Breguet and the Ottoman Empire 36

6 6 Dear Friends of Breguet

In this Issue we celebrate two important pillars of our in a planned series, shows how today we have used Breguet heritage which have endured since our founding cutting edge technology to achieve timekeeping perfor- in 1775. First, of course, the legacy of invention. Connois- mance which never could have been imagined even two seurs know of the landmark advances developed by decades ago. Abraham-Louis Breguet such as the tourbillon, the pare- The second pillar of our inheritance is aesthetic. How chute anti-shock system, sounding rings for repeaters, the many designs can claim not just relevance but vibrancy Breguet overcoil and more. In this issue we examine two and life 200 years from when they first debuted? We take a of our modern interpretations of the tourbillon in the look at Breguet’s signature pomme hands, guilloché deco- article devoted to the Double Tourbillon and the Tourbillon ration, numerals and more in our devoted to the aesthetic Messidor. However, our innovation patrimony goes far codes article. deeper than modernizing Breguet’s historic inventions. Emmanuel Breguet, our historian, and Professor Marie- We see it as one that impels us to expand the frontiers of Hélène Huet bring us two exciting historical accounts. watchmaking with new breakthroughs, which is what Breguet’s initiatives in the Turkish market at the opening Abraham-Louis Breguet’s original technological creations of the 19th century, and the fascinating tales of the Place really represented in his era. Our article entitled “Tech- Vendôme in Paris where one of Breguet’s flagship boutiques nology on the Workbench: Silicium”, which is the first is found today.

Yours sincerely,

Marc A. Hayek, President and CEO, Montres Breguet SA

2 3 CONTENT

Content

1. The Aesthetic Codes of Breguet 6

2. Technology On The Workbench: Silicium 20

3. Breguet and the Ottoman Empire 36

4. Double Tourbillon and Tourbillon Messidor 52

5. The Art of Jewelry 72

6. Dreams of Architects: Place Vendôme 90

4 5 THE AESTHETIC CODES OF BREGUET

The AESTHETIC CODES of Breguet By Jeffrey S. Kingston

◆ Breguet No. 4691, sold on October 13th, 1831.

6 7 THE AESTHETIC CODES OF BREGUET

n many settings one often speaks of designs that are “timeless”. Of course, that would I be an unfortunate choice of words if the setting happens to be timepieces. That aside, it can safely be said that, to a greater degree than any other watchmaker who has ever lived, founder Abraham-Louis Breguet’s eye for refined aesthetics led him to create designs that have withstood the test of 200 years to remain as vibrant and vital as when they debuted. More than that, his aesthetic codes have been honored by countless trainees from his workshop and competitors who have adopted, imitated and copied them. Indeed, in many cases the design language which he pioneered speaks so powerfully that others who have followed with their imitations, far from disguising that which they have copied, call out the name “Breguet” in describing what they have done. Watchmaking parlance, thus, speaks of “Breguet numerals”, “Breguet hands” and “Breguet dials”.

◆ ◆ ◆

Unfortunately, we are deprived of essays, notes or even of matt and polished metal, which distinguishes our pieces, design trials that would expressly reveal Breguet’s thought cannot be well shown with the printing of lines and a geomet- processes as he developed his many signature elements. How- ric drawing which is hardly flattering.” ever, there are insights which appeared in 1822 in what almost certainly was the first watch catalog ever produced. En- “Elegance”, “proportions”, “delicacy”, “refinement” all play titled “Horlogerie pour l’usage civil, Chronomètres Portatifs, key roles in his designs. Horloges Marines et Astronomiques, et Autres Instruments d’Observation” (“Watchmaking For Civil Use, Portable Chro- nometers, Marine Clocks and Astronomic and Other Observa- ◆ BREGUET HANDS tory Instruments”), the catalog set out options which were then being offered to Breguet’s clients. We have a glimpse into his What is extraordinary is how his sensibilities led him to design philosophy from the preamble: revolutionize completely and depart radically from what were the norms of his time. Consider for a moment his signature “The elegance of the forms, the choice and the proportions “pomme” hands. Today, of course, everybody refers to this of the case side fluting, the effect of the rounding of the case hand design as “Breguet hands”. At the time, the practice was sides and the slightly bombe crystal, the delicacy of the guil- to outfit timepieces with ornate, heavy, baroque hands. Finely loché on the dials and the refinement of the hands, the mixing drawn, either blued steel or gold hands, with a delicate, slightly ◆ Classique Chronométrie Ref. 7727.

8 9 THE AESTHETIC CODES OF BREGUET

off-centered orb near the tip represented no less than a sweep- ing aside of the standards of his day and, once Breguet created this design, neither he nor, thereafter, his son departed from it.

◆ GUILLOCHÉ

It is true that Breguet did not invent guilloché decoration which enjoyed popularity as means of embellishing a wide variety of objects, including wooden pieces. He was, however, the first to bring guilloché to the face of a timepiece. As he described it in his catalog, there was “delicacy” in the way guil- loché was applied and he used it both on silver and gold dials. There were two practical sides to his adoption of guilloché decoration: first, enhanced legibility and second, with variation in the patterns, definition of different zones or sectors on the dials delineating the indications offered by the timepiece. As ◆ Breguet No. 3448, sold on July 12 th, 1820. well, the delicacy of the guilloché patterns enabled his use of the thin, understated Breguet hands as there was no need for bolder contrast between dial and hands.

BREGUET WAS THE FIRST TO BRING GUILLOCHÉ TO THE FACE OF A TIMEPIECE. In his own words, he saw that there was “delicacy” in the way that guilloché was applied and he used it on both silver and gold dials.

◆ Classique “Réveil du Tsar” Ref. 5707.

10 11 THE AESTHETIC CODES OF BREGUET

◆ BREGUET DIAL AND NUMERALS

Not all of Breguet’s dials were guilloché, as white enamel was employed for many of his uncomplicated pieces; naturally, as fine guilloché carving served not only to decorate a dial but to define the zones for complicated indications, enamel was not generally employed for those watches that offered functions extending beyond time display. Often with his use of enamel came another signature element: Breguet numerals. Generally, for his guilloché dials, Breguet favored pairing with Roman numerals. With enamel dials, however, his practice was to use Arabic numerals, done with a deft touch. Inclined slightly, neither squared nor script in shape, slightly fanciful but purposeful at the same time, his design was easily legible without being overbearing. There are no wordy descriptions used in the modern watchmaking world for these numerals; today they are universally called “Breguet”. ◆ Breguet No. 1287, sold on August 5th, 1803.

BREGUET’S UNIQUE STYLE FOR ARABIC NUMERALS ENDURES TODAY. So respected and timeless is his design that the watch world universally refers to them as “Breguet numerals”.

◆ Classique Ref. 7787.

12 13 THE AESTHETIC CODES OF BREGUET

◆ BREGUET WINDOWS AND OFF-CENTERED TIME DISPLAY

To avoid cluttering the appearance of the watch face with too many hands, Abraham-Louis Breguet had the idea, both inspirational and novel, to use small windows (“guichets”) for some of the indications on a watch dial. Even though some large clocks had employed windows to show the phase of the moon and certain other astronomical indications, Abraham- Louis Breguet was a pioneer in bringing this style to the smaller dimensions of watches. Certainly, the moon phase was one indication implemented with a window in Breguet’s watches, but, as well, he used small windows for dates, months, days of the week, even the adjustment of the running rate of the watch.

Abraham-Louis Breguet was partial to one other aesthetic ◆ Breguet No. 3833, sold on May 12th, 1823. dimension of dial design: off centered display of the time. The first timepiece with an off-center display debuted in 1812. It was followed by many of his most celebrated creations and, as well, those of his son. Breguet created several variations of TWO DESIGN ELEMENTS ARE REFLECTED the theme with the time display located above, below or to the IN MANY OF BREGUET’S MOST CELEBRATED side of the center of the dial. By moving the time display off center, Abraham-Louis’ innovation not only achieved an har- TIMEPIECES: SMALL WINDOWS AND monious arrangement of indications and added visual interest, OFF-CENTERED TIME DISPLAY. it opened the door to new arrangements of the watch’s func- These elements allowed display of additional tions. Inheriting this DNA are many models of the modern Breguet collections. indications without undue clutter and balanced the appearance of the dial.

◆ Classique Ref. 7337.

14 15 THE AESTHETIC CODES OF BREGUET

◆ PROPORTION AND FLUTING

Perhaps not properly called a design element as such, but certainly characteristic of his approach and sensibilities, Abraham-Louis Breguet departed from convention in the manner in which dial and case were proportioned. His watches maximized the diameter of the dial and minimized the thickness of the surrounding bezel. Not only did this enhance legibility in that greater room was created for the indications, but it lightened the overall appearance of the timepiece. Today’s Classique Collection adopts the same philosophy for the identical reasons, which remain as valid as they were two centuries ago.

The cases themselves, naturally, did not escape his stud- ◆ Breguet No. 3537, sold on July 17 th, 1821. ied eye. Both guilloché and fluting were commonly bestowed upon case sides and covers of his timepieces. Of course, these designs enhanced the visual appeal, but there were deeper reasons lying behind his thinking. These embellishments improved grip on the surface of the watch, making it less likely THE FORM OF THE CASE DID NOT that the owner would drop his precious timepiece. At the same ESCAPE BREGUET’S STUDIED EYE. time, the guilloché motif was effective in hiding fingerprints, His watches maximized the diameter of inevitably resulting from handling by the owner. Although few pieces in the modern Breguet collection are fitted with covers, the dial and minimized the thickness of the guilloché patterns adorn them following the philosophy of the surrounding bezel. Fluting of the sides of founder. Perhaps it would seem less important to reduce the the case was also common. likelihood of losing surface grip upon the case for a wrist- watch, but the coin edge fluting of cases broadly used throughout the modern collections does serve to hide fingerprints while at the same time bringing an aesthetic appeal and subtle refinement.

