The Origin Story
Making only several dozen watches per year, Laurent Ferrier is a true independent manufacture, producing pieces with a quality and know-how which is long lost in many corners of the watch world. It is headed by Ferrier himself, who worked at Patek Philippe for 40 years, finishing as their creative director.
Though it may not be apparent from the design of the watches themselves, the inception of the brand actually took place on a race track. Whilst at Patek Philippe, Ferrier used to race in the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the world's oldest active sports car race in endurance racing, with his friend François Sérvanin. This even culminated with the pair coming third in 1979, which Ferrier marked by gifting Sérvanin an engraved Nautilus 3700. Following their joint success, the two friends decided to launch the brand together, as Sérvanin was retiring and wanted to invest in a new venture. As Ferrier puts it,
"He wasn’t a collector or connoisseur, he gave me carte blanche in terms of the approach and design. It was of absolute importance, in my mind, that we develop a calibre from scratch, so myself and my son Christian, set about making that happen."
Capturing his dedication to his new eponymous brand, Ferrier developed a double spiral tourbillon movement as his first project. This would set the tone for what would come next. Combining traditional manufacturing techniques and design principles with contemporary innovation, the manufacture now creates pieces which combine watchmaking classicism and modern reliability.
An early Galet Traveller
This Laurent Ferrier Galet Traveller is distinguished by its intricate depiction of the continents of the world as well as midnight blue enamelling. Encased in platinum, this UK-only edition of the Galet Traveller was commissioned for William & Sons in 2014, and notably, the island of the United Kingdom is specially marked out in red. Three examples were also additionally cased in rose gold.
The centre of the dial has a convex curve, which hints at the earth’s own curvature, with gold flecks giving depth to the continents. Created using the traditional “champlevé” method, the metal is first hollowed out to create deeper troughs for the seas and oceans before the enamel is filled in, giving the water a darker colour compared to the silvered continents.
A brushed outer ring bearing applied hour index markers surrounds the blue enamel, which protrude slightly over the globe. An aperture at the 9’o clock marker keeps track of the home time, while another aperture at the 3 o’clock marker serves as the date window. Two discreet pushers on the left-hand side of the case allow the time to be adjusted forwards or backwards according to the wearer’s needs.
The movement
The watch is powered by the self-winding calibre LF 230.01, which utilises a double direct-impulse escapement that improves the movement through its ability to use less power and maintain amplitude, achieved through the escape-lever being locked down between two escape wheels. Its excellent efficiency guarantees a high amplitude for the balance, operating at a frequency of 21,600 A/h, with a depth rating of 30 metres. It took two years to create the fully-integrated, dual-timezone mechanism and date.
The movement is finished with delicate Geneva waves, and is fitted with 44 jewels, which can be seen through the sapphire caseback.
The set
This Laurent Ferrier Galet Traveller Globe Night is accompanied by its original boxes paperwork (unstamped, undated), loupe and polishing cloth. Included is also a bespoke anthracite grained leather strap and the manufactures corresponding buckle.
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