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Lot Essay
A truly independent watchmaker and a non-conformist creator, Vianney Halter is famous for his "OHNI", objet horloger non identifié or unidentified horological object. His creations conjure up visions of Jules Verne's famous science fiction novel "20,000 Leagues Under the Sea". The Opus 3 was conceived after many conversations between Vianney Halter and Maximilian Büsser on the evolution of the wristwatch. The first wristwatches were mechanical and displayed the time in analogue form, with a numbered dial upon which are mounted at least a revolving hour hand and minute hand. The 1920's saw the appearance of mechanical digital wristwatches in the form of "Jump Hours" which display the time using "digits" or numerals. Then came the invention of the quartz digital watch in the late 1960's, followed by the growing appeal of quartz watches with analogue dials. In recent decades, the most popular timepieces are mechanical analogue watches again. Maximilian Büsser and Vianney Halter both felt that they should conclude cycle by creating a new mechanical watch which is completely digital.
Vianney Halter, always looking at ordinary mechanical "things", took his inspiration for the Opus 3 from the calculating machine and changed it into an unprecedented way of reading time. Outwardly simple with its six portholes in a rectangular case featuring "only" a digital display of jumping hours, minutes, seconds and date, this watch is in fact a one-of-a kind technical feat which required more than 2 years of research and development from the concept to its prototype. The Opus 3 movement is so complex, it requires more than 250 components including ten stacked and overlapping discs carrying a total of 47 Arabic numerals which rotate on their axes at different speeds to display the hours, minutes, seconds and date through the six potholes. As most of the parts did not pre-exist, Vianney Halter had to make 98 of the parts himself. The case of the Opus 3, with more than 80 parts, is as complex as the movement. As the movement could not be housed in any other case, Vianney Halter had to design a special case with a unique toothed winding crown which is solely adapted to the movement.
Vianney Halter, always looking at ordinary mechanical "things", took his inspiration for the Opus 3 from the calculating machine and changed it into an unprecedented way of reading time. Outwardly simple with its six portholes in a rectangular case featuring "only" a digital display of jumping hours, minutes, seconds and date, this watch is in fact a one-of-a kind technical feat which required more than 2 years of research and development from the concept to its prototype. The Opus 3 movement is so complex, it requires more than 250 components including ten stacked and overlapping discs carrying a total of 47 Arabic numerals which rotate on their axes at different speeds to display the hours, minutes, seconds and date through the six potholes. As most of the parts did not pre-exist, Vianney Halter had to make 98 of the parts himself. The case of the Opus 3, with more than 80 parts, is as complex as the movement. As the movement could not be housed in any other case, Vianney Halter had to design a special case with a unique toothed winding crown which is solely adapted to the movement.