franck muller geneve 354

On December 10th and 11th, Antiquorum will hold a large US sale that will feature a number of highly complicated watches, including many fine references from Patek Philippe. The sale will take place at Antiquorum’s Madison Avenue headquarters in New York City, and offer more than 500 lots in total.Highlights of the Patek Philippe offerings include a superb example of the Ref. 5016, an astronomic wristwatch with minute repeater, perpetual calendar and tourbillon. Another rarity is a platinum example of the tonneau-shaped Ref. 5013, a self-winding minute repeater with perpetual calendar. Also to be presented is a specimen of Patek Philippe’s rare TV-screen shaped Ref. 5020 perpetual calendar chronograph, made particularly notable for being the very first ever produced. Other pieces of haute horlogerie for sale include a Jaeger-LeCoultre Reverso minute repeater in rose gold, and a remarkable Franck Muller Caliber 97 “Grande and Petite Sonnerie, Minute Repeater Perpetual Calendar” watch. The latter, described as a piece unique, dates to 1997, and is distinguished by a platinum case set with baguette diamonds. Through the latter part of November, Antiquorum Auctioneers will conduct previews in Shanghai, Hong Kong, and Tokyo. Click here to view the Antiquorum Press Release.

Each year Franck Muller presents a super-complication at the World Presentation of Haute Horlogerie (WPHH) held at a chateau in Genthod, located on the outskirts of Geneva. In 2006 Franck Muller amazed watch experts and collectors from around the world with the unveiling of its "everlasting timepiece" the Aeternitas, a watch that would run 1000 years without correction. This year brings 4 new versions of the Aeternitas Mega which for the first time include a Grande and Petite Sonnerie (Grande-strike) Minute Repeater, Westminster Carillon.One may ask, why would we care if our watch has a 1000 year calendar? But this is no small accomplishment, and its one that has been appreciated by enthusiasts of complicated movements. The eternal calendar, not to be confused with the traditional perpetual calendar, follows a cycle of 1,000 years thanks to two additional sets of wheels. Franck Muller's eternal calendar is different from any traditional perpetual calendar because it takes into account the rule governing the Gregorian calendar stating that all century years not divisible by 400 are common years and not leap years.The Aeternitas Mega 1 has the addition of a Grande and Petite Sonnerie Minute Repeater, Westminster Carillon. The movement is equipped with a double barrel which work to guarantee a power reserve of 4 days and provide energy for the Sonnerie. The Grande Sonnerie (Grand-strike) strikes the hours and the quarters automatically that chimes the same notes as the clock tower of the Westminster cathedral. The Petite Sonnerie only strikes the hours and the quarters.The Aeternitas Mega 2 incorporates a Split-seconds Chronograph with a 30-minutes counter placed at 3 o'clock and an hour counter placed in a retrograde sector. While the Aeternitas Mega 3 has an eternal calendar module placed on the dial side which indicates the day, the date, the month and the moon phases and requires no manual intervention. The grand finale, the Aeternitas Mega 4, incorporates all the aforementioned complications from first three versions into one stunning watch.