◆ Classique Ref. 5157.

16 17 THE AESTHETIC CODES OF BREGUET

BREGUET’S SIGNATURE AESTHETICS REMAIN VIBRANT AND ALIVE AFTER TWO CENTURIES. Even a fleeting glance at a timepiece with these designs shows its origins as a Breguet.

Could Abraham-Louis Breguet ever have imagined that his designs would endure as they have? The rationales behind them remain valid and what was delicate and refined two centuries ago carries those same virtues today. But there is more. The visual power of Breguet’s aesthetic codes is such that even the briefest of glances at a timepiece on the wrist forcefully com- municates “Breguet”.

◆ Breguet No. 4691, sold on October 13th, 1831.

18 19 TECHNOLOGY ON THE WORKBENCH: SILICIUM

Technology On The Workbench: SILICIUM By Jeffrey S. Kingston

20 21 TECHNOLOGY ON THE WORKBENCH: SILICIUM

magine yourself as Abraham-Louis Breguet in his workshop on Paris’ Quai de l’Horloge at I the turn of the nineteenth century. In the relentless pursuit of timekeeping precision, you are drilling microscopic holes in each tooth of the escape wheel. Tooth by tooth. Why? To trap miniscule quantities of oil for lubrication at the point of contact between the escape wheel and the lever. Next to you on the bench is the balance wheel and its spiral. You have done your best to form the spiral and you have bestowed upon it your groundbreaking invention of the overcoil (which you cannot possibly know at the time, will two hundred years hence still bear your name, universally called by future watchmakers a “Breguet hairspring”). Although this timepiece will be sold as a “Garde Temps”, your highest grade movement, these solutions, the drilled escape wheel and the formed spiral, are not perfect. Your technological tools, the best for your era, cannot carry you to the pinnacle of perfection.

◆ ◆ ◆

Conjuring the future, Jules Verne in 1865 may have have brought cutting edge materials to today’s movements penned the tale of a journey to the moon a century before to achieve levels of precision and performance unimagin- Neil Armstrong, yet not even the wildest flights of fancy in able in even the recent past. Bestowed upon today’s move- the Quai de l’Horloge atelier could have envisaged some of ments are components utilizing silicium, titanium, liquid the solutions which technology has conferred upon today’s metal®, diamond-like carbon and special alloys for the watchmakers in Breguet’s Vallée de Joux manufacture. A mainspring. word of caution, or better said, an important perspective on technology’s role at Breguet: today’s material advances are Breguet introduced its first timepieces incorporating never adopted simply because they are there or for flash and silicium components in 2006 with the reference 5197. Af- advertising talking points. For Breguet there must be both a ter five years of experience during which all of the perfor- tangible benefit to the performance of the timepiece deliver- mance expectations were met, Breguet’s CEO, Marc A. ing value to the owner and, in addition, compatibility Hayek, true to the philosophy of his grandfather, Nicolas with the traditional practices and skills of watchmaking G. Hayek, reached the decision to incorporate silicium broad-

hand craft. Guided by these principles, Breguet’s movement ly throughout the collections. As of this writing, ten years ◆ Tradition Independent Chronograph showing its two developers, working in tandem with research scientists, after the initial introduction, there are less than a handful of silicium spirals with Breguet overcoils, Ref. 7077.

22 23 TECHNOLOGY ON THE WORKBENCH: SILICIUM

legacy references which do not feature silicium spirals and there are many references utilizing the material in areas in addition to the spiral. It is a propitious moment to step back in order to summarize and highlight what has proven to be a revolutionary advance going to the very heart of a mechanical watch. In future issues of Le Quai de l’Horloge we will spotlight other modern materials and how they, too, have enriched the art of watchmaking.

The three key timekeeping elements of a watch are its balance wheel, including its spiral, the escape wheel and the lever. It is in these fundamental components that the properties of silicium have opened up new frontiers.

Ever since Dutch mathematician Huygens developed the spring balance spiral in 1675, this has been one element invariably common to all mechanical watches. Its contrac- tion and expansion, which many describe as “breathing”1, is central to the timing of the back and forth oscillations of the balance wheel and, thus, the running rate of the watch. In the more than three centuries following its invention, watchmakers have struggled to perfect the performance of the spiral. Indeed, one of Abraham-Louis Breguet’s key inventions, the overcoil, was aimed at just that. By bending the outside portion of the spiral upwards and over the re- maining portion of the spiral, Breguet was able to improve the centering of the spiral around its axis and to make the spiral “breathe” more evenly, that is to say, maintain a shape

◆ Balance wheel with silicium spiral and tourbillon cage with silicium closer to the ideal of perfectly round, than was being escape wheel and lever from the Marine Chronograph, Ref. 5837. achieved with the then existing spiral shapes.

24 25 TECHNOLOGY ON THE WORKBENCH: SILICIUM

Spirals in this era of watchmaking were formed by hand, which meant there were inevitable imperfections and, even with the improvements enabled by the Breguet overcoil, performance could not be idealized. Today, however, modern spiral production machines have enabled great advances over the vintage hand formed spirals. Shapes can be more perfectly formed. Thickness can be more precisely controlled. However impressive those innovations, the use of silicium for the spiral leapfrogs even the finest predecessors in the pursuit of precision.

Spirals fashioned in silicium can be produced with essentially perfect shapes, on the order of below one micron. But that is just the beginning of what silicium makes possible. Pre-existing methods for fabricating metallic spirals progressively roll the alloy until it is in the form of a fine wire, flatten it into a thin rectangular profile, and, finally, wind it into a coiled shape. With this kind of process, in- troducing variations along the length of the spirals is not feasible. Silicium spirals, on the other hand, are fabricated from wafers where material can be removed as desired. Thus, it becomes possible to engineer precise variations in thickness or coil spacing into the fabrication process. Move- ment designers using computer simulations can determine the exact characteristics of thickness and shape along por- tions of the spiral that will optimize its performance in the movement. An easily visible example is found in Breguet’s Chronométrie. Its balance wheel is fitted with two silicium spirals that not only are thicker at their outer attachment points, they have been fabricated to be essentially rigid for a portion of their lengths, thereby moving the flexible location ◆ Balance wheel with its two silicium spirals to a predetermined ideal location. from the Chronométrie, Ref. 7727.

26 27 TECHNOLOGY ON THE WORKBENCH: SILICIUM

SPIRALS FASHIONED IN SILICIUM CAN BE PRODUCED WITH ESSENTIALLY PERFECT SHAPES. Indeed, movement designers can determine exact characteristics of thickness and shape along the length to optimize performance in the movement.

One of the important considerations in the design of a watch movement is how the running rate will be affected as the watch barrel unwinds over time. The torque delivered by the barrel is, of course, at its maximum when fully wound and drops as it unwinds, as for example after 24 hours, 48 hours or more, depending on the movement. This drop can change the running rate. The term “isochronism” is used by watchmakers to express this aspect of performance. Silicium helps to optimize isochronism performance in two ways. First, the shape can be idealized attained, so that the center of gravity of the spiral will inevit- when it is fabricated to address isochronism. Second, and a ably be displaced somewhat from the center since, after all, bit of a simplification to state it this way, a spiral made of it must be attached to the balance staff. This causes what silicium is less affected by the dropping of torque than watchmakers term the “Grossmann effect”, which is used pre-existing metallic alloys. to describe errors which result from changes in vertical position. Because the center of gravity of the spiral is displaced Lightness is another prized property of silicium. To un- from the center, depending upon the position of the watch, derstand how this improves the performance of the spiral, a the force of gravity creates a torque which, acting upon the brief tutorial on one of watchmaking’s challenges. In an ide- spiral, will have an effect on the frequency of the balance alized world, a mechanical watch’s spiral would be perfectly wheel’s swing; in some positions adding to it, in others sub- centered on its central axis and remain so as it breathes in- tracting. Naturally, this changes the running rate of the ward and outward. This would place its center of gravity watch. Because silicium is lighter than pre-existing metallic ◆ Balance wheel, spiral and balance bridge from the caliber 777Q, Ref. 5177. upon the axis. Unfortunately, that idealized vision can’t be spirals, this Grossmann effect is diminished.

28 29 TECHNOLOGY ON THE WORKBENCH: SILICIUM

THE PROPERTIES OF SILICIUM LEND THEMSELVES TO USES IN ADDITION TO THE SPIRAL. Several Breguet calibers feature silicium levers and/or escape wheels.

◆ Silicium lever from the caliber 777Q, Ref. 5177.

30 31 TECHNOLOGY ON THE WORKBENCH: SILICIUM

THE LIST OF POSITIVE ATTRIBUTES OF SILICIUM IS LONG. This had led Breguet to incorporate silicium spirals in nearly all of its movements.

degree. As well, for Breguet there is a further benefit from the a-magnetic properties of silicium, as it has enabled beneficial uses of magnets within the heart of its movements without risk to the running rate. Two examples: the Chronométrie that features magnetic pivots for the balance wheel’s staff and the magnetic regulator2 for the Musicale and La Tradition Minute Repeater Tourbillon. Both of these inventions have been patented.

