Handwerkskunst according to A. Lange & Sohne - Interview with CEO Wilhelm Schmid - Monochrome Watches
The other day I had the distinct pleasure of spending a few days with A. Lange & Sohne in Florence, Italy. The main purpose was the launch of the Lange 1815 Rattrapante Perpetual Calendar Handwerkskunst and four new blue dial version (Lange 1, Lange 1 Daymatic, Saxonia and Saxonia handwound), all of which we already showed you last weekend. The team at Lange organized several field trips' to various handcrafts, like lithography, fabric weaving and printing, among others, and we visited one of the most prestigious winemakers from Tuscany (the region in which Florence is located.) Wilhelm Schmid, the brand's CEO, tells us more about Handwerkskunst and handcrafts, plus I'll share wrist shots of a group of Lange collectors whom I accidentally ran into. Be warned LOTS of photos! Like all its predecessors the new Handwerkskunst represents an exuberant variation on an existing model (the 1815 Rattrapante Perpetual Calendar in this case) and is actually not the discrete style that we know

History of the Patek Philippe Nautilus, Part 1 - The Birth of an Icon, the 3700 (1976/1990) - Monochrome Watches
Stating that the Patek Philippe Nautilus is an icon is probably too easy… but there is no way to evade this. The Nautilus is an icon. No debate. Introduced?in 1976, and designed by one of the most famous watch-designers, who can be seen as the creator of a new species of timepieces – the luxury sports watch. The Nautilus?is praised by all sorts of collectors, and it?is now celebrating its 40th anniversary. Last week we explained the 40th anniversary editions? to you, and now it is time to look at the entire timeline of this watch. The first part of the history of the Patek Philippe Nautilus is of course dedicated to the very first version, the Ref. 3700.BackgroundBefore exploring the history of the Patek Philippe Nautilus, we have to look at a bit of background, to understand the market this watch entered into – simply because we are talking about a game changer. Ad - Scroll to continue with article

Weekly Watch Photo - Greubel Forsey Invention Pieces - Monochrome Watches
I’ve just returned from London where I visited SalonQP. For me it an absolute blast and I think it’s the best watch fair, that is?open for the public,?that I’ve visited so far. Being in London anyway I had to use the opportunity to check out the unique pieces that many brands made for Marcus Watches. Although I’ve seen quite a few magnificent and over-impressive timepieces, the “Marcus-experience” was simply mind-blowing. Ad - Scroll to continue with article Of course there were the unique HM4 that MB&F made for Marcus, the set of 10 unique DLC coated platinum Greubel Forsey timepieces and two unique UR-CC1 Cobra made by URWERK. But there was more, so much more… I have never seen so many top pieces gathered in one collection that it felt like visiting a true horological museum.Besides and overwhelming collection of A

The Collector Series - A Man & His Breitling Premier Split-Seconds
We're back today with a new instalment of our Collector's Series column, where we leave the stage to an owner and his beloved watch. For a relatively unknown reason, Breitling has rarely been seen in the series, but we're about to change this And with a pretty impressive model. Today, we'll be talking with Timerider27, as this 54yo watch collector is known on Instagram. He is a true Breitling fan. He thought it was time to explain why his Breitling Duograph Premier Split-Seconds chronograph is his favourite one. And to ask people to stop complaining so muchFrank Geelen, MONOCHROME – How did you personally get to know the brand in the first place??Timerider27 – I started collecting in 2004. Reading various magazines and forums, the first Breitling that caught my interest was a variation of the Transocean Unitime without a chronograph. I also liked the ubiquitous Navitimer but thought I would never use the calculator bezel and I still hold to that. I also enjoy 24-hour dials

The Ubercool Tudor Pelagos FXD Now Comes In Black
The diving heritage of Tudor can be basically split into two chapters. On one end you have the very retro-inspired Black Bay line-up, and on the other end the more professional Pelagos collection. Either of the two are fan-favourites and perform very well in most circumstances in life. But, in a surprising twist, two years ago Tudor released a very special take on the Pelagos with the Pelagos FXD. This watch paid tribute to past watches used by Combat divers and was developed with the Marine Nationale, the French Navy. It had fixed lugs and a special inverted diving scale on the bidirectional bezel. Now though, Tudor introduces a new take on the Pelagos FXD, in a black colour scheme and with a regular bezel.The case is yet again machined out of titanium and measures 42mm in diameter and 12.75mm in thickness. From lug end to lug end, you’re looking at 52mm in length. On top of the titanium case is a titanium rotating bezel, unidirectional instead of bidirectional. The black cerami