Anyone who has met Michel Parmigiani will know that he isn’t one to seek out the limelight. At most, you might spot his tall, slim figure at Watches and Wonders. Having taken a step back from business and the workbench, he remains one of the foremost specialists in the restoration of traditional timepieces; an experience that would provide the spark for the Manufacture that bears his name: Parmigiani Fleurier.
Self-congratulation isn’t his thing, not even on such a special day as his birthday. No matter: the Manufacture has taken the opportunity to craft a highly symbolic, one-of-a-kind pocket watch. Its name: L’Armoriale.
Then and now
This very personal project was conceived to connect with Michel Parmigiani’s years in restoration and to reflect the Manufacture’s artistic sensibility. A bridge between past and present. A celebration of an important moment with humility and restraint. A blending of Swiss expertise with the Italian inclinations of Michel Parmigiani, whose family hails from Mantua.
The idea for L’Armoriale came about almost a year ago. The watch beats to the singular rhythm of a nineteenth-century movement by Golay Leresche & Fils. Dating from 1890, it has the individual number 19052. It was built for a pocket watch: wristwatches were unheard of then. As one would expect for a calibre from this era, it beats at the stately pace of 2.5 Hz or 18,000 vibrations per hour, with 30 hours of power reserve. Such a sedate frequency is no longer seen in contemporary watchmaking (Arnold & Son, out of tradition, still propose movements which run at 3 Hz).
The movement’s complications testify to the excellence of the Geneva firm of Golay Leresche & Fils: a minute repeater and a chronograph with centre seconds and no subdial (in other words, a chronograph with a single 60-seconds hand, which is quite a rarity).
Personal involvement
This Golay Leresche & Fils movement has been restored by Michel Parmigiani himself, who took advantage of its generous size (40.4mm) to add a perpetual calendar which he developed, in 1985, in his former PMAT (Parmigiani Fleurier Mesure et Art du Temps) workshop - shortly before the founding of Parmigiani Fleurier. The finished movement can be admired by opening the hinged hunter-style back, which has been signed by Michel Parmigiani.
Entirely hand-decorated
Decoration is on a grand scale, in every sense. The case measures 58mm across and 17.7mm high. The enamelled and engraved design on the cover is taken from the marble floor of Palazzo Te in Lombardy. Each cavity has been hand-carved in the white gold, filled with red, yellow or brown enamel, then fired at high temperature (Grand Feu). The translucency of the enamel reveals the specific hand-hammered finish beneath each colour. The dial is engraved, with remarkable finesse, with a pattern which Parmigiani Fleurier charmingly calls “Mezzo Vibrato”. L'Armoriale, a unique piece, is accompanied by a bespoke chain whose links mirror the engraving on the case. It is presented in a purpose-built box. Price, which has not been released, likely runs to seven figures.
