Two Breguet wristwatches from the era of Chaumet, Bodet and Roth
On the 23rd September last year I attended an evening preview at Sotheby’s in London, firstly to congratulate an old friend on his new book being presented at the same event, and to handle two 1980s Breguet wrist watches that a friend had shown interest i...
These are two beautiful examples...
...they look so much more 'organic' than their modern counterparts. And these days, great value too...
I have received comments elsewhere critical of the quality of the engine turning.
But I think that is somewhat harsh as it neglects to take into consideration the context of what a luxury watch was in the wake of proliferation of quartz. There was oddly an element of cottage industry as those brands that emerged in the late 1970s and 1...
I appreciate the more handmade look of these...
...the modern versions are beautiful, but look as if they were done by a computer. Valuation aside, I would always take a watch that looked like a Daniels or Smith (early) over a 'perfect' watch. I want to see the hand of the person who made it.
More than likely.
The watches were consigned to the same sale most likely by the same client. They were manufactured in consecutive years ('86 and '87) and we know that the 3130 was sold in Dusseldorf, May 1986, which would lead me to believe that they ended up in the same...
They are wonderful pieces.
Funny thing is I only started investigating once I had the chance to photograph them because the caseback of the perpetual held some intrigue. It was certainly worth the effort.
I've returned to your post having spent the last six months studying the work of Daniel Roth in more detail
This has involved coming across written pieces where you were involved, some quite high-profile coverage in the watch media, IG (unavoidably) and the complete catalogue of his work reconstructed from back issues of Europa Star. You could say I'm smitten. ...
Thank you!
I did write Mr Roth with some questions about the references mentioned in the post, but alas I have yet to receive an answer!
Very informative post
with beautiful pictures, thanks for it! I didn’t know that Roth was also at Breguet, I was aware of the fact, that he worked for Audemars. But if I compare the dials of the first Roth watches with these Breguet’s, the similarity is obvious. As for the gui...
Hi Adam. Thank you for your comments.
Mr Roth certainly played a pivotal role in Swiss watchmaking in the the 1980s and early 90s. I am preparing an overview of guilloche dials on watches from the 1970s to the present day, but haven't yet delved too deeply into the operation of the machinery....
Interesting article
I remember my great uncle - who used to be in the diamonds trade - telling me about these stories. Jewellery in the 70s and 80s must have been quite something with on one hand capitalism running wild in Western societies and on the other hand oil riches a...
Thank you for this very informative thread.
I’m a proud owner of a Tradition so I mean it sounds louder to me.
Love these watches!!
While they are part of the Swatch group, i love how, while they have sort of strayed around from the handmade details, they still try to uphold the values of breguet and the brand as well as the aesthetics which makes them one of my all time fav watch bra...
Breguet 3050 vs. 4259RE
Hi, during my search for a Breguet I came across your article on WPS board. I just want to let you know that there is a reference 4259RE that I came across which is identical to the 3050. This could possibly be the predecessor to the 3050. Or perhaps Breg...
Thanks for the info.
For some reason I've only just seen your message. I will look into it. Regards, Baruch