Not to be overlooked are the effects of age on the characteristics of spirals. Over time, with traditional spiral materials one may witness changes in stiffness which may One of the enemies of traditional metallic spirals is negatively manifest itself in both the running rate and iso- magnetism. When exposed to a sufficiently strong magnetic chronism. In contrast, silicium remains stable and is not field, there is a risk that sections of metallic spirals can be- subject to metal fatigue as the watch ages. come magnetized. When this happens, these miniature magnets in the coils can either attract or repel each other. The list of positive attributes is long and thermal com- This changes the characteristics of the spiral which, in turn, pensation also merits a prominent place.3 It was discovered changes the running rate of the timepiece. Indeed, respond- that silicium oxide coated onto the hairspring not only ing to this risk, it became common throughout the industry minimizes the effects of temperature changes to a degree, to equip watches, principally in the diving arena, with a soft for example, well below the Swiss chronometer COSC iron inner case to shield the spiral from magnetism. The standards, but as well allowed Breguet’s movement design- drawbacks of this approach were many as it made the ers to tailor the compensation to match the particular watches both thicker and heavier and essentially prevented characteristics of the material used for the movement’s incorporation of a clear case back. As it is naturally a-mag- balance wheel. This is important as, according to the netic, silicium is not subject to this risk of being magnetized movement, Breguet uses both Glucydur and titanium and renders unnecessary older shielding methods while at for its balance wheels which have different thermal proper- the same time protecting from magnetism to an equivalent ties. ◆ The silicium escape wheel from the Chronométrie, Ref. 7727.

32 33 TECHNOLOGY ON THE WORKBENCH: SILICIUM

SILICIUM REPRESENTS NO LESS THAN A MAJOR ADVANCE IN THE ART OF WATCHMAKING. Arguably, it belongs among the ranks of the most important horological innovations in history.

All of these attributes represent major advances in watchmaking which has led Breguet to adopt silicium for the spirals in nearly all of its movements.

In certain movements, Breguet has used silicium for other components central to timekeeping. In the Type XXII, in addition to the spiral, both the lever and the escape wheel are in silicium. The Type XXII was Breguet’s first The Type XXII is not the only Breguet timepiece with timepiece built to run at a frequency of 10 Hz or 72,000 silicium components beyond the balance spiral. The beats per hour. With the watchmaking norm falling be- Chronométrie has been outfitted with a silicium escape tween 2.5 and 4 Hz, the movement in the Type XXII broke wheel whose lightened form allowed the movement to new ground both for mechanical movements in general and achieve its 10 Hz frequency. References 5177 and 5837 all chronographs in particular. Two properties of silicium rec- have silicium escape wheels and levers. ommended themselves for the lever and escape wheel: lightness and improved frictional properties (recall the It is not an overstatement to say that for movement de- painstaking drilling of holes two hundred years ago to bat- signers, watchmakers, watch connoisseurs and, of course, tle friction). Lightness not only reduces the energy con- every owner of a timepiece fitted with silicium components, sumption of the movement, vital if one wants to achieve silicium represents no less than a major advance in the art. high frequencies, but, related, it also contributes to lower The full range of its desirable physical properties justifies inertia of the components, important when they are oscil- placing it amongst the ranks of the most important watch- lating so rapidly. making innovations in history.

1 As the spiral winds and unwinds, it expands and contracts, hence 3 Thermal compensation is an issue that must be addressed in order the parallel which is drawn to breathing in and out. to minimize temperature effects on the frequency of an oscillator like a balance wheel. In Abraham-Louis Breguet’s epoch, a clever 2 To ensure that the beat of a chiming watch is steady, a component approach fashioning the balance wheel out of two different metals known as a regulator is employed. Breguet’s patented design uses was developed. More recently, the alloys used in Nivarox spirals small magnets to control the pace. This approach offers the advan- further advanced the art. tages of greater precision and silent operation compared to previous approaches. ◆ The silicium lever from the Type XXII, Ref. 3880.

34 35 BREGUET AND THE OTTOMAN EMPIRE

Breguet and the OTTOMAN EMPIRE By Emmanuel Breguet

◆ Portrait of the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire Selim III (1789-1807), Turkey, 18th century.

36 37 BREGUET AND THE OTTOMAN EMPIRE

n entrepreneur and artist with an open-minded attitude to the world, Abraham-Louis A Breguet was also an exporter who, right from the start of his career in the last quarter of the 18th century, lost no opportunity to make himself known abroad.

◆ ◆ ◆

In the early 19th century, as Napoleonic France became Abraham-Louis Breguet was indeed acquainted with involved in a welter of external wars that penalized the sale Turkey in his own way. He had established a friendship 15 of French products, Breguet turned to Turkey – a nation years earlier with the Ottoman ambassador to Paris, Esseid traditionally regarded as a friend of France and whose elites Ali Effendi. Escorted by Jean-Michel Venture de Paradis had long since been keen admirers of English, French or (whose daughter later married Breguet’s son), a diplomat Swiss watchmaking – with eminently successful results. and orientalist who had been striking to prevent Franco- Turkish relations for 40 years, Ali Effendi arrived in Paris The efforts undertaken by Breguet as of 1811 to orga- in 1797.2 The Ottoman ambassador was pampered by nize its presence on the Ottoman market occurred against a Talleyrand, the French Minister for Foreign Affairs, who distinctive geopolitical backdrop. At a time when Breguet presented him to all his friends. His wit and exotic charm had already suffered steep declines in sales to England and soon made him a darling of the grand Parisian soirées held Spain, access to the Russian market was abruptly blocked during the Directory period. A client of Breguet as of 1798, by the severance of diplomatic ties between the two emper- alongside his interpreter Malotaky, he purchased a Grande ors, Napoleon I and Tsar Alexander I. The three main mar- Sonnerie minute repeater in 1799 and a longcase clock in kets of the House were thus destroyed.1 Turkey, the only 1801.3 Upon his return to Turkey in 1802 to take on im- foreign power still allied with France, could thus be consid- portant ministerial responsibilities, Esseid Ali Effendi kept ered a promising substitute market. This was all the more up a correspondence with Breguet, while his successors in judicious in that the company founder had two key assets: the French capital also began frequenting the Quai de 4 a certain familiarity with Turkey, and the choice of a watch- l’Horloge. In his letters to Abraham-Louis, Esseid Ali ◆ View of the “Hagia Sophia” mosque, with various town houses in the foreground. maker named Leroy to represent him in Istanbul. Effendi repeatedly placed new orders: ten repeater watches Lithography (circa 1850) by Louis (Lovis) Haghe (1806-1885) after a drawing by Gaspare Fossari.

38 39 BREGUET AND THE OTTOMAN EMPIRE

◆ Esseid Ali Effendi, Ottoman ambassador in Paris.

between 1804 and 1808, as well as more modest commercial watches equipped with thermometers and barometers. The timepieces were shipped to Istanbul either by professional freight carriers via Vienna, or by means of the French Foreign Office services. Upon reaching their destination, UPON HIS RETURN TO TURKEY IN 1802, they were resold or gifted to the highest dignitaries of the ESSEID ALI EFFENDI KEPT UP A Ottoman Empire. Models were also sent to and fro for re- CORRESPONDENCE WITH BREGUET. pairs via the ministry. The former ambassador provided his friend with good customers such as Bazilio or the banker His successors in the French capital also began Paparigopulo of Istanbul. He also recommended to him a frequenting the Quai de l’Horloge and in his watch merchant named Stephanaki with whom Breguet letters to Abraham-Louis, Esseid Ali Effendi would do business and get to know the market. But above all, he methodically explained to him in the course of his repeatedly placed orders for new watches. letters the appearance that watches should have in order to appeal to his compatriots. They were to feature a white enamel dial, as well as a case and double case that should be enameled – in red for example – and richly decorated. In November 1803, Ali Effendi specified that from then on- wards all the watches he would order would have to feature dials with Turkish numerals rather than Arabic or Roman numerals.5 Breguet agreed and therefore renounced in this sole instance the neoclassical style he had so successfully ◆ Letter to A.-L. Breguet by Esseid Ali Effendi. introduced into the world of horology.

40 41 BREGUET AND THE OTTOMAN EMPIRE

ESSEID ALI EFFENDI EXPLAINED TO BREGUET IN HIS LETTERS THE QUALITIES WATCHES SHOULD HAVE TO APPEAL TO HIS COMPATRIOTS. They were to feature a white enamel dial, as well as a case and double case that should be enameled – in red for example – and richly decorated.

In 1804, having become Minister of the Navy, the former ambassador ordered the most beautiful possible repeater watch for the Ottoman Emperor Selim III. Nonetheless, as was the custom, he did not explicitly name the sovereign, instead referring to him as “the greatest figure of our nation” and “so great and so elevated that I cannot say his name”.6 The operation proved a success, since Selim III demanded a second watch identical to the first, leading Ali Effendi to write to Breguet the following year in these terms: “Your reputation in this capital has reached its zenith. All the great nobles admire your work.” 7 The tone of the letters written by Esseid Ali Effendi is extremely warm and reveals a friendship evidently extending well beyond merely commercial relations, as is eloquently confirmed by the comforting ◆ Breguet No. 1794/2410. words written to Abraham-Louis after on the death of his sister-in-law, as well as the frequent allusions to Breguet’s son or to such or such mutual friend. Ali Effendi had fond

42 43 BREGUET AND THE OTTOMAN EMPIRE

ALI EFFENDI WROTE memories of his Parisian years and systematically asked TO BREGUET IN 1802: Breguet to greet his friends in Paris for him, and especially Mr and Mrs Récamier. Juliette Récamier, one of the “Send one of your most skilled most beautiful women of her era, whose fair features were watchmakers to settle in immortalized by the painters Jacques-Louis David and Constantinople (...) and your François Gérard, had clearly made a lasting impression on the Turkish ambassador. name will be more famous

than the English.” On the lookout for new markets to compensate for the recession, Breguet recalled in 1811 the advice already proffered by Ali Effendi in a letter dated 1802: “Send one of your most skilled watchmakers to settle in Constan- tinople (…) and your name will be more famous than the English.”8

Breguet found exactly the right person in Leroy, a watchmaker with keen business acumen who was scrupu- lously honest, devoted and… ready to go and live in Turkey. He accordingly settled in Istanbul – or more specifically in “Péra-lès-Constantinople” as it was known at the time – at the end of 1811, with the official title of Breguet agent. The parent company sent him an average of six to eight models for the Turkish market until 1820, after which sales began to show signs of flagging. However, in addition to these valuable models produced on the Quai de l’Horloge in

Paris, there were also a large number of less expensive com- ◆ At the Sweet Waters of Asia in Constantinople, mercial models made in Geneva for Breguet and sold under oil on canvas (1837), Johann Michael Wittmer.

