"Chronomètre à Résonance".
An exceptional and unique creation in chronometer engineering, the Resonance System Chronometer exhibits the so-called resonance, a phenomenon of physics applied to the science of horology. This wristwatch uses two entirely independent movements, which interoperate in harmony with each other for a precision that exceeds the established limits for mechanical wristwatches. The physical phenomenon of resonance forms an integral part of our daily lives, yet we scarcely pay attention to it. When searching for a specific program on our radio, the radio crackles because the waves selected have not encountered other waves, those of the radio transmitter, until they become harmonized. Napoleon once forbade his troops to march over a bridge for fear of it collapsing from the effects of resonance! Until recent years, the phenomenon of resonance was not well understood, but had already been remarked as early as in the 17th century by Christian Huygens, among several other scientists. For instance, the high precision Constant Pressure regulators, still in use less than 40 years ago at the Observatory of Paris for the Bureau International de l'heure, and the radio broadcast time signal sent from the Eiffel Tower, were placed in the Catacombs at a depth of 26 meters, to eliminate fluctuations in temperature and atmospheric pressure. They were also in separate rooms in order to avoid any resonance interference. However, as early as the end of the 18th century, a few of the most eminent clockmakers found a way to take advantage of the success of such a phenomenon, by synchronizing the pendulums of regulators fitted with two independent movements. Even more so, when applied to a watch, it ensures exceptional operating reliability and precision. When you make a sudden movement, the two movements clash in opposite directions and gradually come to operate in harmony as a result of the force of resonance. As they are inter-attracted, they oscillate together in unison, an invisible wave linking the two balances. This timepiece is the only precision chronometer that is not affected by the movements of the wearer. The balances oscillate in natural opposition, and therefore absorb shocks and compensate for disturbances, thus ensuring identical regularity, whether or not the watch is worn. Antiquorum sold the prototype of this watch in Geneva, on October 23, 1999, lot 75.