Breguet

Abraham-Louis Bregret revolutionized the art of watchmaking with his ingenious innovations. His inventions such as the tourbillon are still used today to improve the precision of mechanical watches. The catalyst for this innovation was the fact that most men carried their pocket watches vertically in their vests during the 18th and 19th centuries. The effects of gravity led to considerable deviations from the exact time. In 1801, Breguet mounted the balance wheel and the escapement in a rotating cage that rotates once per minute. The rotation significantly compensates for the accelerating and decelerating movements. To this day, watches with tourbillons are the best performers on chronometer tests.

The so-called Breguet balance spring has likewise worked to increase watch precision since its introduction in 1795. Unlike the traditional balance spring, this balance spring's last coil is raised and bent in towards the center. Therefore, the end of the spring protrudes out over the otherwise flat spiral. Because of this, the balance spring can "breathe" concentrically, improving precision. The Swiss manufacturer, based in L'Abbaye, still utilizes this innovation in their calibers.

Equally as groundbreaking was the development of the "pare-chute," the precursor to modern shock protection. This invention came to be in response to the easily-breakable balance pivots and delicate ruby cylinders. Breguet constructed a steel strip spring with a free end to suspend the pieces elastically. In 1790, he presented the first prototypes of the pare-chute shock protection during an audience with the then French foreign minister, Charles-Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord. The Parisian watchmaker purposefully dropped a pocket watch on the floor for his audience. To everyone's astonishment, it continued ticking when he picked it back up.

Due to his enormous success and popularity, A.-L. Breguet had to deal with numerous imitators in his time. In 1795, he introduced a secret signature on his timepieces to address this issue. The signature is located on the dial and is nearly invisible unless light falls on it in just the right way. The signature is still a guarantee of authenticity today. For more than 200 years, the world-famous Breguet hands have been telling time. Their points are hollowed out in an eccentric manner, resembling crescent moons. These simple, yet elegant hands point to a series of delicate numbers, designed by A.-L. Breguet himself, resting around the dial. Known as Breguet numerals, the numbers are predominantly found on models with enamel dials.

The watchmaking genius created another unmistakable mark for his watches. Prior to 1786, Breguet began using the gold or silver guilloché dials, which would become one of the most important trademarks of the brand. To create these signature dials, the watchmaker must smooth and form the dial, making it non-reflective - and this all by hand. Decorative patterns such as sunbeams, waves, or checkerboards give each watch a unique look. Every piece receives a unique production number, emphasizing their individuality. Each Breguet watch is a one-of-a-kind piece of art, just like the famous Marie Antoinette. The No. 160 was mysteriously stolen from a museum in Jerusalem in 1983. It resurfaced in 2007, but it was three years too late. Watchmakers and designers had already painstakingly reconstructed the watch using drawings and archived documents as their basis.