Hot News By Fadi Jamil
Breguet enriches its historical collection with a 1960s Type XX Chronograph The Breguet Museum and its President, Marc A. Hayek, are delighted to announce the acquisition of a superb 1967 Type XX chronograph. This remarkably well-preserved timepiece serves as a reminder of Breguet’s deep involvement in the field of aviation, a relationship that has given rise to the Type XX contemporary watch collection. It went under the hammer in New York on Thursday, October 26, at a Phillips auction dedicated to 50 iconic 20th century models. THE ENDURING SUCCESS of the House of Breguet partly stems
forces: the famous chronograph was to equip the French Air
from its ability for perpetual reinvention. While purely watch-
Force and Naval Aviation until the early 1980s. These models
related activities are of course the heart and soul of the brand,
were so highly sought-after that the House decided to issue a
the interests pursued by Abraham-Louis Breguet’s descendants
civilian version. With or without an hour totaliser, but always
have sometimes extended well beyond the field of horology, such
including the flyback function, these timepieces feature slight
as those of Louis Breguet. Perpetuating the genius of his great-
variations (relating to rotating bezels, winding crowns, dials)
great-grandfather, he ventured into the conquest of the skies in
that continue to delight collectors.
1907. Louis Breguet soon made a name for himself in this domain
The Type XX chronograph newly acquired by the House of
thanks to several notable inventions including the gyroplane, the
Breguet belongs to the first generation of these timepieces. It is
ancestor of the helicopter, and the famous two-seater Breguet
distinguished by a brushed steel case with slightly curving lugs.
XIV plane. In parallel with the aeronautical activities of the Louis
Its 38.5 mm case frames a dark brown dial bearing luminescent
Breguet aviation company, the Breguet watch firm developed
hands and Arabic numerals. This model produced in 1967 was
chronograph mechanisms fitted on aircraft cockpits and began
initially sold on January 26, 1968.
producing watches for aviators. In 1935, it introduced its first
This new acquisition is enriching the broad collection of historical
wrist chronographs. Twenty or so years later, Breguet launched
Breguet watches presented in its Paris and Zurich museums, as
production of the Type XX commissioned by the French armed
well as their Shanghai counterpart.
50 I GREAT MAGAZINE OF TIMEPIECES I MIDDLE EAST EDITION