Timeless Pleasures

About 8 years ago, I became very interested in watches. I'm not talking about the Jacob the Jeweller (NY Jeweler to the Stars) "bling" watches that most Rappers indulge upon and worship. I'm talking about the intricate handmade wonders by the true watchmakers such as Patek Philippe, A. Lange & Sohne, Breguet, IWC as well as others. From the simple time tellers to ones with many complications (complications are mechanical functions other than hours, minutes and seconds).

One of the most prestigious and costly complications to be found on a timepiece is the tourbillon movement (invented in 1795 by Abrahan-Louis Breguet). The tourbillon is an intricate mechanism that eliminates time-keeping errors caused by minute variations that result from shifts in gravity whenever a watch changes position. These watches are sooo expensive, one could buy a house for the same pricetag, or possibly a small mansion somewhere. One example is the Patek Phillipe Sky Moon Tourbillon introduced in 2002 (built on the foundation of the 1933 Star Caliber pocket watch, recently auctioned by Sotheby's for $11million). In a nut shell, the Sky Moon Tourbillon is the most complicated wristwatch produced by Patek. It's a double-faced wristwatch that features a complete presentation of the nocturnal sky on the reverse side that is produced as a limited edition (2 per year) with a price tag of around $800,000 and upwards of $1.2 mil.

My personal favorites are the Breguet and the Lange. Both companies have such great and dynamic histories. Breguet has been around since 1775 with many prominent patrons througout its existence. Royaly such as Marie-Antoiette as well as men and women of power to include Napolean Bonaprte and Winston Churchill have doned the horological artwork. Lange was established in the town of Glashutte in 1845 and was destroyed by Russian bombers in 1945 and restored again in 1990.

Both companies horological masterpieces are on my wish list. Right now I am proud of what I own: A Jaeger-Le Coultre Master Ultra Thin 1000 hours. : )