three reference works for watch lovers – L’Express

In an interview with L’Express, Camille Grandmaison, from the Besançon Time Museum, points out: it took human beings millennia to be able to precisely measure time. The first tools appeared around 1500 BC with sundials, well before the arrival of the mechanical clock at the end of the 12th century and the pocket watch in 1510. Five centuries later, the world inherited a form of universality of wristwatches on wrists, which was not necessarily synonymous with uniformity. Quite the contrary. The apparent contradictions of watchmaking trends actually coexist in harmony. For some, a return to sobriety in the display of hours and a revival of women’s mini-watches. Others favor work on the dials, this small metal disk where creative diversity is concentrated. As much as time, the watch remains a marker of style.

Selection of books for watch enthusiasts.

Time zones

The fifth volume of the Millenium Watch Book collection devotes 200 pages to the 50 essential travel watches, which indicate several time zones. This function is the third favorite complication among lovers of fine watchmaking. Twelve experts detail everything you need to know about GMT and worldtimers watches.

Travel watchescollective work under the direction of Brice Lechevalier (GMT Publishing).

Iconic fashion and watches

A fashion historian and a specialist in vintage accessories have co-signed a collection of the main accessories: watches and jewelry, leather goods and shoes, clothing and lifestyle objects are included in the summary. The manufacturing secrets and emblems of the most sought-after pieces are described.

Luxury vintageby Raul Barragan and Jean-Sébastien d’Oisemont (Larousse).

Two reference volumes

The Watchfid consulting company looks at Rolex’s Cosmograph Daytona chronograph, a watch whose reputation is second to none. These two opuses – 600 pages in total! – are dedicated to manual winding references and automatic models. The authors have developed a methodology based on rigorous databases, where each element of the watch is classified and analyzed.

Rolex Cosmograph Daytonaby Grégoire Rossier, Tiffany To and Anthony Marquié (Watchprint.com).