The Pays de Gex region, which borders Switzerland and Geneva, reverberated with the sound of racing cars tackling the 6.4km course of the Montée des Légendes ("Legend Hill Climb") last weekend in the presence of champions like the double Le Mans 24 Hours winner Romain Dumas, 1981 world rally champion Ari Vatanen and his colleague Guy Fréquelin, Formula 1 driver Romain Grosjean, two-time French hill climb champion Sébastien Petit, multiple European champion Simone Faggioli and the star among stars, nine-times world rally champion Sébastien Loeb. It was an exceptional line-up of drivers at the wheels of legendary cars from the world's of rallye, track, mountain and even Pikes Peak. 

Those who read WorldTempus in English might be less familiar with Serge Panczuk than our French-speaking readers. Serge first started writing for us back in 2012 and his articles in French, presenting watches from a collector’s point of view, have always been well-liked by our readers. As a frequent long-haul traveller, Serge often has periods of 15 hours on a plane when he is disconnected from the world, giving him plenty of time to delve deep into the story behind a watch. 

Instagram is full of videos of anonymous gloved hands ceremoniously opening up a watch box. What’s most striking is not the reverential way in which the task is accomplished, although there are probably brain surgeons who take less care when opening up a skull. What’s incredible is that, because of these videos, the general public can at long last see what watch boxes look like!

Modern watchmaking was born from the sea, on the first ships that set out to explore what was still a flat planet. 

On September 17th, Hublot opened its first directly operated London flagship boutique on New Bond Street, one of the most prestigious luxury shopping destinations in the world. The moment also marked the extension of the brand partnership with Chelsea FC for another three years – firmly establishing Hublot as the watch brand who loves football!

The Bovet monumental clock installed in the Asterium Tower in Seoul has received the A’ Design Award, which recognizes exceptional achievements in terms of architectural design worldwide. This new distinction perfectly embodies the personal view of Pascal Raffy, the owner of Bovet 1822, which is to never dissociate traditional fine watchmaking from art, design and architecture, so as to offer collectors and aficionados of fine timepieces the noblest expression of time.

Chanel’s historic commitment to the Métiers d'art goes back to its founder, Gabrielle Chanel, who was already collaborating with the biggest artisans of her time in the creation of her iconic products, such as the shoemaker Massaro for the production of the two-tone shoe (1957), the master jeweller Goossens for her baroque costume jewellery (1954) or the fabric flowers specialist, Lemarié, who has been exclusively making the camellias, emblems of the House, since the 1960s. 

Stéphane Bianchi has been appointed CEO of the Watchmaking Division, with effect from 1st November 2018. He will directly lead TAG Heuer, with the CEOs of Hublot and Zenith reporting to him.

Exploring the various iterations of modern, fine craftsmanship through the work of some of Europe’s best artisans and designers, Homo Faber: crafting a more human future [Editor's note: 14-30 September] taps into that “single undercurrent” - in the words of Johann Rupert, chairman of the luxury group Richemont – that connects all that “human beings can do better than machines.”

The new timepieces presented by Hermès combine leather craft with watchmaking skills. The leather marquetry technique calls for a meticulous approach extremely similar to that of assembling a watch movement. On an inch-perfect dial, the Hermès leather artisans compose a variegated work depicting a horse or zebra. Reduced to the format of a round case, these creations flaunt the radiant colours of slim leather fragments carefully selected, cut out and juxtaposed with all the skill and expertise of saddle-making and leather craftsmanship. Made from full grain calfskin, the leather pieces are split to a thickness of around 0.5 mm, before each element composing the motif is accurate cut to its appointed size and shape. One by one, the artisan picks up these fragments and fits them on the dial to form the design. The Arceau and Slim d’Hermès watches set the stage for the art of leather miniature work and feature animal motifs much beloved by the brand.

Longines is the Official Partner and Official Timekeeper of the 36th Rhythmic Gymnastics World Championships 2018 in Sofia, Bulgaria. The brand presented its Longines Prize for Elegance to Russia’s Aleksandra Soldatova, who distinguished herself for the grace and charisma she displayed throughout the all-around final. Longines President Walter von Känel presented Aleksandra Soldatova with a Longines timepiece. During this international event the brand highlighted its ladies model from The Longines Master Collection Blue Edition, which was seen on the wrist of its Ambassadors of Elegance, the Russian gymnasts Arina and Dina Averina. 

Holiday preparations in the O’Neil household can often be more fraught than those for Baselworld or the SIHH. But things reached a new level this year when my wife and I realized that our work schedules would not allow us two consecutive weeks of holiday until… November. I was therefore left with a big holiday-shaped hole in my summer that I suddenly needed to fill. My first thoughts were some kind of photography workshop that would allow me to practice my hobby, but research quickly showed that these were few and far between and booked up a year in advance. But browsing through the Internet I also stumbled across Scotland Overland and their promise of a Land Rover Defender with a roof tent that could be hired for wild camping in Scotland.

Throughout the day, many office workers look at the dial of their wristwatch at regular intervals and the date is also very often the focus of interest, as well as the time. That is why there is still a heated debate about the significance of this indication. The same can also be said about the day of the week – maybe not to quite the same extent, but it is still significant. This is why we also give it a very prominent place on the new Breitling Navitimer 8 Day & Date. You could even say that it crowns the black or blue dial of this typical pilot’s wristwatch in the style of the 1930s and 1940s.

I might as well start by stating the obvious: in a war there are deaths, injuries, destruction, blood, horror and then… peace.

After several years of studying and testing, 56 years old Alain Valette, renowned bladesmith and creator of unique knives for some 32 years (autodidact since 1986), unveils his latest creation at the International Forum of Contemporary Knives. Called "Suspense", this knife features a brand new component: a miniature mechanical musical movement with 17 notes.

Breitling’s new wristwatch is the expression of its continuing history as an internationally recognized manufacturer of precise, robust, and extremely reliable timepieces for aviation. In this sense, the Navitimer 8 Automatic has links to onboard clocks and an pilot’s wristwatch, which made history from 1940 onwards. The Reference 768 underlined the expertise that the Huit Aviation Department has consistently demonstrated since its founding in 1938 with its clear readability, usability, and reliability under any circumstances. Naturally, this version of the Navitimer 8 Automatic is also packed with positive features. It appeals to timekeeping purists who only want to read hours, minutes, seconds, and the date off their blue or black dial. The chronometer certification is a guarantee of precision, which must be passed by every single Breitling Caliber 17 without exception. The maximum running deviation tolerated is between minus four and plus six seconds in a 24-hour period. This makes this 41 millimeter chronometer with a ball-bearing rotor winding on both sides, over 40 hours of power reserve, and four-hertz balance frequency 99.99 percent accurate in a day consisting of 86,400 seconds.