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Lot Essay
Only available to collectors upon application, this extraordinary stainless steel Chronomètre Souverain, the only variant of the model not to feature a small seconds, is part of one of two small series manufactured in 2017 and 2018 with dials made from the rare Damascus steel barrels of two antique Holland & Holland guns. The two barrels were registered in Holland & Holland’s ledgers as ‘Barrel No. 1382’, dating to 1868, this barrel yielded 38 dials (including the present watch), and ‘barrel No. 7183’, dating to 1882, yielded 28 dials.
The creation of this special Holland & Holland Chronomètre Souverain was a true and meaningful collaboration between one of the world’s greatest gunmakers and the most revered of contemporary watchmakers. The idea germinated during a visit by F.P. Journe to the former boutique in New York. He knew that many U.S clients enjoyed shooting and, being acquainted with the Wertheimer brothers, then owners of Holland & Holland, it became clear that making a timepiece in partnership with this historic firm of gunmakers offered the chance to create something both fascinating and unique in haute horology and at the same time showcasing traditional artisan manufacturing techniques of the past.
Although F.P. Journe relished the challenge of creating dials from Holland & Holland’s historic gun barrels, the actual manufacture of the dials proved to be quite a complex challenge in order to meet his expectation of perfection. Once the first stage of preparation to flatten, reduce and cut the barrels into pieces of the required size was done by Holland & Holland, the material was sent to 'Les Cadraniers de Genève' F.P.Journe’s own dial makers, where the dials were cut to shape. They were then sent back to Holland & Holland and 'browned', a traditional gun-making technique that helps to protect the steel and at the same time highlights the wonderful patterns created during the original manufacture of Damascus barrels. The ‘browning’ process has remained unchanged from the 1800s to the present day.
The creation of this special Holland & Holland Chronomètre Souverain was a true and meaningful collaboration between one of the world’s greatest gunmakers and the most revered of contemporary watchmakers. The idea germinated during a visit by F.P. Journe to the former boutique in New York. He knew that many U.S clients enjoyed shooting and, being acquainted with the Wertheimer brothers, then owners of Holland & Holland, it became clear that making a timepiece in partnership with this historic firm of gunmakers offered the chance to create something both fascinating and unique in haute horology and at the same time showcasing traditional artisan manufacturing techniques of the past.
Although F.P. Journe relished the challenge of creating dials from Holland & Holland’s historic gun barrels, the actual manufacture of the dials proved to be quite a complex challenge in order to meet his expectation of perfection. Once the first stage of preparation to flatten, reduce and cut the barrels into pieces of the required size was done by Holland & Holland, the material was sent to 'Les Cadraniers de Genève' F.P.Journe’s own dial makers, where the dials were cut to shape. They were then sent back to Holland & Holland and 'browned', a traditional gun-making technique that helps to protect the steel and at the same time highlights the wonderful patterns created during the original manufacture of Damascus barrels. The ‘browning’ process has remained unchanged from the 1800s to the present day.