Manufacturer: Laurent Ferrier Year: Circa 2012 Movement No: 093 Model Name: Galet Secret "Etoile Filante" Material: 18K white gold Calibre: Manual, cal. LF916.01, 23 jewels Bracelet/Strap: Leather Clasp/Buckle: 18k white gold Laurent Ferrier pin buckle Dimensions: 41mm Diameter Signed: Case, dial, movement and buckle signed Accessories: Accompanied by Laurent Ferrier fitted box, undated and un-stamped Certificate of Origin and Guaranty, instruction manual and outer packaging Literature: Laurent Ferrier is prominently featured in Watchmakers, The Masters of Art Horology by Maxima Gallery pp 136-159.
Catalogue Essay
In just ten years of existence Laurent Ferrier has built a strong and respected brand by offering hungry collectors watches a certain sotto voce elegance featuring a cavalcade of subtle details adding to their elegance, made of the utmost quality with cutting edge impeccably finished movements.
Ferrier spent almost all his professional career at Patek Philippe as technical director in charge of product development, but at an age where his colleagues were leaving on a well-deserved retirement, he decided to embark on a new adventure filled with adrenaline, creating his dream watch with not a shred of compromise.
The present Galet Secret has the complete Ferrier genetic codes and more. The large curvaceous case has a tactile elegance, the painstakingly hand decorated tourbillon movement features a double hairspring balance, which consists of two hairsprings one atop the other but beating in opposite directions, one spring erasing the variations of the other permitting greater accuracy.
The dial side nevertheless has nothing to shy from as it is a true work of art in all senses. As the name implies the present watch hides a secret behind the tinted sapphire dial. A complex device pivots the dial’s two opaque crystals at a full 240° like a fan opening to reveal a grand feu enamel dial with miniature painting representing the full moon and a shooting star.
The dial aperture can open or close on demand by push of the crown or at the time set by the owner. In this case at 10 o’clock the system starts switching over the display until its complete unfold in 60 minutes. The dial will remain visible for twelve hours until the sapphire apertures start closing. The time of opening of the dial can be modified at the request of the owner.
A unique piece, the present Galet Secret offers the best of all worlds, ultimate rarity, technical complexity and a watch that can go from apparent simple class to glittering panache. As such it has its place in any collection as the proud representative of contemporary independent watchmaking.
Introducing its first watch to critical acclaim in 2010, Laurent Ferrier was founded by long-time Swiss watchmaker of the same name. Following a 37-year career at Patek Philippe, Ferrier founded the brand in 2008, creating timeless wristwatches inspired by the finest wrist and pocket watches from the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. Revered by collectors around the world for their genuine innovations and understated elegance, the brand specializes in exquisitely hand-finished movements featuring state-of-the-art watchmaking technology. Galet, or "pebble" in French, describes the signature feature of the brand's cases used across its collection — with soft curves, domed crystals and rounded edges reminding one of a smooth pebble.
Key models include the Galet Classic Tourbillon Double Spiral and the Galet Micro-Rotor, with stunning movement architectures designed after prestigious observatory chronometer movements of the twentieth century.