44 45 BREGUET AND THE OTTOMAN EMPIRE

THE FABULOUS SYMPATHIQUE the name of Breguet or “Leroy, student of Breguet”. To CLOCK MADE FOR MAHMUD II, meet demand for Turkish-style watches, the Maison had no choice but to call upon the services of Geneva workshops the most luxurious and most expensive specialized in richly enameled watches and familiar with the object ever made by A.-L. Breguet. Ottoman decorative style. In Paris, where enamelists were few and far between, Breguet found it very difficult to have even simple dials with Turkish numerals made without any mistakes!

To help Leroy get started and facilitate his task, Breguet made a bold move that proved highly successful. The ◆ Breguet No. 1794/2410. French government had been looking to make a gift to the new ruler, Sultan Mahmud II. The watchmaker persuaded Maret, Talleyrand’s successor as Minister of Foreign Af- fairs, that this gift should be a product from his Maison and thereby secured an order for a sympathique clock valued at 35,000 francs.9 Duly paid for by the Ministry in 1912, this clock was delivered to the Sultan in early 1813.10 On March 24th, Jonas-Louis Lassieur, the nephew and employee of A.-L. Breguet, wrote to Leroy: “My uncle has just seen the Minister of Foreign Affairs who said the clock has arrived and was very well received…”11 The following month, ◆ Breguet sympathique clock No. 758. the Sultan summoned Leroy to the court as Breguet’s representative, presented him with a gift and entrusted him with the maintenance of all the timepieces in his palace. A fine introduction!

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Leroy built up a clientele encompassing the highest imperial dignitaries, including Ameda Aga, Grand Customs Officer of the Ottoman Empire, as well as Amil Bey, Kiamil Bey, Laya Bey and Beykan Sultan.

The Turkish example is typical of the method adopted by the master, who worked with professional salespeople in a market after gauging and testing it through well-informed friends. Intended to partially compensate for the terrible commercial misfortunes experienced by the firm at the end of the Napoleonic Empire, Turkish sales played their role, while also obliging the Maison to adopt to the aesthetic demands of the Near East, as it was then called.

◆ Breguet No. 1320. After the death of his agent Leroy, Breguet hired a new agent to represent the firm in Istanbul: Jouannin, who was subsequently followed by Messrs Mir and Cottereau. The latter managed to maintain a fine roster of clients and up- held the reputation Breguet had acquired in the Ottoman Empire until the end of the 19th century .12

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TODAY, Today, several of the most beautiful Turkish watches by several of the most beautiful Breguet belong to the collections of the Topkapi Museum, such as the famous sympathique clock made for Mahmud II, Turkish watches by Breguet belong the most opulent and expensive object ever made by to the Topkapi Museum. A.-L. Breguet in his lengthy lifespan. Others belong to the Breguet Museum whose collections were acquired by dint of fierce competition in major auctions under the impetus of Nicolas G. Hayek himself, while still others are owned by private collectors.13 They definitely symbolize a remarkable cultural encounter between Breguet’s avant-garde Western watchmaking techniques and the richly evocative decorative tastes of the Ottoman Empire.

1 On sales made by the Maison Breguet in the early 19th century 8 Id., September 30th 1802. and its variations under the First Empire, see Emmanuel Breguet 9 Hugues-Bernard Maret, Duc de Bassano (1763-1839), French Breguet, Watchmakers Since 1775: The Life and Legacy of Abraham- Minister of Foreign Affairs from April 1811 to November 1813. Louis Breguet (1747-1823), pp 229-235. 10 This sympathique clock covered with precious stones, Breguet no. 2 Jean-Michel Venture de Paradis, a highly renowned orientalist born 758, was the most expensive object ever made by A.-L. Breguet. in 1738 in Marseille, was the oldest of the members of the Egyptian Still kept in the Topkapi Palace, it has unfortunately lost its watch expedition and served as an interpreter for General Bonaparte; he bearing number 507. died during the Siege of Acre in 1799. 11 Personally hand-written letter, Jonas-Louis Lassieur to Leroy, 3 Sales registers, Montres Breguet SA archives, Paris. March 24th 1813. 4 Set of 13 letters sent by Esseid Ali Effendi to Abraham-Louis Breguet 12 Sales registers, Montres Breguet SA archives, Paris. between 1802 and 1808, private archives. One letter dated 1803 13 An exhibition of Turkish-style Breguet watches was organized in is signed “Esseyd Aly Effendy, bache mahassehe actille”; another Istanbul at the Topkapi Sarayi Musuem, from June 1st to August letter dated 1804 is signed “Esseyd Aly Effendy, Minister of the 31st 2010. It encompassed the Topkapi collection of Breguet Imperial Navy”; all the others are signed “Esseyd Aly Effendy”. Turkish watches and clocks, as well as the Turkish watch collection 5 Id., Letter personally hand-written by Esseid Ali Effendi to Abra- from the Breguet Museum. A dedicated catalog was published on ham-Louis Breguet, November 25th 1803. this occasion. 6 Id., June 25th 1804 and likewise, July 21st 1804. 7 Id., September 25th 1805. ◆ Topkapi Museum.

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DOUBLE TOURBILLON and Tourbillon MESSIDOR By Jeffrey S. Kingston

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hen Breguet’s founder, Abraham-Louis Breguet, invented the tourbillon, which he patented W in 1801, there is no doubt that his invention was resolutely purposeful. Throughout his life, the polestar for his many innovations was function and the tourbillon was no exception. It was created to address one of timekeeping’s most difficult problems, rate changes caused by the force of gravity acting on the timekeeping components of the watch. Brilliant in its conception, Breguet’s tourbillon rotated the timekeeping components constantly so that rate errors caused by gravity would be cancelled out. The logic lying behind Breguet’s invention holds as true today as it did more than 200 years ago. Not only is it honored by the whole of the watchmaking world offering tourbillon designs that hew to the conception of the original, even the name “tourbillon”, appended to the mechanism by Breguet himself, is used by all who endeavor to build them.

◆ ◆ ◆

However practical and focused on chronometry the tourbillons, housed within either a platinum or rose gold. tourbillon may have been when first created, reasons that 44 mm case, which feed a differential to generate the time are undiminished after the passage of two centuries, no one display. More on the differential in a moment. But going can deny the visual fascination of watching a tourbillon’s beyond the presence of two tourbillons is an added compli- rotation on the face of a watch. The word “tourbillon” con- cation. The plate on which the tourbillons are mounted jures up many notions of motion. Breguet chose the word rotates with the hour hand. The hour hand itself serves as as a reference to a celestial planetary system and its rotation the upper bridge for one of the tourbillons; its extension, in around an axis, which is a perfect description of the theater a different color, serves as the bridge for the second tourbil- of motion offered as a carriage rotates carrying within it the lon. Following Breguet’s traditional style, the hour hand is oscillating balance wheel and turning escapement. Breguet’s classical in form with its “pomme”; the extension is given a Double Tourbillon and Tourbillon Messidor both build on mirror polish finish. Thus, the timekeeping components of this visual experience and bring unique interpretations of the watch not only rotate once per minute, as they are the house’s original invention. turned within the carriages of each tourbillon, but as well rotate 360 degrees over a 12-hour period. Double Tourbillon Normally, as the adage goes, “the name says it all”. In The construction to bring all of this motion about was the case of the Double Tourbillon, this maxim is only half unusually complex. An early trial of the core idea, building right. Of course, the timepiece does, in fact, feature two a timepiece with two balances (albeit simple balances as

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distinct from tourbillons), occurred in 1947. Built in the form of a model, the experiment was undertaken by the École Technique de la Vallée de Joux. It was not entirely successful as there were problems with the functioning of the two balances in the vertical position. This effort was described in Reinhard Mies’ book The Tourbillon. An analysis of this model showed that the use of a differential to supply energy to the two balances lay behind the problems and greatly complicated the construction of the gear train.

Knowing this, Breguet’s movement designers set about exploring the range of alternatives which would avoid the issues seen with this 1947 design. They understood well that the most reliable construction would be one that was simple and direct, where energy supplied by the barrel would pass through a single gear train to the regulating system without an intermediate transmission. Thus, Breguet’s designers focused upon an approach where each tourbillon would have its own gear train leading from its own barrel. As well, the designers went a step further in having the hour hand carry with it both tourbillons, both gear trains and the two barrels. With this arrangement, the main plate turns with two complete tourbillon movements running inde- pendently of each other. Left to be addressed then was how to connect the two tourbillons together to display the time and to rotate the combination 360 degrees.

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A DEPICTION OF THE PLANETS OFFERED ON THE BACK OF THE MOVEMENT REFLECTS THE INVENTOR’S THOUGHT PROCESS. A.-L. Breguet named his innovation “tourbillon” as a reference to a celestial planetary system and its rotation.

The solution to this problem lay in the design of a differential which would be placed in the gear train leading to the hands.1 In common with a simple movement, the gear train powering the hands requires only a very small amount of energy. Thus, adding more complicated gearing here would have only a very small effect on the running of the watch. This innovative design which makes the Double Tourbillon possible is now the subject of a patent filed by Breguet.

