14.
A very attractive, limited edition platinum tourbillon souscription wristwatch with remontoire, accompanied by original invoice and presentation box
Manufacturer
F.P. Journe
Year
1998
Case No.
16/20
Model Name
Tourbillon Souverain
Material
Platinum F.P. Journe
Calibre
Manual, cal. 1498, 25 jewels
Bracelet/Strap
Alligator
Clasp/Buckle
Platinum pin buckle
Dimensions
38mm Diameter
Signed
Case, dial, movement and buckle signed
Estimate CHF 120,000-180,000 ∑ $123,000-184,000 €106,000-158,000 Accessories Accompanied by original ftted box, original invoice/order document, technical drawings and product literature. Literature F.P. Journe and the Tourbillon Souverain are featured in Twelve Faces of Time, Horological Virtuosos by Elisabeth Doerr and Ralf Baumgarten pp. 58-73.
It is interesting to see than in less than 20 years, François-Paul Journe has established himself as one of the most prominent living watchmakers whose creations are coveted by collectors the world over. Journe likes to joke that he might have been a butcher if his cousin was not head of the watchmaking school of Marseilles.
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The truth is, afer having been expelled from school, his parents placed him in the watchmaking program headed by his cousin. Taking consideration of his aptitudes, he continued his studies in Paris joining his uncle’s restoration workshop in Paris following his graduation where he got the opportunity to restore some of the most important timepieces of horological history. In 1985 he set up his own workshop creating bespoke pocket watches for top collectors. Fascinated by tourbillon watches, Journe decided to transpose Abraham-Louis Breguet’s invention into a wristwatch but by bettering it via the addition of a remontoire system - a constant force device used to provide an equal amount of energy, thus resulting in greater accuracy and amplitude. The frst prototype was made in 1991 and to fnance his project and create a version that would be commercially available (ultimately launched in 1999) Journe used a subscription system for his frst twenty tourbillon wristwatches, each individually numbered on the dial and ofered to his close friends and clients. The present tourbillon bearing number 16/20 is in almost brand new unworn condition, as its owner, a friend of Journe’s, is a pocket watch collector who purchased the watch to support his friend’s new venture. He never wore it though. Owning one of Journe’s subscription tourbillons is like owning a piece of horological history and an opportunity that rarely presents itself as the present model is only the fourth to ever grace the international auction market – and the third to be ofered by Phillips.
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