Le Locle is the birth- and work-place of Daniel JeanRichard, initiator of the Swiss watchmaking industry way back in 1672. He established the system of établissage, wherein a watch would be constructed from components created by specialist suppliers. So it is appropriate that, on my recent visit to the heart of the Swiss watch industry, I stopped in Le Locle and constructed my own watch!
Fame and Fortune, or Why Some Vintage Watches Are Worth More Than Others
Today, a vintage Rolex Explorer or Jaeger-LeCoultre Geophysic can command $10,000 or more, yet I just purchased a beautiful Nivada Antarctic at auction for just € 450.
What Makes a Grail? Nostalgia!
What makes a watch into a grail? It’s all about the quest! And what triggers that quest? Sometimes, it’s nostalgia! A “holy grail” is defined more by the quest to find it than the object itself. If you could run down to Macy’s and buy the watch you have been seeking, would you love it? Maybe, but would you rhapsodize about it? Probably not.