A differential assembly is a component that is able to combine separate gear trains into a third gear train. The statement of its function is rather simple. Its construction is both devilishly clever and, because its inner workings are

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ensure that the rotation, the time setting, and time indication occur without undue play and, importantly, that the assembly with its relatively large mass, be shock resistant. A moment of thought explains why the Double Tourbillon’s rotation, time setting and indications are more difficult to accomplish than the mere rotation of an hour hand; the weight of a standard hand is trivially light, but the weight of the dial/tourbillon/plate assembly is not. In order to accom- modate the additional weight of the assembly, the Double Tourbillon is “double geared”. All of the trains, from the two tourbillons to the differential and from the differential to the assembly, are built with two parallel sets of gears. An ◆ Double elastic wheel. “elastic” gear has been incorporated into each of these three trains to build tension into the system. This gear actually consists of two gears, closely spaced together and connected by a small spring; one of the gears is connected to the time indication, the second generates a constant opposing force to the first. Through this connection, any displacement in response to a shock is instantly corrected.

This construction of the time indication gear train with its differential and double compensation gear guarantees seldom visible, generally not well understood by even dedi- perfect running of the movement, without compromise, cated watch connoisseurs. The cleverness lies in the differ- nothwithstanding its complexity. Through the clear case ential’s ability to average the rates of the two separate gear back, the movement designers open worked the bridges so trains in its output to the third train. For example, if one of that the owner can admire and appreciate the double gear the gear trains is running 2 seconds a day fast and the other and observe its functioning during the setting of the time. 2 seconds a day slow, the output to the third train would be +/- 0 seconds. This property of averaging makes a dif- There were additional issues to be confronted: the bar- ferential an ideal construction for inclusion in the Double rels themselves and their winding system. Although it is Tourbillon as it averages the rotations of the two tourbil- true that the running rate of the watch is the average of the lons and transmits that rotation to the combination turn- two movements, that does not imply that the unwinding of ing with the rotating main plate. the two barrels will be identical since there may be a vari- ance in the running of the two movements. How do you Rotating the dial/tourbillon/plate assembly addresses wind two separate barrels which may be in different states only part of the challenge. It remained to design a sytem to of unwind in a way to ensure both will be fully wound? The

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THE TIME DISPLAYED IS THE AVERAGE OF THE TWO TOURBILLONS. Located in the center of the movement is a differential connected to both tourbillons.

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THE TOURBILLON MESSIDOR barrel will wind faster than the manual wind barrel. Thus, CAPTURES THE SPIRIT OF HISTORIC when the manual winding barrel is fully wound, it is sure that the automatic barrel will likewise be fully wound. Then MYSTERIOUS CLOCKS. to provide further assurance against misuse from over wind- However, Breguet has conceived an ing the manual barrel, a safety system clutch has been added entirely original approach. to the crown. If the watch were to be wound past full, a special dynamometric torque limiting system of the crown will slip thereby protecting the manual wind mainspring.

Breguet has created a new design for the solid gold guil- loché dial with a pattern uniquely reserved for the Double Tourbillon. Of course, the classic slivered color is offered, but at the 2016 Basel fair, Breguet introduced new variants that apply a colored translucent enamel layer above the guilloché. Several colors—gray, blue and red—are available. Art has been brought to the back of the watch as well. The back of the fixed main plate has been hand carved with de- pictions of the planets and stars.

Tourbillon Messidor A century ago, so-called “mystery” clocks were all the rage. These clocks presented hands which seemingly rotated in space. There was no visible connection between the hands and the rest of the movement, which, of course, had answer was to connect them together, of course, linked to to be there. The secret or, if you will, the “mystery”, was in the crown. However, simply connecting one barrel to the the use of transparent disks to power the hands. The move- crown and blocking it when fully wound would not guar- ment, hidden in the base, would be geared to the disks, al- antee that the second barrel would be fully wound at the lowing the hands to turn as they showed the time. same time. The solution lay in the use of two different types of barrels. One of the barrels is of the type used for an auto- The Tourbillon Messidor was inspired by the ideas be- matic winding movement, the other the type for a manual hind these vintage clocks, but with a Breguet twist. Rather wind. The difference between them is that an automatic than have mystery hands, which, after all, was a design that winding barrel is equipped with a form of clutch. When the was not new, the Messidor would have a mystery tourbil- barrel is fully wound, further winding causes no harm as the lon. This would be a tourbillon that would seemingly float mainspring will slip on the interior of the barrel drum. and go about its complex motion in space with no visible Breguet conceived a system where the automatic winding connection to the rest of the movement.

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SHOWCASING THE TOURBILLON, VISUALLY FLOATING IN ITS SAPPHIRE PORTHOLE, IS A SKELETONIZED MOVEMENT. Craftsmen, by hand, meticulously create anglage finishing using a series of files and wood.

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There is a story behind Breguet’s choice of the name “Messidor” for its mystery tourbillon. Breguet did not want to use the word “mystery” as that might tie to the history of other watchmakers who created mystery clocks and because the mystery of this tourbillon should be distinguished from the mystery hands of others. “Messidor” was a perfect choice since that name ties to the filing of Breguet’s original patent filing for the tourbillon in 1801. The French Revo- lutionary calendar was then in force, which necessitated marking the date as “7 Messidor An 9” (7 Messidor year 9; THE KEY TO ACHIEVING A June 26th, 1801). MYSTERIOUS TOURBILLON WAS The key to achieving a mysterious tourbillon was in the IN THE USE OF SAPPHIRE. use of sapphire. The tourbillon is mounted between two The tourbillon is mounted between sapphire plates. The cage itself is attached to a third sap- two sapphire plates. phire plate and it is this plate which is engaged with the watch’s gear train. The edge of this disk is fitted with brass teeth (the traditional material for watch wheels), engaged to a wheel at the 7 o’clock position. As this is a mysterious construction, the ring of brass teeth and the connection to the wheel linked to the remainder of the movement is hidden by the gold bezel surrounding the tourbillon aperture.

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There are many aesthetic dimensions going well be- as in a standard movement since the bridges have not only yond the tourbillon turning in space. The dial of the outer edges but inner edges as well. The tourbillon cage and Messidor timepiece is in sapphire offering a view from the the bridge supporting the barrel have mirror polishes; the dial side of the fine hand skeleton work of the movement. rest of the movement features fine hand brushed surfaces. In spite of its historical name, the finishing style of the open worked movement is thoroughly contemporary. Of course, So as to maximize the view of skeletonized movement traditional hand-filed anglage is applied to all the edges of within the 40 mm case, the chapter ring appears as translu- the components. And remember that with open worked cent frosting on the sapphire dial. Several of the hour mark- bridges, there is more than twice as much anglage finishing ers are fashioned in metalized sapphire.

1 The most common construction utilizes an outer drum which is main in the same relative position; that is to say, with the drum and connected to one of the gear trains through its outer teeth. Inside the plate holding the satellites turning in unison. When this occurs the drum is a disk carrying with it one or more small gears, called the center gear will rotate at a speed determined by the gearing satellites, which on one side engage with teeth on the inside of the between the satellites and the center gear. On the other hand, if one drum. This plate carrying the satellites is connected to the second of the first two gear trains is turning faster than the other—drum gear train. Finally, the satellite gears are also engaged with a center and disk not turning in unison—the satellites will naturally rotate, gear which has center axis that provides the output to the third gear changing their relative position to the drum, and that relative posi- train. If the two gear trains—the outer drum and the disk carrying tion change will be reflected in the rotation of the center gear. the satellites—are turning at the same speed, the satellites will re-

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The Art of JEWELRY By Jeffrey S. Kingston

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recision. Fine hand craft. Stunning finishing details. Exquisite artistry. These are all quali- P ties that watch connoisseurs associate with the movements of fine timepieces. And, inevitably, accompanying those thoughts are vivid mental images of watchmakers working at their benches to bring these mechanical marvels to life. A day spent with craftsmen who specialize in the setting of precious stones on both Breguet’s gem-set watches and jewelry lines not only brought immediately to mind the same notions of precision, fine hand craft, stunning finishing details and exquisite artistry as with the movements, but, as well, revealed workshops that in many ways resembled the movement ateliers.

◆ ◆ ◆

Of course, setting of the stones is not the first step in the cutting work, always a critical step for the creation of a jew- process. That begins where the gems are graded and sold eled piece, is as international in scope as the purchases. outside of the Swiss workshops. Breguet relies upon a commonly owned sister company from its group whose experts Extraordinary diversity in design demands equally ex- are located in the precious stone markets around the world. traordinary diversity in technique, to which a visit to the Strict standards are applied to ensure that only the finest are workshops bears witness. Take, for example, the diamond purchased and sent to the workshops for setting into set bezels on many of the models of the Reine de Naples. Breguet timepieces and jewelry. Equally rigid requirements The first step in the setting process is the pre-marking of are imposed to ensure that the stones are not conflict gems locations for the stones by the setter with what is called and have been mined in accordance with United Nations “pointage ”. Pointage is a partial drilling of the holes into guidelines (Kimberley process). A few numbers make the which each diamond on the bezel will be fitted. Pointage is point emphatically. In one ton of diamond ore, there will, in not a hole as such, nor is it of the size needed for the stone; general, be only a single gram of diamonds. From that gram instead, it serves to establish the locations for the setting to of gem quality stones, less than 1% meet Breguet’s stan- follow. Each individual pointage location then must be

dards. Almost all the gems purchased for Breguet are be- hand sized by the setter to fit the gem. Using fine jewelers’ ◆ Reine de Naples “Jour/Nuit”, spoke, cut precisely according to Breguet’s designs. This drills, the location is enlarged and deepened so that the Ref. 8999.

