Cortina Watch Celebrates 50 Years Excellence
Our relationship with time is deeply private — visceral even. After all, the very cells in our our bodies reply to the passage of time and, on the stage of our aware minds, time supplies which means to our lives. Generally, which means can enter the image within the type of {our relationships} with different folks — that is the place very particular watches enter into it. This yr occurs to be the fiftieth anniversary of Cortina Watch, however it’ll really be 66 years because the respective households behind Patek Philippe and the retailer began on their journey collectively. To mark this event, Patek Philippe has created a particular watch, Ref. 5057G-010 together with a novel clock, Ref. 20145M-001 “Singapore Skyline”. After all, that is all about historical past, so Ref. 5057 might sound acquainted.
Patek Philippe Honorary President Philippe Stern proposed a particular watch to Cortina Watch founder Anthony Lim for the retailer’s twenty fifth anniversary, and it was Ref. 5057. We’ve got reported on this watch and the way it happened, and the connection between the Stern and Lim households in an intensive story in 2019. Solely 100 items of the Patek Philippe Cortina Jubilee 5057R 18K Rose Gold Restricted Version Computerized have been made, and this reference boasted a moon part show, date and energy reserve indication alongside a small seconds subdial. Uniquely, it’s distinguished as a watch that started as a particular creation, however remained within the Patek Philippe providing, in a technique or one other since its debut 25 years in the past.
Introducing Patek Philippe Ref. 5057G-010
A brand new Patek Philippe Ref. 5057G-010 in white gold has been made specifically for the Golden Jubilee celebrations. It options the identical triple row guilloched “Clous de Paris” hobnail bezel as the primary mannequin created for Cortina Watch again in 1997, and is identical dimension, at 36mm. This time, the watch incorporates a charcoal gray sunburst dial with a blackgradient rim, white transfer-printed Roman numerals and white gold, pear-shaped arms.
Powered by the Calibre 240 PS IRM C LU, the watch has indications for the date, moon phases and energy reserve on two subdials. There may be additionally a small seconds show between the 4 and 5 o’clock place. That is an ultra-thin, computerized motion with 48 hours (most) of energy reserve. Apparently, this calibre is kind of uncommon, being utilized in just one different reference that we all know of, the Nautilus Ref. 5712, which the story on WatchesbySJX helps. The clear sapphire caseback options the commemorative inscription “Cortina Watch fiftieth Anniversary Since 1972”. The watch is a restricted version of simply 100 items.
The scale of the watch and the hobnail bezel are extremely distinctive traits, with Calibre 240 PS arguably benefitting from the extra conservative proportions. After all, the motion options all of the signature technical upgrades that mark all present manufacturing Patek Philippe, even when the case and dial are throwbacks. This contains the Gyromax stability and the Spiromax hairspring, and fairly probably ceramic ball bearings within the winding system. This concern for the way the guts of the watch performs additionally speaks to Patek Philippe’s relationship with a key companion akin to Cortina Watch, which was the model’s first authorised Singapore retailer all the way in which again in 1978.
Saved Worth
This was a tough time for Patek Philippe because it weathered the Quartz Disaster, and a key second for the fledgling Cortina Watch, which opened its first retailer simply six years earlier at Colombo Court docket. Each family-owned companies doubled down on mechanical watches, staking their futures on high quality moderately than the ephemeral efficiency of amount. If nothing else, Cortina Watch and Patek Philippe proved within the Nineteen Seventies and 80s that affected person and steadfast dedication to the values of high quality watchmaking would repay handsomely. Talking of which, the values of conventional watchmaking are finest represented in super-sized kind…
Patek Philippe’s distinctive dome desk clock is available in Grand Feu cloisonné enamel for the fiftieth anniversary celebration. This Ref. 20145M-001 “Singapore Skyline” showcases Singapore’s picturesque city backyard surroundings, from the Merlion to the Central Enterprise District, Gardens by the Bay, the Esplanade, and Marina Bay Sands, the place the second Patek Philippe boutique was opened in Singapore by Cortina Watch.
To deliver to life the depictions of town skyline and its recognizable landmarks, Patek Philippe formed by hand a complete of 9.2m of gold wire with a cross part of simply 0.2mm x 0.6mm. A palette of fifty enamel colors was used and every enamelled plate required 10 to 14 firings at temperatures between 890º and 910º Celsius. Fifty gold stars and fireworks, made out of gold and silver mud, gentle up the skyline. Other than the opposite intricate particulars and elaborations, additionally current is the refined engraving of “Cortina Watch — fiftieth Anniversary — Since 1972”. The clock is powered by the Calibre 17’’’ PEND mechanical motion, which is wound up by an electrical motor.
Singapore Specials
Celebrating the robust partnership that spans 5 a long time, Cortina Watch and Patek Philippe will co-host an exhibition to current the restricted version Ref. 5057G-010 and Ref. 20145M-001 “Singapore Skyline” dome desk clock, along with the Ref. 5057R-001 twenty fifth anniversary mannequin. Additionally included is Cortina Watch’s assortment of a number of different distinctive Patek Philippe creations, akin to Ref. 1677M “Esplanade”, created for Singapore’s Golden Jubilee in 2015; Ref. 20094M-001 “Bay of Singapore”, created for the Patek Philippe Watch Artwork Grand Exhibition, hosted in Singapore in 2019; Ref. 20040M-001 “Twilight Taipei”, created to commemorate the primary Patek Philippe boutique established within the metropolis’s most well-known skyscraper.
