I like good watches. I always think that watches can show a man's taste. The design that I like is always simple and elegant. For a modern watch, I always fancy a Bell & Ross or an IWC Schaffhausen chrono. For a classical one, I would go for a Patek Philippe, Jaeger-LeCoultre or Girard-Perregaux. Of course the latter three are the jewel in the crown of watches. I can only see and dream...
Actually I am not really a watch aficionado, my knowledge about watch is only limited to some famous brands and mechanical complication of chronograph and perpetual calendar. Yesterday I had a chance to improve my knowledge about horology.
The Conquest of Time exhibition was held at Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre from 22 -26 Nov 2006. The exhibition featured 23 of the world's most renowned watchmaking houses.
Not only a large collection of fine timepieces was on display, the exhibition also incorporated guided tours, watch making class, watch talks and watch appraisal. For the rich, this was a good place to add a few more watches to their collections or to have their Patek appraised by professional valuators and watch experts from Christie's auction house.
Actually I am not really a watch aficionado, my knowledge about watch is only limited to some famous brands and mechanical complication of chronograph and perpetual calendar. Yesterday I had a chance to improve my knowledge about horology.
The Conquest of Time exhibition was held at Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre from 22 -26 Nov 2006. The exhibition featured 23 of the world's most renowned watchmaking houses.
Not only a large collection of fine timepieces was on display, the exhibition also incorporated guided tours, watch making class, watch talks and watch appraisal. For the rich, this was a good place to add a few more watches to their collections or to have their Patek appraised by professional valuators and watch experts from Christie's auction house.
A watch making class was provided by Jaeger-LeCoultre for watch collectors and enthusiasts to explore and learn about watchmaking. In the class, attendees was guided by a watchmaker from Swiss and got to learn the various technique in watch assembly, first on a computer simulation software, then hands-on. I wanted to attend but the next class was already fully booked with a long waiting list.
For the public, the Girard Perregaux's atelier was the best place to learn something about watches.
It offered a guided tour which explained the four distinguished dimensions of complications in watchmaking - Chronograph, Perpetual Calendar, Minute Repeater and Tourbillon. I learned from here that a perpetual calendar watch knows when to add a day in a leap year by having a 48-tooth wheel (each tooth represents a month), with a tooth slightly different from the rest.
Girard Perregaux is famous for its Tourbillon, designed to counter the effects of gravity and other perturbing forces that can affect the accuracy of a chronometer. At the atelier, I also got a chance to polish one side of the Tourbillon bridge. I tell you, it requires a lot of patience and passion.
This lady's day-to-day work is to polish watch components. It takes her 3 days for to finish polishing a Tourbillon bridge.
Similar to cars, watches are expensive toys for men. Some watches are more expensive than cars. A watch comprises 600 over pieces of component, each of them needs to be made to perfection. It is not hard to imagine why some of these watches are so expensive.
This Jaeger-LeCoultre is one of the most expensive watches I saw at the exhibition. Enlarge to see how much it costs...
For the public, the Girard Perregaux's atelier was the best place to learn something about watches.
It offered a guided tour which explained the four distinguished dimensions of complications in watchmaking - Chronograph, Perpetual Calendar, Minute Repeater and Tourbillon. I learned from here that a perpetual calendar watch knows when to add a day in a leap year by having a 48-tooth wheel (each tooth represents a month), with a tooth slightly different from the rest.
Girard Perregaux is famous for its Tourbillon, designed to counter the effects of gravity and other perturbing forces that can affect the accuracy of a chronometer. At the atelier, I also got a chance to polish one side of the Tourbillon bridge. I tell you, it requires a lot of patience and passion.
This lady's day-to-day work is to polish watch components. It takes her 3 days for to finish polishing a Tourbillon bridge.
Similar to cars, watches are expensive toys for men. Some watches are more expensive than cars. A watch comprises 600 over pieces of component, each of them needs to be made to perfection. It is not hard to imagine why some of these watches are so expensive.
This Jaeger-LeCoultre is one of the most expensive watches I saw at the exhibition. Enlarge to see how much it costs...
5 comments:
These brands are total strangers to me. Do they command the same second hand value as Rolex?
I believe most of them do.
RM 585 only what... Not that bad! Hehehee ;-p
Anyway, if I'm ever that rich, I don't think watch would be that high on the list of things to buy. But I guess if you can spend half a million on a watch, you would've bought all the houses, cars and vacations you would ever dreamed of.
Anyway, Jason, I think those brands that KW mentioned is one (or two?) league away from Rolex. I think the cheapest Patek around would easily match a 3-Series wheras a Rolex is more 'affordable' (comparatively speaking lah and of course not comparing with my wallet)
Patek or GP are only for the super rich...but Bell & Ross and IWC are 'affordable', depends on how much you appreciate watches. Anyway, watches are better investment than cars.
At the moment I only have a few Swatch, at least still Swiss watches. A Bell & Ross will come may be only after I have a dream house lah...
hmmmm I am still thinking of my
Omega Seamaster Aqua Terra Co-Axial Chorometer...
last year was RM7,600 after discount, i believe by next year the price will up again, early last year was around RM6,300 after discount...
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