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diamond can be properly set within it. It is the practiced eye of the setter that controls this process. Once the hole is cor- rectly sized to fit the stone, to a staggeringly fine tolerance of 0.05 mm, the next step begins. Using a very fine awl, the setter pushes up gold into locations around and between the holes. Then it is time to place the stones into the pre- pared holes. Small amounts of gold, called “grains ”, are then pushed up on top of the stones to hold them in place. Miniscule in size, these holders are placed at the four cor- ◆ Secret de la Reine, ners of the stone. The French term “sertissage à quatres Ref. GJ24BB8548DDCJ99. grains ” (setting with four grains) well captures the miniature scale of the work. The small ridge of gold between the stones is painstakingly cut until only the tiniest “grains” of gold are left to push against the corners of the stones on each side. When the process is finished, each stone is held in place by the four “grains” and the spaces between the stones have been lowered and carved flat, with gold removed, giv- to smooth the gold surrounding each stone. This technique ing added prominence to each diamond. differs from the four grain method in that there is no fixed number of points gripping the diamond. The key to the On some models of the Reine de Naples collection, entire process from the positioning of the diamonds to their there is a diamond encrusted spherical bracelet clasp located setting rests with the practiced eye of the setter. at the six o’clock position on the dial. This calls upon the craftsman to practice another form of setting skill, that re- Serti neige is the setting style for the petals of the flower quired for what is termed “serti neige” (snow setting). Serti surrounding the hand carved cameo of the Secret de la neige involves the setting of stones of different sizes upon Reine. The cameo itself is hand carved from sardonyx shell the surface of the sphere. Working with Indian ink or in by a father and son team working in Torre del Grecco, Italy, some cases small rounds of paper, the setter summons his (near Naples) practicing centuries old artistic tradition. Un- artistic powers to mark the locations that will create the derneath the cameo, of course, is the hidden watch dial. To most harmonious and beautiful pattern. Working by hand read the time, the covering flower is turned aside, revealing with his awl, he then marks each individual hole for the the dial. Precision adjustments for the flower cover are es- placement of the different sized stones. Naturally, sizing of sential. Working by hand, Breguet’s jewelers finely position each hole is determined by the choice of the particular stone the hinge and its associated spring in order to ensure that, that will be placed there. Still working with an awl or a as it moves, it will rise slightly so as to avoid brushing milling cutter, gold is painstakingly hand sculpted around against the watch bezel lying beneath. Only the most skilled each stone to hold it in place. Thereupon a special awl, of jewelers can master the precise demands of this construc- called a beading tool, with a concave dimple form, is used tion as the adjustments must raise the cover by 0.02 mm.

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THERE IS EXTRAORDINARY DIVERSITY IN BREGUET’S SETTING STYLES. That range requires an extraordinary diversity of setting techniques. An altogether different approach is followed if the case is to be set with baguettes. Since the baguettes are placed tightly, one against another, what were already extremely fine tolerances for setting on the bezel shrink even further to a mind numbing 0.01 mm. The setter places a baguette at the 12 o’clock position and another at the 6 o’clock position and follows adding by hand baguettes sequentially in between. It is the last stone which raises the greatest challenge for a perfect fit. For this stone, the diamond itself must be adjusted in size to fit properly, which is to say, seamlessly. ◆ Marine Tourbillon Chronograph, Ref. 5839.

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BREGUET’S PERLES IMPÉRIALES. The fine wire lattice demands painstaking hand work.

An altogether different repertoire rises to the fore in the additional contrasting diamonds set behind filling in the gaps case of the Perles Impériales, which debuted at Baselworld between the arches. These stones are set into the gold case over 2016. Here is a timepiece of exquisite depth and dimen- which the lattice is placed. For the stones within the arches— sionality as it offers up a fine gold lattice work for diamonds and there are arches on both the bezel and case sides—small forming not only the bezel, but the case sides as well. The white gold holders, in the shape of hearts, are connected to the structure for holding the diamonds is gold wire. Working lattice to hold the diamonds. This style is known as claw set- by hand, the jeweler bends the wire around a specially cre- ting which creates its own aesthetic. The end result resembles a ated tool which carries the shape for the arches of the lat- miniature royal crown. Finally, to complete the decoration, tice. The arches are then soldered to a wire gold ring very small diamonds are set on the inside of the bezel, bringing running around the base of the case. Not only are there di- additional sparkle to the ensemble. amonds placed within each arch of the lattice, but there are

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THERE IS A PARALLEL TO BE DRAWN BETWEEN A WATCHMAKER’S BENCH AND A SETTER’S WORKTABLE. The realization of a fine movement and creation of beautiful stone settings both require precision, fine handcraft, stunning finishing details and exquisite artistry.

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each baguette is called a “barquette” and, showing the link between historical watchmaking methods and stone setting, can be thought of as analogous to a “chaton”. Before more modern methods of “chassage” were developed for watch movements, chatons, consisting of soft gold rings formed around rubies, were used to hold jewels in place when they were set into a watch movement plate or bridge. The setters carefully craft the white gold barquettes into which the precision cut diamonds are set. Because they are arrayed around an oval shaped watch case, the cutting is highly customized as the stones, rather than being perfectly rectangular, are trapezoidal in shape. Once the diamonds are securely nes- ◆ Crazy Flower with baguette bracelet, tled into the barquettes, the assembly with the hinge is at- Ref. GJE25BB20.8989FB1. tached through careful handwork to its ring. Painstaking adjustments of each hinge are required. The idea behind the piece is that the diamonds of each layer move in unison as if they were flower petals and fall naturally back into perfect alignment with each other. Each of these rare Crazy Flowers demands more than 1000 hours of work for this painstaking setting and adjustment.

The bracelet is likewise a tour de force. It is constructed with a white gold wire lattice holding baguette diamonds in what is called a nearly invisible setting. The setter is called upon to fit carefully every stone into the wire lattice and perform precision adjustments to ensure that the diamond Specially set timepieces are a feast for the eyes, but in a is securely gripped. As well, the jeweler by hand creates the category all by itself is Breguet’s Crazy Flower. In the ver- white gold clasp. The visual effect of the setting of the ba- sion with a full baguette bracelet, this is a bespoke piece guettes into the wire lattice is striking as the bracelet ap- destined to be ultra-rare as only a very few will be created. pears transparent, the lattice only very slightly suggesting its Surrounding the oval shaped Reine de Naples watch are as presence. many as seven layers of large baguette diamonds, the number depending on the position, with the most numerous As for the dial itself, two different techniques are em- located at 12 and 6 o’clock. Each of these baguettes is fitted ployed. Most of the surface is set with stones, using the four into a frame which is attached via a moveable hinge to a grain method. The chapter ring itself is set with bespoke cut largely hidden ring for each of the layers. The frame for small baguettes.

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Not all the activity in the setting workshop is devoted to jeweled timepieces. Some relates to Breguet’s jewelry lines. To address the creative shapes of earrings, bracelets, necklaces and rings there is a casting workshop. Here the technique employed is called, rather romantically, “cire perdue” (lost wax). Once the designer has settled on the shape of the piece, working by hand to form a metal proto- type, it is inserted into a rubberized mold. Once firmly nestled in place, the mold is heated to ensure that the metal form has created a precise imprint of its shape. There- upon, melted wax is poured into the mold, so that when cooled the wax will carry the shape of the original metal design. In order to make several copies of this shape at one time, multiple wax forms are created with the mold and ◆ Le Pavillon de la Reine pendant earings, attached together in what, somewhat tongue in cheek, is Ref. GJE22BB01.9***. called the “tree”. Imagine, for example, a slender pole sprouting many wax earring forms around it. The name is apt. The tree is then used to make a plaster mold. Finally, once the tree has imparted its shape to the plaster, molten gold can then be poured into it to make, at last, the desired gold frame for the jewelry piece. Naturally, this is only the beginning of the process. Each gold “branch” of the tree must then be cut loose and hand finished with fine filing and polishing before it is ready for setting with stones to then be followed by a final cleaning.

Some of the jewelry pieces call for different setting styles and techniques than those used for the watches. Two of these additional techniques are used on one of Breguet’s working with an awl, scrapes a small notch into the surface pendant earing models. These earrings have both prong set in the form of the back of the gem. Because the gem is and bezel set diamonds. Prong setting in some ways resem- largely positioned above the surface of the gold, its promi- bles four grain setting in that fine columns of gold grip the nence is enhanced. Bezel setting, as the name implies, diamond on its four corners. The difference is that the surrounds a single stone with a smooth ring of gold. Anal- diamond is not inserted into a recessed well. The jeweler ogizing to the bezel of a watch is a good way to imagine the ◆ “Cire Perdue” (lost wax). forms gold wires around the location of the stone and then, appearance.

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◆ Perles Impériales, Ref. GJ29BR8924TDT8.

There are other key steps to the creation of Breguet’s THERE ARE FIVE CENTURIES OF jewelry practiced in the workshops. Fine polishing is an es- TRADITION THAT LIE BEHIND THE ORNA- sential step for almost all pieces. Naturally, this key process MENTATION OF PRESTIGE TIMEPIECES. is performed by specialists and carried out by hand. Breguet has kept that tradition alive Jeweled adornments for watches link to more than five and added creative new motifs and styles. centuries of watchmaking tradition. Even before the techni- cal means were discovered to bring precision to timekeeping, art and precious stones brought beauty to these mechanical objects and accentuated their value and impor- tance. Those virtues endure today at Breguet with its exten- sive collections of stone set watches and accompanying jewelry.

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Dreams of Architects: PLACE VENDÔME By Marie-Hélène Huet

◆ The Place Vendôme, c. 1815-1820, color engraving by Henri Courvoisier-Voisin (1757-1830).

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ll great cities bear the marks, one might say the signatures, of the greatest architects of A the era. Although history has not retained the names of those who built the great medieval cathe- drals, from the Renaissance onward the development of royal palaces and capitals was entrusted to the most prestigious names in the guild: it was no longer a matter of honoring God, but of celebrating the glory of a sovereign or a nation through the majesty of its buildings.

