The return of the historic A. Lange & Sohne Centennial Tourbillon
A. Lange & Sohne is renowned as one of the most distinguished watchmakers from Saxony on the market today, but life hasn’t always been smooth sailing. As a witness and victim of the vicissitudes of German history over the past two centuries, the destiny of the brand has come full circle. From its foundation in 1845 by Ferdinand Adolf Lange in Glashutte to its destruction during WWII, and from its expropriation after the war to its miraculous resurrection after Germany’s reunification in 1990 by the founder’s great-grandson, A. Lange & Sohne has taken a circuitous path but is now safely home. Today, A. Lange & Sohne is celebrating another return, this time marked by the return of a valuable pocket watch that was lost in the turmoil following WWII to its rightful place in the Museum Bautzen.Known as the “Centennial Tourbillon”, this exquisite gold pocket watch with a miniature enamel painting of the goddess Minerva was one of only a few tourbillo

Introducing: The new Grey Carl F. Bucherer Heritage BiCompax Annual
First released in 2019, the Heritage BiCompax Annual quickly became a best-selling watch for Carl F. Bucherer. Merging retro design elements with modern complications and practicality, it is one of the very few timepieces on the market to combine a chronograph and an annual calendar – something you’d imagine only Patek is capable of manufacturing… After multiple editions (Panda, Two-Tone, Reversed Panda, Gradient) it now comes back in a new, sleek and almost monochromatic version for 2024.Reminder. The Carl F. Bucherer Heritage BiCompax Annual was first introduced at Baselworld 2019 and made quite an impression. First, the design, inspired by 1950s watches made by CFB, was quite spot-on. Elegant, well-proportioned, full of charm. Next, the movement, despite being based on an outsourced ebauche, had a few tricks under its sleeve. On top of its chronograph is an annual calendar, also known as the best compromise between complexity, reliability and practicality. Last, th

Pre SIHH 2015: Introducing the Montblanc Heritage Spirit Orbis Terrarum (Live photos, specs and price) - Monochrome Watches
Montblanc introduced the new Meisterstuck Heritage collection at the 2014 edition of the Salon International de la Haute Horlogerie, that was held in January of this year. A very interesting new collection that includes the most affordable perpetual calendar on the market, and with the Meisterstuck Heritage Pulsograph they introduced the first “Villeret” movement (calibre MB M13.21) in a non-Villeret collection, and many more classically styled watches. Beginning of 2015 they will introduce the new Montblanc Heritage Spirit Orbis Terrarum, a stunning worldtimer that is part of the Heritage Spirit collection, that we can already show you here with lots of hands-on photos, the specs and price.In terms of style, the Heritage Spirit collection embodies all the codes of fine watchmaking, with a refined case design and elegant, clear dials. And now they’re introducing what is probably the most useful complication in a wrist watch, a worldtimer, into this Heritage Spirit col

News: Antonio Calce named CEO of Sowind Group (Girard-Perregaux & JeanRichard) - Monochrome-Watches
The game of musical chairs is not over. For the past months, the watch industry was the field of?multiple departures and appointments, including at the giants like and?TAG Heuer. It is now time for Sowind, the mother company of Girard-Perregaux and JeanRichard, to finally appoint a new CEO. Just before Baselworld, the arrival of Antonio Calce should be seen as a?deliverance for the brands, which have been without a CEO for more than four months.With?the arrival of?Jean-Frederic Dufour as new CEO of ,?and of Jean-Claude Biver as CEO of all watch brands of the LVMH Group (see here) and now also CEO of TAG Heuer, after Stephane Linder’s?resignation, the watch industry was extremely active in changing its leaders. Should it be seen as a sign of an active and creative industry that wants to innovate and modernize?or as a last resort?reaction against a complicated market? Time will tell us. Today, our focus is on a brand that we, at Monochrome-Watches, really love: the manufacture G

Bremont Wright Flyer - The story of a bad communication with its 'in-house' movement - Monochrome-Watches
“Learn from your mistakes” – and from those made by your competitors –?should have been in Bremont’s handbook. However it wasn’t. Remerber in 2009, TAG Heuer’s Calibre 1887?created?huge discussions after its release. What TAG Heuer claimed to be an in-house movement was in fact based on a Seiko ebauche, that was modified by TAG Heuer. No big deal in terms of product or quality (lots of brands use externally sourced movements) but a massive loss of credibility and bad communication. You thought the lesson was imprinted in every brand’s mind. Wrong! Bremont made?the same mistake with its new Wright Flyer Limited Edition. – UPDATED WITH FORMAL STATEMENT FROM BREMONT –The Bremont Wright FlyerBremont is a UK-based watch brand specialized in chronometers inspired by aviation. If you’ve been reading Monochrome for a longer time, you would have seen our coverage of their chronometers and the review we did of the Supermarine 500.