Quiz Results: “How Much of a Watch Savant Are You?”

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Below you’ll find the answers to all questions. Don’t forget to read the detailed explanations in order to become a total Watch Savant!

Quiz Watchtime.com

1. Which of the following watches did A. Lange & Söhne NOT release in 1994?

Tourbillon “Pour le Mérite”
Saxonia
Zeitwerk
Lange 1

Explanation: While the other three watches were among the original models released by A. Lange & Söhne in 1994, the Zeitwerk was not launched until 2009.

A. Lange & Sohne Zeitwerk Decimal Strike - angle
During and after World War II, A. Lange & Söhne experienced many challenges – the company’s main factory was destroyed on the last day of the war and afterward, the company was expropriated and forced into a merger into a conglomerate called VEB Glashütter Uhrenbetriebe (“watchmaking companies Glashütte”). In 1990 Walter Lange, the great-grandson of founder Ferdinand Adolph Lange, and his partner Günter Blümlein, who had previously rehabilitated IWC and Jaeger-LeCoultre, re-founded the Saxon watch company. The first watches of the re-formed company were released in 1994: the Lange 1, Saxonia, the Tourbillon “Pour le Mérite,” and the Arkade.

Among those, the Lange 1 has long been known as the “face” of A. Lange & Söhne. In 2009, the company launched the Zeitwerk, a watch that the brand called at the time its “new face.” The main features of the watch are its jumping hour and minutes indicators to present the time. Since its launch, there have been various versions of the model, including a gold Zeitwerk, a minute repeater and the latest addition from SIHH 2017, the A. Lange & Söhne Zeitwerk Decimal Strike (pictured above).

2. What does SIHH stand for?

Swiss Industrial Horological Hub
Salle International de la Haute Horlogerie
Suisse Invitation au cercle des Haute Horlogers
Salon International de la Haute Horlogerie

Explanation: The Salon International de la Haute Horlogerie is widely known by its initials, SIHH. It’s an annual watch fair that takes place in Geneva and is initiated by the FHH (Fondation de la Haute Horlogerie). Most of the main exhibiting brands belong to the Richemont luxury group (you can see a list of Richemont brands in this article).
As watches released at SIHH are the first new models of each year, they tend to set trends.

 

3. For which of these patented innovations is Panerai known?

The hands, which are the same on every watch
The special leather straps Panerai uses
The crown-protecting bridge
The manufacture movement that powers all Panerai watches

Explanation: A watch’s character is usually shaped by distinctive characteristics from the brand and how they’ve been put together. Panerai has a lot of different models, and even though most of them are powered by in-house movements and accompanied by rather distinctive straps, the brand’s most recognizable calling card is the crown-protecting bridge. While the device was used on watches in the late 1940s, the Panerai Luminor from the 1950s (pictured below) was the first model with this innovative device and the patent number engraved on the bridge of the locking crown protector.

Panerai Luminor, 1950s, 47mm
Panerai Luminor, 1950s, 47mm

The mechanism was invented to prevent water from leaking into the timepiece’s screw-down crown. It is assembled on top of the crown and has a movable lever, which clamps the crown and the sealing gasket close to the case. In order to wind the watch and adjust the time, the lever has to be opened to release the crown. More about this model, and 24 other milestone models from Panerai, can be found in this free download. In July 2017, Panerai even released an all-new steel bracelet featuring the silhouette of the iconic bridge device, which debuted on a new watch. You can read all about it in this article.

4. Which of these watches did Gérald Genta NOT design?

Patek Philippe Nautilus
Vacheron Constantin Overseas
Bulgari Bulgari
Audemars Piguet Royal Oak

Explanation: Gérald Genta may be the world’s most famous watch designer. He died in 2011 at age 80 but remains in the minds of watch aficionados for creating iconic models like the Patek Philippe Nautilus and the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak. The latter design, according to legend, was sketched by Genta in one overnight session in 1970.

Watch Designer Gérald Genta

Genta at one point even established his own watch brand, which today has been absorbed into Bulgari, for which he designed the Bulgari Bulgari model. A selection of Genta’s most notable creations can be found in this article. Even though there is a bit of confusion about its origins among watch lovers, the Vacheron Constantin Overseas was actually designed by Jorg Hysek, who also worked at brands like Rolex and Breguet before founding his own watch brand in 1999.

5. Which of these was one of the first automatic chronograph movements, released in 1969?

Breitling B01
ETA Valjoux 7750
Zenith El Primero
Lemania 5100

Released in 1969 as one of the first automatic chronograph movements was the El Primero caliber from Zenith, which prior to its release had spent seven years in research and development. In the run for the title of the first fully integrated automatic Swiss chronograph movement to reach the market, Zenith beat Seiko’s Caliber 6139 and the former Chronomatic Group’s Caliber 11. In this article from 2015, we take a look at the movement and the watches it has powered. If you’re looking for a more recent read about the movement that made Zenith famous, we recommend our review of the Zenith Chronomaster El Primero Full Open.

Zenith: Movement El Primero, 1969
Zenith: Movement El Primero, 1969

The Lemania 5100 began manufacture around 1974. It’s no longer made today. The Lemania company was brought by Breguet which itself is part of the Swatch Group. Caliber B01 is an in-house chronograph movement from Breitling, released in May 2009 after five years of development. The movement incorporates a column-wheel switching mechanism and a vertical clutch, two hallmarks of a well-made chronograph. The ETA-Valjoux 7750, while not part of that original group from 1969, might be the world’s most common chronograph movement and powers many of the world’s most popular Swiss watches. You can read more about its history and development in this Watchtime E-Special.