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So it was that in 1702 Jules Hardouin-Mansart, Louis and, overwhelmed with debts, sold the mansion and the XIV’s architect for the previous 27 years, conceived the surrounding gardens to the King. Although the first bid was project of a square with perfect dimensions that would made in 1677, the negotiations took so long that the prop- remind Paris of the glory of Louis the Great, who had erty was not actually sold until 4 July 1685. The King taken up residence at Versailles. Hardouin-Mansart had thereupon became the owner of eight hectares near the worked for many years on the royal palace, where he had Louvre that Hardouin-Mansart decided to turn into a conceived and supervised construction of the Hall of square worthy of the Sun King. Mirrors; when the work was finished, he turned to Paris and devoted himself to the legendary square known today Hardouin-Mansart’s plans required a complete reorga- as the Place Vendôme. nization of the square: the beautiful Vendôme mansion was immediately demolished and the convent of the Poor Clares A royal setting that bordered the property was moved elsewhere. The first The square is named after César de Vendôme (1594- version of this square strangely resembled a stage set: indeed 1665), the illegitimate son of Henry IV and his mistress, Hardouin-Mansart and his student Boffrand had built all the beautiful Gabrielle d’Estrées. Gabrielle d’Estrées was the façades meant to surround the square, but these really the most famous of seven sisters whose reputation was so were only façades supported in the rear by stone arches. So scandalous that the memorialist Saint-Simon called them conceived, the square was perfectly harmonious; its façades “the seven capital sins”. But the King was madly in love were put up for sale, with the buyers having the choice of with Gabrielle, and their son César (legitimized in 1595) finishing their own building without disturbing the great would marry the only daughter of the Duchess of Mer- architect’s plan. But the project was abandoned: royal fi- coeur, whose splendid mansion, located on the north side nances had been severely affected by wars, and eight years of the current Tuileries garden, was then called the Hôtel later the King simply ceded to the city of Paris his rights to de Vendôme. Their grandson Louis-Joseph (1654-1712), the land and its unfinished buildings. The contract stipulat- known as the “Great Vendôme”, was a notable wit and a ed that the façades would be demolished, but that the city brilliant general whose reputation was even worse than his would take over the project of a square decorated with a th grandmother’s. He gambled away his enormous fortune statue of the great King. ◆ Place Louis-le-Grand, perspective view, 17 century.

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Indeed, in the meantime the King’s minister Louvois became the center of power and pleasure. The wealthiest had entrusted a renowned sculptor with the task of making members of society settled there and opened their drawing an equestrian statue of Louis XIV. The sculptor and his rooms to the finest minds. In 1720, at number 7 Place caster worked on it for several years. The statue, weighing Vendôme, the Club de l’Entresol opened its doors to phi- almost 40 tons, was solemnly raised on 13 August 1699 in losophers and politicians of the time. In this club, derived the center of the as yet unfinished square. This presented from the English model, one could meet the marquis THE SQUARE IS NAMED the occasion for a dazzling ceremony that gathered together d’Argenson, minister of foreign affairs; Montesquieu, the AFTER CÉSAR DE VENDÔME (1594-1665), all the guilds of the city of Paris, its governor, the Duke of author of the Persian Letters and The Spirit of the Laws; or Gesvres, archers, arquebusiers, aldermen and councilors. even Helvetius, whose materialist ideas were later the victim the illegitimate son of King Henry IV and ◆ Presumed portrait of Gabrielle d’Estrées, Galleries were set up in front of the primitive façades, and of royal censorship. It was here that many of the great phil- oil on canvas, c. 1594. his mistress, the beautiful Gabrielle d’Estrées. the enormous statue finally took its place on its pedestal. osophical ideas of the Enlightenment were born. With a mixture of wonder and impatience the Venetian ambassador made sure to note that “the miseries of the Royal marriages were celebrated twice: first at Versailles people will not keep them from fervently worshiping their and then in Paris. Once again the Place Vendôme became divine sovereign”.1 The celebration continued with jousts the scene of the most elaborate celebrations: it was decked and fireworks on the Seine. The royal guests, Monsieur the out with trellises garnished with flowers, surrounded with King’s brother and his wife the Palatine Princess, admired small trees, the tribunes and stands were themselves careful- the spectacle from the windows of the Louvre. After the ly decorated, and large painted canvases were illuminated in inauguration all that remained was to destroy the façades the evenings by thousands of lights. In 1744, on the occa- and begin again! Which Hardouin-Mansart did, redesign- sion of the marriage of Louis XV’s daughter, an enormous ing the square with more modest dimensions and new feast was offered to the Parisian public, who were invited façades for the buildings that henceforth would accom- to drink, eat, and dance in honor of the newlyweds. The modate privileged owners from high finance and those celebration quickly degenerated into joyous revelry. The aristocrats who had resisted the attractions of the Palace of historian F. de Saint-Simon notes that: “Sausages, pieces of Versailles. turkey, beef tongues and bread were thrown from the buffet tables to whoever could catch them.”2 Complaints came The second construction of the Place Vendôme was en- flooding in: why wasn’t this square reserved for the up- trusted to the management of the high financiers who per-middle class, and the people invited to dance some- would be accountable to the city of Paris. The square took where else? the name of Place Louis-le-Grand or Place des Conquestes. Although Louis XIV would never see the square conceived When Louis XVI became king in 1774, the Palace of to honor him, during the Regency of the Duke of Orléans, Versailles had regained its appeal: the young queen Marie- the Court returned to Paris, certain to find more enter- Antoinette inaugurated a new era of pleasure and imposed tainment and pleasures there than in the great Palace of her taste upon the most charming constructions, from the

◆ Jules Hardouin-Mansart, oil on canvas, Versailles now in mourning for the King. The neighbor- famous hairdos crowned with model sailing ships that were by Hyacinthe Rigaud, 1685. hood of the Louvre, Palais-Royal, and Place Louis-le-Grand so tall that, according to legend, the doors of the great

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apartments had to be raised so that the ladies could pass Geoffroy de Villemain, who was heir to the mansion, ren- melted down and may have supplied the bronze for the can- THE STORM WAS BREWING, AND without having to lower their heads, to the Petit Trianon, ted it to a Farmer General named Jacques Paulze, a man of nons of Napoleon’s Grande Armée. The Place Vendôme THE REVOLUTION WOULD DISTURB which became her personal and secret kingdom. But far remarkable competence and integrity. then became the Place des Piques and Jacques Paulze was THE PEACE OF PLACE VENDÔME AND from the frivolousness of Versailles, Paris bustled with ex- guillotined for having served the King. At this time the fa- traordinary activity. Abraham-Louis Breguet set up his shop Combats and victories mily of the marquis Lepeletier de Saint-Fargeau lived at num- ITS INHABITANTS. in 1775 at the Quai de l’Horloge, and Place Vendôme be- But the storm was already brewing, and the Revolution ber 8. He had served as presiding magistrate of the Parisian Danton was housed there with came the address of illustrious families. At number 6, the would disturb the peace of Place Vendôme and its residents. Parliament, one of the highest offices in the French judicia- the revolutionary government. current address of the Breguet museum and store, stands Danton was housed there with the revolutionary govern- ry. Elected at the same time as Talleyrand as a representative the Hôtel Thibert des Martrais, which bears the name of a ment; after 10 August 1792, when the King and the of the nobility at the Estates-General, he was also won over family that successively included royal secretaries, a lieu- Queen were effectively made prisoner, a wave of vandalism to the revolutionary cause. Although he had called for the tenant of the hunt of Monsieur—Louis XIV’s brother— everywhere destroyed images associated with royalty, from abolition of the death penalty in 1791, he voted with some and Jacques-Philippe Thibert des Martrais, who took the statues of the kings of Judah that had decorated the hesitation for the death sentence of Louis XVI on 20 January possession of the residence in 1745. However, he would live façade of Notre-Dame to the statue of Louis XIV that 1793. On the very evening of the vote, he was fatally there for only a year, and ten years after his death his widow sat imposingly on the Place Vendôme. On 13 August, wounded by one of the King’s former bodyguards. Carried sold the building. On the eve of the Revolution, Nicolas Girardin’s impressive work was destroyed. It was sent to be to the Place Vendôme, he died at dawn on 21 January, only a few hours before the execution of the monarch.

◆ Place Louis-le-Grand with a representation of the rooms The death of Louis XVI stunned Europe; the royalist constructed on the occasion of Monseigneur le Dauphin’s wedding, provinces of Brittany and Vendée would soon take up arms perspective view, 1744. against the Republic. But Lepeletier was seen by his revolutionary friends as the last victim of the monarchy; his friend the painter Jacques-Louis David organized a dra- matic ceremony in his honor: he placed the bloody remains of Lepeletier on the pedestal of the Place Vendôme that had been left vacant by the demolition of the statue of the King. His naked body was partially covered by a simple white sheet, revealing the wound that had caused his death. These were the dark hours of the Revolution; Breguet, who had been an enthusiastic partisan, took refuge in Switzerland. He would return when a new government allowed him to go back to his workshop on the quai de l’Horloge. ◆ Colossal stature of Emperor Napoléon I, engraving after Antoine-Denis Chaudet’s sculpture. This statue, placed atop the Vendôme column, was destroyed by Under the Empire, Paris rediscovered its glory and the allied forces in 1814. effervescence. A new street, the rue de la Paix, provided access to the Place Vendôme, whose center was decorated with a bronze column, erected in 1810 to the glory of

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Napoleon’s Grande Armée. Inspired by Trajan’s column, which Napoleon had admired in Rome, it was said to have been cast from the bronze of the enemy cannons seized at the great victory of Austerlitz. The helix of the shaft described idealized scenes of battles and reconciliations, and the column was crowned with a statue of Napoleon, in antique dress and holding in his hand the globe that symbo- lized imperial power.

