Gruebel Forsey GMT Tourbillon

Vacheron Constantin NA CEO, Hughes de Pin, gives an overview of the new timepieces Vacheron Constantin introduced at the 2012 SIHH show.

Earlier this week, Jay-Z wore a Jaeger-LeCoultre Grande Reverso Ultra Thin Tribute to 1931 in rose gold when performing at Carnegie Hall to Benefit the United Way of New York City and the Shawn Carter Foundation.

At the SIHH show last month, Montblanc introduced the Nicolas Rieussec Chronograph Open Hometime. A new addition to the Nicolas Rieussec collection that features an in-house column-wheel chronograph, like the model originally introduced in 2008, now with a GMT function.

The Nicolas Rieussec Chronograph collection pays homage to Nicolas Mathieu Rieussec, who invented the first chronograph. Rieussec's original 1821 chronograph invention was housed in a large wooden box, and it required ink to record elapsed times on an enameled disk which then needed to be cleaned in-between each measurement. The time writer was hardly practical, but it eventually led to the wristwatch chronographs we know today.

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At the upcoming Baselworld show, which begins March 8th, Antoine Preziuso will unveil the Grand Tourbillon Sport GTS.

The GTS comes in a 52 x 45 mm tonneau shaped case made of ChromeCobalt (Co-Cr), which is a very strong cobalt and chromium alloy. Powering the GTS is hand-wound caliber APG/28T with 19 jewels, a frequency of 21,600 vph (3Hz) and a power reserve of 110-hours. Functions include hours, minutes and tourbillon seconds. A sapphire crystal on the front and back allow a view into the beautifully finished skeleton movement. Water-resistance is 30 meters. Comes with a black crocodile strap with red top-stitching and a folding clasp.

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JEANRICHARD debuted the 1990s inspired Highlands collection at SIHH last month. The collection consists of three pieces, two standard editions and one limited edition.

The Highlands collection comes in a 44.5 x 40 mm barrel shaped case with a round bezel and a bi-directional notched aluminum bezel which can display a second time zone. The movement is the JR1000, a self-winding in-house caliber. It features 27 jewels, a frequency of 28,800 vph (4Hz) and a power reserve of 48-hours. Functions include hours, minutes, central seconds and date. Each piece comes with a fabric and leather strap. Anti-reflective sapphire crystal. Water-resistance is 100 meters.

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Cartier introduced a large selection of timepieces at the Salon Internation de la Haute Horology (SIHH) last month. Apart from the amazing minute repeater tourbillon, the beautiful high jewelry pieces and the skeletonized Santos - the model that really stands out to me is the Cartier Tank Anglaise.

The Cartier Tank Anglaise is a generously sized tank-shaped (rectangular) wristwatch. It is part of the newly revived vintage inspired Cartier Tank series, which also includes the Tank Américaine and Tank Française.

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Last month at the Salon International de la Haute Horlogerie (SIHH ) in Geneva, Jaeger-LeCoultre unveiled the Duomètre à Sphérotourbillon, a tourbillon wristwatch that is both visually and technically amazing.

In Geneva, I met with Stéphane Belmont, Marketing Director at Jaeger-LeCoultre, and we discussed the historic importance of a tourbillon in watchmaking. As you probably already know, the first tourbillon was developed by Abraham-Louis Breguet around 1795; its purpose was to counter the effects of gravity by mounting the escapement and balance wheel in a rotating cage, thus improving the accuracy of the timepiece's regulating organs. Back then, the tourbillon was used to increase the precision of a timepiece.

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