To view these treasured timepieces together with the opposite aforementioned displays, one can go to the travelling exhibition which shall be held on the Patek Philippe boutiques throughout the area. The tour begins at ION Orchard and Marina Bay Sands and subsequently strikes to Taiwan, Thailand and Malaysia earlier than heading again to Singapore in direction of the top of 2022.
You may come to grips with this story in individual, maybe on the Patek Philippe boutique managed by Cortina Watch at ION Orchard. That retailer opened in 2009, and expanded to grow to be the most important Patek Philippe boutique in Southeast Asia in 2016, at 265.48 sq. metres. This occurred throughout a minor downturn within the fortunes of watch manufacturers total, however each Patek Philippe and Cortina Watch remained bullish. We will probably be turning our sights to key Patek Philippe boutiques within the area in a future article, primarily as a result of Asia’s largest such retailer can be managed by Cortina Watch, in Taipei, Taiwan.
“Patek Philippe and Cortina Watch share an intertwined relationship in Asia, from the institution of the Patek Philippe boutiques throughout Southeast and East Asia, to our shared ardour for high quality watchmaking and craftsmanship. Not solely have I personally skilled this via the beneficiant friendship of Mr. Thierry Stern and Mr. Philippe Stern, so have a lot of our purchasers who’ve had the privilege of visiting the manufacture. We’ve got retained the aesthetic codes of the twenty fifth anniversary Calatrava, launched in 1997, for the fiftieth anniversary restricted version. That is in homage to the previous and current leaders of each corporations who’ve nurtured our longstanding partnership. I hope that it’s going to proceed to strengthen over the subsequent 50 years, and with the subsequent generations after us.” — Jeremy Lim, CEO of Cortina Watch.
“The friendship between my grandfather, father and Mr. Anthony Lim began over 66 years in the past and it nonetheless stands robust right this moment, very similar to the connection between Patek Philippe & Cortina Watch. This can be a distinctive and treasured relationship that really transcends generations, and I’m proud to be a part of this very particular celebration and to current the Ref. 20145M-001 “Singapore Skyline” Dome Desk Clock to Mr. Anthony Lim on behalf of my father. We sit up for one other 50 years of nice partnership and for our subsequent generations to maintain this friendship going.” — Thierry Stern, President of Patek Philippe.
Blissful Occasions
After all, Cortina Watch has constructed plenty of significant partnerships over the course of its historical past. One other watchmaking household that has a particular relationship with Cortina Watch is the Scheufeles of Chopard. Like Cortina Watch, the watchmaker and jeweller is a household affair, and a current reminder of this was the Blissful Sport — Story of an Icon exhibition. Organised by Cortina Watch and Chopard, this public showcase held at Paragon displayed the hyperlinks between the 2 organisations and households, which matches again to 1992. That yr will ring some bells for these aware of the Chopard Blissful Sport, which debuted in 1993.
The exhibition served as a reminder of the 30 years of historical past between Chopard and Cortina Watch, in addition to 29 years of the Blissful Sport mannequin. We have been struck by the inclusion of the unique inspiration for the watch, the Blissful Diamonds watch of 1976 (a creation of in-house designer Ronald Kurowski, and ceaselessly misattributed to Gerald Genta), which was introduced in from Geneva. After all, Chopard Co-President Caroline Scheufele riffed off this to provide you with her personal design, the 1993 Blissful Sport watch; arguably the Blissful Sport design story eclipses that of the Blissful Diamonds, maybe as a result of the latter is not a sq. mannequin.
As seen right here, the ultimate a part of the exhibition is a message to Cortina Watch from Caroline’s brother and Chopard Co-President Karl-Friedrich Scheufele and his spouse. That is additionally the place two particular editions for the fiftieth anniversary come into the image, the Blissful Hearts Cortina fiftieth Anniversary and the Blissful Moon Cortina fiftieth Anniversary. The Blissful Hearts watch is an computerized 36mm restricted version in metal of fifty items, bearing all of the codes of the Blissful Sport.
Nett proceeds from gross sales of this restricted version will profit the Singapore Coronary heart Basis (SHF). The Blissful Moon watch, however, is available in three variations, though all are modelled on the Blissful Sport and are 36mm. Every model has its personal particular dials — blue aventurine, inexperienced aventurine and pink mother-of-pearl — and are restricted to 5 items every. These are cased in yellow, white and rose gold. All function moon part indicators and are powered by in-house actions.
“It has been an absolute pleasure to work with Chopard and the Scheufele household via the years. As family-owned companies, we share many frequent values and it’s particularly significant for us to have the ability to have a good time Cortina Watch’s fiftieth Anniversary not solely via the disclosing of beautiful timepieces, however extra importantly, by sharing the enjoyment of giving by giving again to society along with our longstanding enterprise companion. We hope that this vibrant exhibition and our milestone collaboration with Chopard will result in treasured reminiscences to be cherished in years to come back,” mentioned Jeremy Lim.
“We sincerely congratulate you all, the household and naturally all of the members of your workers on this vital event as a result of 50 years is kind of one thing. It reveals resilience, it reveals your creativity, it reveals the whole lot you could have constructed with ardour over these years. And we’re very glad that we’ve been working with you for 30 years, the truth is, we went again to our information and we began in 1992. And we’re very glad to commemorate this glad event with you with some particular moments,” mentioned Karl-Friedrich Scheufele.
There will definitely be extra commemorative items for Cortina Watch’s Golden Jubilee, most likely from Franck Muller and H. Moser & Cie. Look out for extra information on these because the yr rolls ahead.
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