1941 Grönograaf

In 2016, Bart and Tim released the 1941 Remontoire, honouring their father, Sjef, by referencing the year of his birth. The 1941 case, measuring 39.5mm, was subsequently used for the Principia automatic and the Decennium Tourbillon and has won favour with many watch collectors.

The sinuously shaped 1941 returns, albeit it is a smidgen larger, measuring 40mm in diameter. However, most notably, the case for the inaugural models, a limited edition of 25 pieces, is formed of the rare metal, tantalum. This material is hard, corrosion resistant, bioinert and exhibits a lustrous, blue-grey gleam. Tantalum is more than twice as dense as stainless steel, heavier than palladium and slightly lighter than gold.

The dial – a Dutch masterpiece

The hours and minutes are shown on an off-centre dial, a detail that first appeared on the 1896 One Hertz and later on the 1896 Parallax Tourbillon. The time is expressed with Lancette hands and the hours are denoted with crisp, trapezoidal indexes. The hands are flame-blued steel, upholding watchmaking tradition, while the centres are mirror polished.

As stated earlier, the centrifugal governor sits at 4 o’clock. When the reset to zero pusher is pressed, the governor bursts into life, not only serving a functional role but delivering a wonderful animated performance.

A 30-minute counter, located at the base of the dial, features a Breguet-style hand. The instantaneous jumping minutes facilitates ease of read-off. A subsidiary seconds display resides at 9 o’clock, while a power reserve indicator, positioned above, is equipped with a pointer, seemingly floating adjacent a track, conveying the status of the mainspring. The central chronograph seconds hand subscribes to the classical Breguet-style and converses with a crisply-marked track positioned on the rehaut, proclaiming the elapsed seconds in an intelligible format.