Lemania calibers inside two Geneva titans proves irresistible
Check out the first installment of Heart Transplants featuring Omega, Hamilton and more.
Collectors have generally come to grips with the fact that many of the most beloved watch manufacturers use blank movements made by outside companies.
Generally, watches fitted with the ETA 2892 (also the most commonly used ebauche) make timepieces more affordable and increase the likelihood that more people will enter the world of fine wristwatches.
Granted there are many instances where watches fitted with the same base ETA movement do drastically differ in price, sometimes unreasonably. But depending on the brand, the movement parts will often undergo a thorough modification process, making an almost entirely different movement.
Hardcore purists will argue that watches fitted with modified movements shouldn’t be held in the same regard as their in-house counterparts. Alternately, there are remarkable pieces from partnerships where the world’s best brands recruit masterminds of well-known movement manufacturers.
From many of these partnerships, magnificence is born.
Houses like Patek Philippe and Vacheron Constantin, two Geneva titans, partnered with the famed Swiss movement marque Lemania- leaving behind a legacy that collectors continue to adore.
Although history led to Lemania’s absorption by the Swatch Group, which later assigned it to Breguet as an in-house movement manufacture, there are still a limited number of Lemania movements in watches previously produced for other high caliber brands.
Patek Philippe
This year’s Only Watch auction featured strong brand participation, and one of the crown jewels was Patek Philippe reference 5004T in Titanium. From start to finish the timepiece proved successful– it was the source of a heated bidding match during the auction. I’m inclined to believe the Lemania-based movement played a role in setting the piece’s high desirability.
For Reference 5004, Patek Philippe received a patent in 1996 for the split seconds chronograph module. These were immediately mounted into the caliber CH 27-70, based on the Lemania 2310. These were in such high demand that most were bought before even being made.
For the Only Watch auction, other factors contributed to the commotion. The timepiece was the only one of its kind to exist, and that it was made of titanium (rarely used by Patek).
In the end, the Patek Philippe reference 5004T in Titanium sold for $3,000,000 at final hammer.
For the last few years the auction market has been on the rise. With the reference 5004 and the 3970 (also an important Patek Philippe watch for its sheer beauty and clean lines) auction hammers have dropped consistently reaching six figures. This clearly indicates the high desirability of these modern timepieces.
Vacheron Constantin
Vacheron Constantin is another of the few lucky manufacturers given the opportunity to use Lemania ebauches.
The Lemania caliber 2320 eventually became the Vacheron caliber 1141, found in the Les Historiques chronograph, known as reference 49002. Although there are very slight and minor differences between the caliber 2310 and 2320, the overall design between the two is the same. Just like the Patek Philippe version of the Lemania ebauche, the Vacheron Constantin example comes with its own healthy share of exceptional hand finishing. The finely polished edges, only microns thick, and symmetrical Geneva waves, exude a balanced contrast to the Patek Philippe version. The difference is the price, where the Patek Philippe versions tend to be priced higher than Vacheron Constantin’s offerings.
Over the years, Lemania ebauches have become less available, partly due to the Swatch Group’s decision to limit the number of movements produced across all subsidiaries, not just Lemania. I only hope we to get to see a resurgence of Lemania 2310’s and 2320’s being used by such esteemed brands.
Until then there are still plenty of alternatives, including Renaud et Papi, which we will discuss next time.
