F.P. Journe, a high-end watch manufacture of Switzerland, has partnered with the famous British gun-maker Holland & Holland for the launch of an exclusive common art work, the Chronomètre Holland & Holland.
What connects these two brands is that both of them create outstanding objects of arts for decades. While F.P. Journe is known for its high-end timepieces and in-house movements, Holland & Holland produces handmade sporting rifles and shotguns, ever since 1835.
The meeting between Holland & Holland with F.P. Journe immediately ignited a longing to create something together. The idea for the project came when two antique and rare Damascus steel Holland & Holland guns, each over one hundred years old, were discovered. F.P. Journe immediately saw the prospect of including these barrels in a series of unique watches inspired by the ancient craft traditions dating back to the mid-19th century.
Holland and Holland embraced the idea eagerly, allowing two of the museum barrels to be used to make new timepieces. The two barrels were registered by hand in the company’s books. Barrel No. 1382, dating to 1868, yielded 38 dials, while barrel No. 7183, dating to 1882, produced 28 dials.
In order to produce the dials, the gun barrels had to be cut along their entire length and rolled out to form flat strips. The material was then sent to F.P. Journe’s dial markers where the dials were cut out, and then sent back to Holland & Holland for a traditional browning of the surface. The process helps protect the steel and emphasizes the patterns created during the original manufacture of Damascus barrels.
Given the bars were made from two of more different types of steel, or iron steel, F.P. Journe decided to make a steel case as well. The new Chronomètre Holland & Holland features a round, polished steel case measuring 39-millimeter in diameter, topped with a sapphire crystal with anti-reflection coating. The movement, which is the manually-wound caliber 1304, is crafted from solid 18-karat rose gold and features an additional Holland & Holland engraving along the contours of the barrels. The mechanism has a free-sprung balance and it provides up to 56 hours of power reserve.
The Chronomètre Holland & Holland is accessible to F.P. Journe and Holland & Holland collectors through an application process. The Chronomètre Holland & Holland is priced at 45,000 CHF. For more, visit F.P. Journe online.
F. P. Journe collections
Latest News from F. P. Journe
F.P. Journe Astronomic Souveraine
Following up on the success of the prototype Astronomic Souveraine at the Only Watch charity auction, F.P. Journe presents the final version, a highly complicated timepiece with 18 different functions and complications dedicated to the contemplation of the stars. The grand complication Astronomic Souveraine, unveiled two days ago in Tokyo, features a stainless steel case with tourbillon and minute repeater functions. Above everything, the new model is a tool for the observation of the stars, inspired by a sketch made fifteen years ago by Franço...
F.P. Journe Tourbillon Souverain Régence Circulaire
F.P. Journe introduces an exclusive new version of its Tourbillon Souverain with Régence Circulaire hand-engraved dial. The latest rendition of the flagship model was inspired by geometric motifs of the Regency period. François-Paul Journe, the founder of the high-end watch manufacture F.P. Journe has always been fascinated by the 18th century. His latest creation pays homage to the clockmakers and artisans of this bygone era. The Régence Circulaire motif, dominating the dial, was first outlined on the raw white gold plate, so that the artis...
F.P. Journe Chronographe Monopoussoir Rattrapante for Only Watch 2017
Only Watch, a biennial charity event organized to benefit the Monaco Association against Duchenne muscular dystrophy, is taking place on November 11 in Geneva. For the first time since its inception in 2005, this extraordinary charity auction will be conducted by Christie’s. For a couple of days, Geneva will turn into the epicenter of the world’s finest watchmakers, with 49 of the best showcasing their one-off models! In six editions, Only Watch has raised more than 25 million for research in Duchene muscular dystrophy, helping make significan...
F.P.Journe Octa Divine 42mm
Same as its predecessors, Chronomètre Optimum, the Quantième Perpétuel and the Octa Lune, the Octa Divine has also been completely redesigned to embrace a 42mm diameter. The new creation remains perfectly legible, featuring an elegant, reduced, uncluttered profile. Previously, the Octa Divine was the only model of the Octa range available in 36 and 40 mm versions. The most recognizable element of the Octa Divine is its sub-seconds in the lower right-hand section, and the hours and minutes circles screwed to the dial. All of its emblematic elem...
F. P. Journe the Tourbillon Souverain Bleu for Only Watch 2015
The sixth edition of the Only Watch charity auction will, for the first time ever, take place in Geneva, on 7th of November 2015. This year, the biennial charity auction of unique timepieces will gather no less than 42 different watch brands, each donating one of its unique creations to support scientific and medical research on neuromuscular diseases in general, and Duchenne muscular dystrophy in particular. While most of the watch brands are renewing their support this year, F. P. Journe participates for the first time, with a one-off renditi...
F. P. Journe Quantieme Perpetuel with perpetual calendar
The new F. P. Journe Quantieme Perpetuel is equipped with a perpetual calendar complication, which is an advanced addition to the movement of the mechanism that allows the 29th of February would be automatically recorded, every four years. Long before the invention of perpetual calendar complication, all calendar-type watches were equipped with simple complications that required the manual adjustment at the end of each month of less than 31 days. The perpetual calendar complication is able to take into account the variable length of the months...
F.P. JOURNE Chronometre Optimum
The watch was announced earlier this year, with a photo teaser, and described as a creation designed in attempt to achieve the ultimate goal in mechanical watchmaking – a quartz precision using the old-school techniques. F.P. Journe Chronometre Optimum is a symbol of the very essence of precision. The watch combines the finest components ever used in watchmaking, and it is envisioned as the brand's most accurate timepiece ever created! The watch movement features a double barrel with its two springs and a patented constant-force remontoire...
F.P. Journe Optimum
he new F.P. Journe Chronometre Optimum is expected to be the brand's most accurate timepiece ever created! Here's a teaser of what's coming soon! Author: Marina Milojevic If you like our blog why don't you join our Facebook page or follow us on Twitter @luxoiscom. If you use one of my articles on your own website or blog, then please credit me and provide a link back to the original. document.write('' );
Steel Time - history of gunmetal watches
If you live in New York, or you will be traveling there from 21 April to 15 September 2012, make sure to visit the Forbes Galleries on 62 Fifth Avenue and enjoy the stunning display of the largest historic collection of gunmetal watches from mid to late 19th century. This exhibition, named Steel Time, features 200 unique watches made between 1850 and 1910. The collection on display in Forbes gallery is assembled by Jean Aubé, and MONTRES JOURNE S.A., the guardian of this collection, exhibits it for the first time in the United States. Let me...
F.P. Journe The Octa Sport
Same as its predecessor from 2011, the new Octa Sport watch is made from high-end aluminum alloy, which is the material borrowed from aeronautics. In case you don’t remember the last year’s model, I’m speaking about the Centigraphe Sport, which is the world’s first mechanical wristwatch crafted in aluminum. The Octa Sport , with its mere 53 grams, is another lightweight and sporty creation, fitted with superior automatic movement. The core of this piece rhythms at 21'600 beats per hour and provides astonishing 120 hours (or five days) of p...