6. With what watch invention is Jean-Marc Wiederrecht most closely associated?

Lever escapement
Automatic winding
Retrograde display
Three golden bridges movement

Explanation: Jean-Marc Wiederrecht is most closely associated with the retrograde display. Together with his wife Catherine Wiederrecht, the watchmaker founded the Swiss watchmaking company Agenhor. The company supplies movements and movement modules to an array of brands including Fabergé, Hermès, Harry Winston, MB&F, Romain Jerome, Arnold & Son, and Van Cleef & Arpels.

Van Cleef & Arples: The Pont des Amoureux
Van Cleef & Arples: The Pont des Amoureux

The lever escapement was invented by the English watchmaker Thomas Mudge. The automatic winding system goes back to Swiss watchmaker Abraham-Louis Perrelet. When Fortis introduced the first wristwatch with automatic winding in 1926, the mechanism was modeled on the one that Perrelet designed. Constant Girard, a co-founder of Girard-Perregaux, was the watchmaker who invented the three golden bridges movement. The Tourbillon with three golden bridges is known as that watchmaker’s most famous watch and is still produced by Girard-Perregaux.

7. When do perpetual calendars need to be reset and why?

Never, they’re called “perpetual” for a reason.
Every four years, as they don’t know leap-years.
Not until 2100, which is not a leap-year despite being divisible by four. 
It’s always exactly 100 years after the first day of usage.

Explanation: Perpetual calendars are notable because, unlike simpler types of calendar watches, they “know” whether or not it’s a leap year – until 2100. All details about how perpetual calendars work can be found in the WatchTime Watchmaking Glossary.

Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Perpetual Calendar Only Watch
Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Perpetual Calendar Only Watch

An annual calendar, on the other hand, doesn’t “know” how many days February has and therefore needs to be adjusted. Read all details in this article. There is no calendar watch that needs to be reset exactly 100 years after the first day of its usage and no mechanical watch that never needs to be reset. When you’ve learned all about calendar watches, you can test your knowledge in this quiz.

8. Some watch brands have their own proprietary materials. Which of these is NOT one of them?

Hublonium
Langarium
Rolesium
Breitlight

Explanation: The popularity of unusual materials in the watch world has been increasing in recent years – and what material could be more exceptional than one a brand can develop for itself and own? Many brands are making their own material.Popular examples include Hublot’s Magic Gold and Hublonium; the Swatch Group’s Sedna Gold; Ulysse Nardin’s Diamonsil; Rolex’s Rolesium and Breitling’s Breitlight. The latter material is, according to the brand’s website, 3.3 times lighter than titanium and 5.8 times lighter than steel.

Omega Seamaster Planet Ocean - Sedna Gold - front
Omega Seamaster Planet Ocean in Sedna Gold

Several brands who created their own metals can be found in this article. Among those is A. Lange & Söhne, which produces a proprietary alloy called “Honey Gold” (rather than the fictional “Langarium”). According to CEO Wilhelm Schmidt, Honey Gold is only used in small quantities and for special pieces.

9. What is the defining feature of a doppelchronograph?

Two elapsed-time counters
A split-seconds feature
A center-mounted minutes counter
Separate escapements for the chrono function and the regular time

Explanation: A doppelchronograph is also called a rattrapante or split-seconds chronograph. It is a special kind of chronograph with two hands, thus allowing the wearer to time multiple simultaneous events. The French word “rattrapante” means “to catch again” and describes the attempt of the seconds hand to catch up with the “normal” chronograph hand, after being used to stop a time period in between.

Breitling Navitimer Rattrapante - bracelet - wrist
Breitling Navitimer Rattrapante

Read the detailed description in our Watchmaking Glossary. Sometimes a rattrapante is referred to as a flyback, even though this term can also refer to a type of single-seconds-hand chronograph.

10. With what watch invention is Abraham-Louis Breguet most closely associated?

Tourbillon
Oscillating pinion
Mainspring
Inclined tourbillon

Explanation: Abraham-Louis Breguet is most closely associated with the invention of the tourbillon. The tourbillon is a cage that rotates around its own axis and encloses balance and escapement. The device’s intention is to compensate timing errors caused by the effects of gravity, a property further explained in our Watchmaking Glossary.

Greubel Forsey Tourbillon 24 Secondes Vision Platinum -blue dial - front
Greubel Forsey Tourbillon 24 Secondes Vision Platinum

Watchmaker Abraham-Louis Breguet is also known for the invention of the world’s most famous watch, the Breguet 160, a watch famously owned by Marie Antoinette. The story of the timepiece and Breguet’s early life is further explained in the book “Marie Antoinette’s Watch“, which we reviewed in this article.The watch brand Breguet founded is today a part of the Swatch Group.

The inclined tourbillon, however, is a more modern invention attributed to Stephen Forsey and Robert Greubel of the Swiss luxury brand Greubel Forsey. More about this piece and other Greubel Forsey milestones are addressed in our article on the brand’s 10th anniversary in 2014. The watchmaker most commonly associated with the mainspring is Peter Henlein, a German locksmith and clockmaker. The oscillating pinion was invented by Edouard Heuer, known as the founder of Swiss watch brand TAG Heuer, now part of the LVMH group.