Important Collector's Watches, Pocket...

Geneva, Nov 11, 2007

LOT 201

Platinum Tourbillon Souverain F. P. Journe, "Invenit et Fecit", "Remontoir d'Egalité - Tourbillon Souverain", No. 162/02T. Made in 2002. Very fine and rare, platinum, chronometer wristwatch with visible one-minute tourbillon regulator and constant force remontoir, power-reserve indicator and a platinum F. P. Journe buckle.

CHF 80,000 - 100,000

EUR 50,000 - 60,000 / USD 65,000 - 85,000

C. Two-body, solid, polished, transparent case back with 6 screws, winding crown engine-turned with "cordes de Marseille" pattern, sapphire crystals. D. Brushed 18K yellow gold dial plate, at 3 guilloché matte silver ring dial with painted Arabic numerals for the hours and minutes, apertures at 6 for the constant force remontoir and at 9 for the tourbillon regulator under a polished steel bridge, up and down indication at 11. Blued steel Journe hands. M. Cal. 1498, rhodiumplated, fausses côtes decoration, 25 jewels, lateral lever escapement with one-minute tourbillon regulator with "A"-shaped tourbillon frame and polished steel bridge, Gyromax-type balance with 4 timing weights, self-compensating free-sprung Breguet balance-spring with Phillips terminal curve, constant-force remontoir with an 18K gold wheel and blade spring, controlled by a spinning vane, armed once a second by the force of the mainspring, ensuring a steady flow of power to the balance for a more constant rate. Dial, case and movement signed. Diam. 38 mm. Thickness: 10 mm.


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Grading System
Grade:
Case: 3

Good
Movement: 2

Very good
Dial: 2-01

Very good

HANDS Original

Notes

The remontoir is a rare horological device, previously unknown in a wristwatch, designed to provide a constant force to the balance. It's a supplementary buffer spring that is kept wound by the main power source. Releasing a constant energy directly to the escapement, it aims to counter the fluctuations in the going train and the diminishing power of the mainspring. F.P. Journe's unique version of the remontoir consists of a small blade spring between the going-train and the tourbillon. It is armed once a second by the mainspring. Governed by a spinning vane, it delivers the constant force that the tourbillon escapement needs to perform at its best. In the Tourbillon Souverain, the remontoir ensures that the rate remains the same whether the watch is fully wound or at the end of its power-reserve. The maximum loss of amplitude is 20° from a flat to a vertical position. Courtesy of the F.P. Journe website, www.fpjourne.com