, from Bernhard Lederer of BLU during my interview with him in Basel. After breaking a serious amount of precious sapphire parts, Atelier DeMonaco decided to use laser cutting technology to get the required result. A company called Sebal S.A, who specializes in manufacturing sapphire crystals in Boécourt, Switzerland, helped the Monaco based watch manufacturer out.

The 18ct gold rotor of the movement has been engraved and finished by Jochen Benzinger, master hand engraver. Benzinger, well-known for his work on his own line of watches and those of Chronoswiss for example, has decorated both sides of the gold rotor with the Ateliers DeMonaco shield and a hand guilloche finish.

The rectangular case of the watch is 44.3×48mm, which makes it fairly big, and consists of 33 parts. The core of the watch case is made out of titanium and the parts that create a shell around the titanium frame are made out of 18 carat solid gold, as pictured below.

Production of the Carré d’Or is limited to 18 pieces and prices are unknown (yet). For more detailed information about the Carré d’Or or Les Ateliers DeMonaco, visit the website by clicking here.

Thanks to Pim and Susana Koeslag for the photographs. I can’t wait to see one of these beauties in person, perhaps I should plan a trip to Monaco soon

Monaco is one of those cities you really have to visit once every while, just to breathe the atmosphere of luxury lifestyle and jet-setters. Fans of independent watchmaking now have a new (or other) excuse to pay Monaco a visit…  The launch of independent watch manufacturer Les Ateliers deMonaco!

The Ateliers DeMonaco Carré d’Or is a watch that should remind us of the famous and most exclusive squares in the world, located in Monaco between the famous Royal Casino and a number of five star hotels. The Carré d’Or has a convex case design, a patentend Grand Tourbillon movement that uses a sapphire bridge that makes it look like the one minute tourbillon is floating inside the watch.

This watch measures a whopping 44.3mm x 48mm x 15.3mm which demonstrates that the big watches are here to stay! The watch is available in both yellow and white gold.

Les Ateliers DeMonaco have a magnificent website, including their own blog. It covers the recent presentation of the watch (with Prince Albert II of Monaco) and the prototyping of the watch movement. An interesting read for all you die hard watchmaking fans! Click here to visit the Les Ateliers DeMonaco blog!

Pim Koeslag, master horloger of Les Ateliers DeMonaco writes on their website:

“We have always dreamt about making a mechanical watch movement that is the most precise in the world and will keep generations of scientists busy to figure out how we did it”

Hoping to see their watches in the flesh soon, I at least will keep an eye on their blog to keep track of their activities in the world of independent watchmaking and haute horlogerie..