Chopard presents two spectacular pieces of horological machinery at BaselworldAt Baselworld 2013, Swiss Luxury Brand Chopard treated Calibre and the rest of the world’s press to their annual presentation at their ultra-ritzy pavilion. Among all the other pavilions in Hall 0.1, the main presentation hall of the watch fair, Chopard’s is one of the only pavilions that actually looked like a standalone boutique.During the presentation,

When one conjures up Russian creations, we tend to bring up familiar names like Igor Sikorsky (Sikorsky helicopters), Mikhail Koshkin (chief designer of T-34 Russian tanks) and Alexei Tupolev (designer of the Tupolev Tu-144 and the Boran space shuttle). With watch enthusiasts, Poljot is a brand that comes to mind as the company was the earliest watchmaking company formed in the Soviet federation.The Russian watch industry during the Czar Russia was focused on the assembly of imported movements mainly from Germany and Switzerland,

Urwerk founder Felix Baumgartner himself shows us how to crank a charge into the EMC's Maxon generator. If you thought he was winding the EMC's mechanical movement, the vigorousness of the cranking would be very unsettling.

In 1953, Rolex successfully tested a prototype watch called the Deep Sea Special strapped outside the bathyscape FNRS-2 to a depth of 3,150m or 10,336ft. Rolex proved its design mantra with an ultra-rigid Oyster case. By Basel 1954, they had raised the depth rating on all Submariners to 180m or 600ft, in conjunction with the release of the Submariner model 6204. On January 23, 1960, Rolex pushed the envelope further with the Rolex Piccard (model 7205) attached to the bathyscape Trieste that successfully dived to a depth of 10,916m or 35,800ft.

Early in 1942, just months after the attack on Pearl Harbor, the U.S. War Department acquired around 50 Milus Snow Star Instant Date watches for classified purposes. These watches are now being discovered in the sealed survival kits issued to American and Allied pilots during World War II. Were these kits thought to be essential gear for pilots as they sortied near islands in the Pacific where primitive headhunters still dwelled? Or,

Last September, Editor-in-Chief Carl Cunanan flew north to dive deep into waters off Hong Kong, without any life support. Carl was invited to join a handful of alumnos to be instructed by freedive record holder and Oris brand ambassador Carlos Coste. The experience was both an ordeal and a revelation. Diving deep into darker waters and mounting pressure, Carl had to awaken his body's latent adaptations for hoarding finite air while being crushed at depth. Here is his story. Part 1: So Deep It's Dark

Perrelet brings us two new items for their classic men’s collection. But that’s not all we have to be thankful for. The story of the man that invented the automatic watch. Double Rotor, Calibre P-181,Central hour, minute and second hand, date window at 6’o’clockHistory is a funny thing. No one can deny its impact on today’s life, and yet, no one can point to it and say, there. There is history. History is collective memory, and just as individual memory can play tricks on you, collective memory can be not only subjective but actually entirely fabricated.

Blancpain Villeret Traditional Chinese Calendar The year is 2012, auspicious year of the Water Dragon, occasion of the first Olympics after the one in Beijing, and the year when China overtook the United States as the world’s top haute horlogerie market. This year, Blancpain presents the Traditional Chinese Calendar from its Villeret collection: the first wristwatch, the Manufacture asserts, to ever feature a Chinese calendar. It is a painstakingly crafted statement, honouring an ancient culture, and recognizing modern China’s place in the present.On first blush,

The new face of luxury timekeeping. Do take the time to stop and stare. The name and the brand Hermès has always been synonymous to luxury and quality craftsmanship. First established by Thierry Hermès in 1837 as a harness workshop, the product lines of the company soon grew to include clothing, leather goods, handbags, perfume, tableware and jewelry. Today, Hermes is a multi-million dollar firm with hundreds of boutiques and franchises across the globe, and continues to provide nothing but the highest-quality goods for its clientele.In the year 2000,

A black-themed party was held at the Hublot boutique on Nanjing West Road, Shanghai. The event presented the King Power Black Mamba Chronograph watch, and was attended by none other than NBA legend Kobe Bryant.As the newest brand ambassador of Hublot, Kobe Bryant’s signature timepiece—the King Power Black Mamba Chronograph—was first launched in Los Angeles. The collection is limited to only 250 pieces worldwide. On August 7, 2013, the basketball superstar attended the event at Shanghai, much to the delight of the local NBA fans. There,

THE SOUL OF A NEW MANUFACTURE There is an interesting constant at Baselworld. No pun intended, as it’ll be made clear. There is something I have seen since the very first time I attended that wonderful, chaotic horological meeting place almost a decade ago, and in spite of all the change and relative chaos of this year’s event I saw it again.The days before Baselworld opens, all the brands are putting the final touches on their booths. Everything from million-dollar watches to priceless antiques to vintage cars to chairs and drinking water is brought in. In the middle of all that,

The Breguet Type XX isn’t what most budding enthusiasts would consider typical of the storied name’s offerings. It doesn’t have many of the popular innovations and details of worksmanship you come to expect from the watchmaking company.The casework is simple, though it does carry the fluting on the side. The dial shows none of the legendary detailwork expertise for which Breguet has become known and popular, especially if you choose the unique carbon fiber dial that comes with the titanium case. You have no guillochage, no “secret number,” no signature.