Phillips Sells the Omega Tourbillon 30 I, One Of The First Tourbillon Wristwatches Ever, For a Monumental CHF 1,428,500 (Most Expensive Omega Ever Auctioned) - Monochrome Watches
Today is the second day of the Geneva Watch Auction Six (GWA6) by Phillips. While there were some impressive lots (is that even a surprise from Aurel Bacs and Phillips…), with a Patek 2523 or an incredible Patek 2497 in white gold, the star of the show for us here, at MONOCHROME, certainly was the?Omega Tourbillon 30 I – a 1947 watch and one of the very first tourbillon wristwatches ever made, and the first to have been completed in Switzerland. This watch just sold for an impressive CHF?1,428,500, making it the most expensive Omega ever auctioned.The story behind this watch is rather impressive. While the tourbillon is, as many of you know, the invention of a certain Abraham Louis Breguet in 1801 (or?at least the patent is from that year, even if it was not revealed to the public until 1805), it has remained a pocket watch feature for close to 150 years. What is today an almost common complication was not back in the days, and it has always been a feature reserved for ultr

Hands-on with the AkriviA Tourbillon Monopusher Chronograph (Photos, Specs and Price) - Monochrome Watches
During Baselworld 2014 we had an opportunity to sit down with the AkriviA crew, including its master watchmaker and founder Rexhep Rexhepi. The young brand stepped up to the plate back in 2012, with quite a complex first creation: The AkriviA Tourbillon Monopusher Chronograph. Under the Swiss sunlight at this year's fair, we got some hands-on time with this debut model and with two new prototype dials as a small bonus!AkriviA, which translates to precision in ancient Greek, was founded by Rexhep Rexhepi and Etienne Deschamp in 2011 (Deschamp has already left AkriviA in order to pursue new challenges). Rexhep Rexhepi is a young master watchmaker with an interesting educational background which includes an apprenticeship at Patek Philipe at the age of 14, and working as movement developer for BNB Concepts (which went bust in 2010, then was partially bought by Hublot, resulting in the Hublot Cle du Temp). Ad - Scroll to continue with article

The Collector's Series - Richard and His Unique anOrdain Model 2
We've all come to this point where we see a watch, like a watch, but have that little tiny detail that somehow feels a bit out of place, or that we would have imagined differently Today, it's the story of a man and his tendency to always challenge the existing, to come and ask the brands if there's a way to change that little detail, to make the watch better to his eyes, more personal, more HIS watch. Richard (@mymese on Instagram) is a 53-year-old mobility data expert from Holland who has a preference for unusual watches, not necessarily the brands that everyone wants. Today, he discusses his special anOrdain Model 2, and this watch is HIS watch, a unique take that turns out to be very personal.?Frank Geelen, MONOCHROME – anOrdain is not a household name when it comes to watches. How did you discover this Scottish brand?Richard – It must have been somewhere online. I think I ran into anOrdain almost the same moment I read about the Paulin Neo (which is a cooperation model

First Look: The Titoni Airmaster Pilot Chronometer
Titoni is an independent family-owned watch brand founded in 1919 by Fritz Schluep in Grenchen, Switzerland, now in the hands of great-grandsons Marc and Olivier Schluep. With a variety of contemporary collections and even an in-house automatic powering its Line 1919 dress watch collection, the genuine interest in this brand resides in its remakes of golden oldies. Marking the 80th anniversary of a watch ordered by the US Army in 1945, Titoni releases the retro-inspired Airmaster Pilot Chronometer. With a balanced marriage of heritage features and contemporary specs, the Airmaster Pilot joins Titoni’s growing fleet of vintage-inspired models.Unlike the Heritage 83109 and the Heritage Chronograph, which?form part of the Heritage collection and have caught the eye of retro-styled watch fans, the Airmaster Pilot Chronometer shares a hangar with the more contemporary Airmaster collection. The Airmaster collection was, in fact, named after the brand's all-purpose 1969 Airmaster, coinc

Tissot PRX Powermatic 80 Steel-and-Gold Blue Dial (Price)
Released last year and based on a vintage watch produced by the brand during the 1970s, the Tissot PRX?has become a hit for the brand. Released first in quartz and later with an automatic movement, the success is easy to understand, with this combination of great looks, trendy integrated look and affordable price. Following the steel models, the brand released a (not so affordable anymore) steel-and-gold version with a fluted bezel and brown dial. Now it’s time for a new edition to jump in, again with the two-tone look, and now combined with a blue dial.?Behind the Tissot PRX is a vintage model of 1978. Having such a watch in its heritage collection, and aware of the current trend for sports watches with integrated designs, the brand somehow had to re-issue this Seastar (later named PRX) watch. And they did, with the PRX Powermatic 80. Great design, textured dial, nice proportions, a lot of content and a price that is hard to beat. For the second round of versions, the brand deci