The square of remembrance But the fate of statues is like that of political regimes: the Revolution had destroyed the statue of Louis XIV, and the Restoration of the monarchy hastened to destroy that of Napoleon, which was melted down—in an ironic twist of fate—to make another statue of Louis XIV, destined this time for the Place des Victoires. During this period only a flag waved at the top of the column, but the square remained a gathering place for veterans of the imperial Grande Armée; and when Louis-Philippe ascended to the throne in 1830, he decided to make a gesture of appease- ment by giving back the column—and the square in a ◆ The Vendôme column (detail), the army departing towards the Rhine, engraved in bronze after Pierre Bergeret’s original sense—to the memory of the Emperor. A new statue of drawings. Napoleon, no longer in antique dress, but in the modest ◆ The Vendôme column restoration: workers hired by the Mauduit “little corporal’s” costume that had so endeared him to his company, c.1873. army, was raised in 1833. As early as 1830, Victor Hugo coup d’état of 2 December 1851. But the connection be- A Russian prince was said to have paid 100,000 francs to ◆ Right: Place Vendôme in 1895, photochrome. had asked in his hymn “To the Column” that the ashes of tween the Place Vendôme and imperial power would live rent six windows with a view of the square, and 100,000 Napoleon be brought back to France and buried “beneath on. A third statue of Napoleon in antique dress, a copy of men were said to have paraded before an enthusiastic your column/In this mighty Paris that ferments and seethes/ the original, now dominated the beautiful square and in audience.4 Beneath a sky so oft darkened by storms/Under living cob- 1859 a magnificent military parade left the Saint-Maur blestones that rumble and gather”.3 The Place Vendôme plain and ended at the square, decorated as in bygone days Yet the last chapter of the history of the Place Vendôme would long remain the place for remembrances and tributes with galleries and flowers. On the façade of the Hôtel de la column had not yet been written: the Franco-Prussian war to the glory of the Emperor. It is thus not surprising that in Chancellerie three allegorical statues, representing Glory, of 1870 put an end to the Empire, and when the provisional 1848 Louis-Napoleon, the Emperor’s nephew and future Victory, and Peace, overlooked the arches and balconies. government signed the armistice, the city of Paris revolted Napoleon III, moved into the connected buildings at num- What was the reason for this celebration? The return from and refused to give up its weapons. The Vendôme column, bers 4 and 6, to wait for events to turn in his favor. He the Italian campaign, a crucial stage in the history of the perceived as the warlike symbol of an authoritarian Empire, would leave this address to settle in the Tuileries after the reunification of Italy and the uniting of Savoy with France. was knocked down on 16 May 1871. The insurgents were

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mercilessly punished; Gustave Courbet, the great realist painter, who had himself participated in the demolition of the column, was condemned to six months in prison and payment of the reconstruction costs, which he never had the means to do.

The time of the Place Vendôme At the end of the nineteenth century, luxury shops were set up on the restored Place Vendôme that we know today. But the best craftsmen and creators of fine watches and clocks had already set up shop on the square: indeed as early as 1807 Louis Berthoud, the nephew of the great Ferdinand Berthoud, who with Breguet had long represented the sum- mit of European horology, rented an apartment in the Hôtel de Fontpertuis. Breguet would succeed him as horologist to the Navy. In 1933 Breguet watches, having left the quai de l’Horloge, opened a first shop at number 28 Place Vendôme; the Chaumet jewelry house would later open a shop at number 10, in the Hôtel Saint-James (where Chopin had lived) and would then display Breguet watches in its elegant rooms. ◆ Left: contre-jour photograph of the Vendôme column by the Séeberger brothers, 1901-1925. ◆ Right: automobile driver, Place Vendôme, 1910. Let’s not leave the square without mentioning one of its AT THE END OF THE NINETEENTH most memorable dwellers. At the beginning of the nine- CENTURY, LUXURY SHOPS WERE SET UP teenth century, the Hôtel Heuzé de Vologer, next to the Hôtel Thibert des Martrais, had an exceptional tenant: ON THE RESTORED PLACE VENDÔME Jean-Anthelme Brillat-Savarin. Born in 1755 to a family of THAT WE KNOW TODAY. magistrates, he became a lawyer, and when Talleyrand was But the best craftsmen and creators of fine elected as a deputy of the nobility, he was himself elected to represent the Third Estate. Like Breguet, he would take watches and clocks had already set up shop refuge in Switzerland after the arrest of the King. Brillat- on the square. Savarin would later sail to the United States, where he arrived on 1 October 1794. He would remain there for a few years, living on the proceeds of giving French and violin lessons. After his return to France, he would serve as a magistrate for the rest of his life, while devoting all his

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intellectual and sensual energy to the study of law and the pleasures of the table. His greatest success, The Physiology of Taste (1826), exalted the art of gastronomy and bequeathed to history a fair number of aphorisms that have not lost their relevance. His most famous declaration is doubtless the following: “Tell me what you eat, and I will tell you what you are”; it is followed by another statement, which would certainly have delighted the lovers of Breguet watches: “The most indispensable quality of a cook is punctuali- ty; it should also be that of the dinner guest.” The memory of this likable and large philosopher continues to haunt the most beautiful square in Paris.

Visitors to the Place Vendôme will discover yet another connection between its historical past and Abraham- Louis Breguet: the 25th scene engraved on the column’s spiral dedicated to Napoleon’s Great Army describes Field-Marshal Ney forcing his way across the Elchingen bridge on 14 October 1805, on the way to seize the Abbey, near the city of Ulm. A few years later Ney, who was named Duke of Elchingen in memory of this feat of arms, would buy from Abraham-Louis Breguet a repeating ◆ The Breguet Boutique and the Museum, Place Vendôme. watch now part of the collections displayed in the Breguet Museum, on the second floor of the Hôtel Thibert des Martrais, a few hundred feet from the column. Thus over the course of the years the memory of a great field marshal and that of a master clockmaker would be reunited in the Place Vendôme.

1 Cited by F. de Saint-Simon in his essential work, La Place Vendôme, Édtions Vendôme, Paris 1982, p. 47. 2 Ibid., p. 77. 3 Victor Hugo, “À la colonne”, 1830, dans Œuvres complètes, t. 1, Bruxelles, Wamlen, 1837, p. 12. 4 See Saint-Simon, p. 103.

102 103 PUBLISHER PHOTOGRAPHS © RMN-Grand Palais (Château de Fontainebleau) / Montres Breguet SA Montres Breguet SA Collection Gérard Blot / Colossal statue of Napoleon I, CH-1344 L’Abbaye Joël von Allmen Anonymous, page 97 Switzerland Angelo Di Pietro © akg-images / Catherine Bibollet / Paris, Vendôme Tel.: +41 21 841 90 90 Lionel Deriaz column, excerpt, page 98, top picture www.breguet.com Xavier Reboud Sébastien D’Halloy © ) RMN-Grand Palais (Orsay Museum) / René-Gabriel PROJECT MANAGER Ojéda / Restoration of the Vendôme column: employee Géraldine Joz-Roland OTHER ILLUSTRATIONS of the Monduit firm at work, circa 1873, Collard © akg-images / De Agostini Picture Lib. / G. Dagli Orti, Auguste-Hippolyte (1812-after 1887), page 98, bottom EDITORS-IN-CHIEF Portrait of the Sultan of the Ottoman Empire Selim III, of the page Géraldine Joz-Roland pages 36/37 Jeffrey S. Kingston © akg-images / Paris, Place Vendôme / Photochrom, © bpk / Kunstbibliotek, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin / page 99 View of the “Hagia Sophia” mosque, with various town WRITERS houses in the foreground, page 39 © French Ministry of Culture – Heritage Media Library, Jeffrey S. Kingston Dist. RMN-Grand Palais / Séeberger brothers / Vendôme Marie-Hélène Huet © Private collection / Letter sent to column, Vendôme against the light, 1901-1925 page 100 Emmanuel Breguet A.-L. Breguet by Esseid Ali Effendi, page 40 © akg-images, Car drivers in Paris / photo, WITH THAKS TO THE ENTIRE © Private collection / Letter sent to A.-L. Breguet by pages 100/101 BREGUET STAFF AND PARTICULARLY Esseid Ali Effendi, page 41, left hand picture Jean-Charles Zufferey © The Topkapi Palace Museum / Esseid Ali Effendi, Nakis Karapatis Ottoman ambassador in Paris, page 41, right hand picture Vincent Laucella Alain Zaugg © bpk | Bavarian State Painting Collections / By the Sweet Waters of Asia in Constantinople, page 45

DESIGN, PRODUCTION © akg-images / Rainer Hackenberg / Istanbul, TATIN Design Studio Basel GmbH Topkapi Palace – Constantinople (Turkey), page 51 © Library of Decorative Arts, Paris, France, Charmet / ARTISTIC DIRECTION Bridgeman archives Images, the Place Vendôme, Marie-Anne Räber c.1815-20 (co. Courvoisier-Voisin, Henri (1757-1830) Oliver Mayer page 90/91

© akg-images / André Held / Gabrielle d’Estrées and PREPRESS AND PRINTING her sister bathing, Anonymous, École de Fontainebleau, Courvoisier-Attinger SA page 94, top picture Reproduction of any text, photography or layout © akg-images / Erich Lessing / Jules Hardouin-Mansart / in this magazine is forbidden without prior written Gem.v. Rigaud, page 94, bottom of the page authorization from Montres Breguet SA. © akg-images / Paris, Place Louis le Grand / Vendôme, © Montres Breguet SA 2017 104 page 96 Printed in February 2017

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