SIHH 2019 – London Chronograph collection comes back with a new vintage Calibre: the iconic Valjoux 72, with two stunning bronze case models, which revive the myth.

The London Chronograph collection is from now on a recurrent watch collection concept that re-edits iconic vintage movements every year. The use of vintage movements is indeed part of Speake-Marin’s strategy to develop and to exclusively work with exceptional movements. 

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For this new limited edition, Speake-Marin pays tribute to one of the most loved chronograph models of the 20th century: the Valjoux 72 Calibre. It will please the watch connoisseurs eager to see one of their favourite chronographs Calibre in a new timepiece. The Valjoux 72 is often seen as the finest manually-wound chronograph ever thanks to its column wheel and its three counters.

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   Issued from the Valjoux 22 base calibre, the Valjoux 72 Calibre appeared in 1938 for the first time with 13 lines. Then, it proposed a very perfect layout for great chronograph legibility:

• Two pushers
• Three sub dials: one for real-time seconds, 30-minute and 12-hour

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The Valjoux 72 was a very popular chronograph movement, used by some of the largest and most successful movement manufacturers such as Rolex and Tag Heuer. In 2016, the auction sale of Paul Newman’s Rolex Daytona reached over one million dollars, and is therefore an incredible demonstration of the Valjoux 72popularity among watch collectors.

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Although these calibres were produced in large quantities in the second part of the 20th century, these movements are very rare nowadays. The movement components used for the London Chronograph were stored in a safe for many years and it took time for Speake-Marin to find working pieces. Once checked, the components have been assembled, decorated and controlled within our Speake-Marin atelier.

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For these two new limited editions, the London Chronograph is housed in a 42mm bronze case with a three-dimensional dial. The dial is indeed in 3 dimensions with 3 floating white counters that indicate 30-minute counter at 3 o’clock, real time 60-second counter at 9 o’clock and 12-hour counter at 6 o’clock.

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The chronograph function can be easily read thanks to the orange colour code with the hours counter at 6 o’clock, the minutes counter at 3 o’clock and the central second hands.

Speake-Marin created for the first time its Piccadilly case in bronze to really echo the vintage spirit of the collection. The bronze material that is used to manufacture the case is an alloy of bronze and tin without any chemical treatment, which will generate fast oxidation and will make each timepiece unique. It will bring a natural patina that will enhance the overall London Chronograph look.

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Two dial versions are available: one in blue or one in grey, both have colour gradients to give depth to the dial, a feeling which is strengthened by the 3D bronze indexes. The orange colour of the chronograph function is a tribute to sport racing counters, while the gold colour is used for the Hours Minutes Seconds function.

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Last but not least, the central wheel at the centre of the dial is shaped like the Speake-Marin symbol and rotates with the hours. This central rotor is engraved with “London” and “Chronograph”, two words that appear at 12 o’clock.