BREATHING LIFE INTO BEAUTY

The precious heartbeat that powers any timepiece is, of course, its movement. But true connoisseurs who appreciate the art of watchmaking know that any timepiece worth its mettle also offers value (and values) that go beyond the utilitarian ability to tell time. The Peak goes on a trans-European journey – from Hermes’ flagship store along the Rue du Faubourg Saint-Honore in Paris and the Cristalleries Royales de Saint-Louis in northeastern France, to its dedicated watch strap workshop in Bienne, Switzerland, and, of course, the Vaucher Manufacture Fleurier in the Swiss Canton of Neuchatel – to discover all the elements and objects of inspiration that make up the mastery behind each La Montre Hermes timepiece.

Horological enthusiasts would remember well one of the prettiest timepieces ever unveiled at the annual Baselworld watch fairs.

In 2014, La Montre Hermes showcased its star piece – the Hermes Arceau Millefiori, a glass jewel of a timepiece adorned with a thousand exquisite crystal flowers on its face, made by the famous Cristalleries Royales de Saint-Louis.

Utilising crystal-making know-how that dates back to the 16th century, this Hermes-owned manufacturer is famous for its decorative crystal, particularly its exquisite paperweights. But it also creates miniaturised versions of this precious art as ultra-artisan dials for selected Hermes timepieces.

Part of the magic at the Cristalleries Royales de Saint-Louis lies in the crystal-making process itself, where a handpicked group of artisans work in blazing temperatures to produce “crystal canes” – long, reed-like rods that, when cut, reveal a multi-coloured design.

Referred to as bonbons or

This is a unique way of handstitching, inextricably linked to the house of Hermes, where a single thread and two needles are used to cross each other in each hole, almost like balletic sewing, thereby ensuring greater overall resistance.

“candies”, these minuscule works of art are then placed together on a watch dial to create a totally unique masterpiece, rendering the finished product as much a timekeeper as it is an objet d’art.

Certainly, the holy trinity of a timepiece with gravitas is comprised of dial, watch case and its own inhouse mechanical movement.

In 2012, La Montre Hermes acquired the celebrated La ChauxdeFonds-based dial-maker, Nateber.

With Nateber in place and the 2013 acquisition of Joseph Erard SA, after a longstanding partnership, thereby securing its supply of watch cases, it would be the celebrated Vaucher name that would complete the strategic component alliance La Montre Hermes had been seeking.

Established in 2003 after Parmigiani Mesure et Art du Temp SA split into two separate entities, Vaucher Manufacture Fleurier is one of the few Swiss watch manufacturers that can boast of being able to perform the complete process of conceptualising, developing and producing the heart of a watch – its precious “movement”.

Certainly the most fundamental component of any timepiece worth its mettle, these critical “heartbeats” of a watch determine its complexity, which covers a variety of aspects, from power reserve and horological complications like chronographs, to perpetual calendars and moon phases.

Located in the Canton of Neuchatel and housed in an impressively modern set-up, Vaucher Manufacture Fleurier is fully equipped to produce the entire movement of a watch completely inhouse, which, for La Montre Hermes, include specifically the H1837 and the H1912, both of which were unveiled at Baselword 2012 in the men’s and women’s Dressage and Arceau

Few places capture the essence of Hermes quite like the Emile Hermes Museum. Tucked away across a few floors of the brand’s legendary Faubourg store in Paris, it is a confidential collection – an expansive cabinet of curiosities whose expansive space is filled with priceless, historical objects, and its secrets jealously guarded. For it is here that precious objects from the brand’s storied past continue to serve as inspiration to its artisans, continuing an inextricable link between the maison, the atelier and its craftsmen. “The house of Hermes is known for its ability to tell stories,” says Mark Stoltz, Hermes’ directeur de conservatoire. “Many of the objects you see here belong as much to Hermes’ history as it does to France’s national patrimony.”

Certainly, time seems to have stood still – or as Hermes would say, le temps suspendu – as you explore the extraordinary space. It is as if one has been transported back to the time of the Napoleonic Empire, surrounded by pieces as wonderful as they are whimsical, including a rare 18th-century baroque papier rolle artwork; a special caleche (carriage) for children, designed to be harnessed to a goat; lorgnettes complete with a spy mirror within; and numerous treasures that allude to the brand’s affinity (and affiliation) for the horse, which, after all, as the house likes to say, is the brand’s “first customer”.

For those unfamiliar with the history of Hermes, it was Thierry Hermes, the founder of the maison, who began handcrafting exquisite harnesses for horse-drawn carriages in 1837. Born to an innkeeper, the young Thierry soon found himself orphaned, the unfortunate circumstance of war and disease that kept ravaging Europe at the time. Arriving in Paris and with an innate skill in leatherwork, he managed to open a shop specialising in equine accoutrements, particularly beautiful yet sturdy harnesses so needed by society then. It was this combination of beauty and strength, and the mastery of an exemplary method of stitching known as the “saddle-stitch”, that won Hermes the attention of wealthy Parisians. In time, the creation of this maison, built on the foundation of equestrian elegance, would lead to the establishment of one of the world’s greatest names in luxury, and whose long list of illustrious clients would include Napoleon III and the last tsar of Russia.

Fast-forward to the present, the Emile Hermes Museum remains a trove of inspiration from which the maison’s artists may draw whenever they please. Interestingly enough, a sizeable collection of over 500 clocks and watches also form part of the collection, including saddle-stitched cases for pocket watches – an elegant fancy for wealthy gentlemen in bygone days – as well as beautiful leather belts embedded with timepieces and watches produced in collaboration with some of the greatest names in timekeeping. “Our story is here. Our roots are here,” affirms Stoltz. “And these instruments give wonderful perspective to Hermes’ history in timekeeping as well.”