Luxury Studies - Legendary Watches 1951-1960
Breitling & Blancpain & Vacheron Constantin
Breitling - Navitimer (1952)
When Breitling launched the Navitimer in 1952, this was by no means the brand’s first venture into flight instruments or wristwatches that give pilots useful information while in flight. Ten years earlier, as the Second World War raged, Breitling had developed the Chronomat, a chronograph with a circular logarithmic slide rule.
It would be eclipsed by the Navitimer, which went on to become the emblematic model of pilots’ consummate brand. Naturally, the Navitimer also features a slide rule, this time with an inverted scale. It quickly made its mark as the ideal instrument for flight preparation and navigation, whether for calculating fuel consumption, average speed, or converting miles into kilometres, and was immediately adopted as the official watch of the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA). This legendary model has reappeared in many forms, each with the same impact and appeal as the original... even with a name like Old Navitimer.
Blancpain - Fifty Fathoms (1953)
Conceived and developed at French naval officers’ request and first produced for military purposes, the Fifty Fathoms had to meet with ambitious specifications. The first of these is given in its name: the watch had to be water-resistant to fifty fathoms or 91.50 metres. Regarded as the first modern diving watch, the unidirectional rotating bezel around its perfectly legible dial would become a standard feature on this category of watch.
Over the next three decades, the Fifty Fathoms was adapted as some twenty models, manufactured in quantities ranging from a few hundred pieces to several thousand. Most of them were fitted with AS movements by Anton Schild in Grenchen. The Fifty Fathoms was adopted by the military in numerous countries; civilian divers also appreciated its functions and design. Its hour of glory came early, as the watch worn by Jacques-Yves Cousteau and his crew when filming "The Silent World", winner of the Palme d’Or at the 1956 Cannes Film Festival. To celebrate its fiftieth anniversary in 2003, Blancpain launched, in Thailand, a commemorative limited edition of its legendary model.
Vacheron Constantin - Extra plate (1955/1960)
To celebrate its bicentennial in 1955, Vacheron Constantin wowed the world when, with Jaeger-LeCoultre, its usual movement supplier, it unveiled what was then the thinnest round calibre ever. This tiny calibre - 9 lignes or 20.8 mm in diameter - was a mere 1.64 mm high, setting a new world record for its category.
Over the coming decades it was chosen for several models. The most famous of these is the Patrimony, a nineteen-sixty model that remains engraved in our memories as a truly classic watch. The hand-wound movement beating at 18,000 vibrations is lodged inside a yellow gold case. The silver dial has simple hour markers and slender baton hands. This extra-slim watch whose style embraces only the strict essentials has continued to seduce for its elegance and discretion.
Source:
Foundation de la Haute Horlogerie
Breitling - Navitimer (1952)
When Breitling launched the Navitimer in 1952, this was by no means the brand’s first venture into flight instruments or wristwatches that give pilots useful information while in flight. Ten years earlier, as the Second World War raged, Breitling had developed the Chronomat, a chronograph with a circular logarithmic slide rule.It would be eclipsed by the Navitimer, which went on to become the emblematic model of pilots’ consummate brand. Naturally, the Navitimer also features a slide rule, this time with an inverted scale. It quickly made its mark as the ideal instrument for flight preparation and navigation, whether for calculating fuel consumption, average speed, or converting miles into kilometres, and was immediately adopted as the official watch of the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA). This legendary model has reappeared in many forms, each with the same impact and appeal as the original... even with a name like Old Navitimer.
Blancpain - Fifty Fathoms (1953)
Conceived and developed at French naval officers’ request and first produced for military purposes, the Fifty Fathoms had to meet with ambitious specifications. The first of these is given in its name: the watch had to be water-resistant to fifty fathoms or 91.50 metres. Regarded as the first modern diving watch, the unidirectional rotating bezel around its perfectly legible dial would become a standard feature on this category of watch.Over the next three decades, the Fifty Fathoms was adapted as some twenty models, manufactured in quantities ranging from a few hundred pieces to several thousand. Most of them were fitted with AS movements by Anton Schild in Grenchen. The Fifty Fathoms was adopted by the military in numerous countries; civilian divers also appreciated its functions and design. Its hour of glory came early, as the watch worn by Jacques-Yves Cousteau and his crew when filming "The Silent World", winner of the Palme d’Or at the 1956 Cannes Film Festival. To celebrate its fiftieth anniversary in 2003, Blancpain launched, in Thailand, a commemorative limited edition of its legendary model.
Vacheron Constantin - Extra plate (1955/1960)
To celebrate its bicentennial in 1955, Vacheron Constantin wowed the world when, with Jaeger-LeCoultre, its usual movement supplier, it unveiled what was then the thinnest round calibre ever. This tiny calibre - 9 lignes or 20.8 mm in diameter - was a mere 1.64 mm high, setting a new world record for its category.Over the coming decades it was chosen for several models. The most famous of these is the Patrimony, a nineteen-sixty model that remains engraved in our memories as a truly classic watch. The hand-wound movement beating at 18,000 vibrations is lodged inside a yellow gold case. The silver dial has simple hour markers and slender baton hands. This extra-slim watch whose style embraces only the strict essentials has continued to seduce for its elegance and discretion.
Source:
Foundation de la Haute Horlogerie
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