Swiss Watches

Roy Furchgott January 29, 2007

 

Find the birthplace of your favorite brand

It's not always possible to separate these interests in Switzerland, where keeping time is not only a national obsession but its specialties are points of pride. Horologists, for instance, will want to stop at the Musée International d'Horlogerie of La Chaux-de-Fonds (80 miles west of Zurich), which has a vast collection of all things time-keeping. Here, clock fans will find a large number of early clocks from tower clock movements made by blacksmiths right up to the ultra modern, ultra thin and ultra complicated.

Across the street, knowledgeable collectors can find rare watches and watch parts by trolling the side streets. It's an area Roland Murphy, founder of RGM Watch Company, in Mount Joy, Penn., knows well. The last time he was there he found some turn-of-the-century German watch movements. "If I something interesting or rare, I want to own it," he said.

Over in Geneva, the Patek Philippe Museum, which opened just five years ago, is more wristwatch oriented -- appropriate, as the company is sometimes credited with inventing the device.

The Stern family, which owns Patek Philippe, opened its coffers to acquire a vast collection of watches dating to the 16th century, as well as an expansive display of its own brand of watches from 1839 to the present. "It's probably the only museum in the world that doesn't have a limited budget," said Fortunat Mueller-Maerki, who arranges watch tours around the world for the Antiquarian Horological Society, based in Sussex, England. He warns not to miss the collection of enameled Geneva pocket watches.

See our slideshow of Swiss Watches.

Many brands have their own watch museums that are worthwhile for the faithful. In Geneva, there's one for Swatch; in Bienne (about 50 miles southwest of Zurich), one for Omega, which has more than 4,000 watches and clocks, as well as tools, engravings and posters. At the Longines factory in St. Imier, you'll find Longines watches dating to 1878 and a display on time-keeping in sports. There's also the Girard-Perregaux in La Chaux-de-Fonds, housed in the beautifully restored modernist Villa Marguerite. And IWC in Schaffhausen offers a factory tour through an online sign up.

Of course, not everyone wants to just look at these carefully crafted timepieces. And the best shopping opportunity, said Mueller-Maerki, is a bit off the Valley route, in Zurich. "You go up and down the Bahnhofstrasse in Zurich, you are going to see any watch you can think of," he said. Murphy concurred, but also warned that on the Bahnhofstrasse, "You won't get a deal. Still, you will see watches you won't find anywhere else, so even if you aren't buying it's worth checking out." In fact, he said, you can often get a better deal on a Swiss watch back in the U.S.

And for a behind-the-scenes look at the watch industry, try to finagle a pass to the biggest annual industry event, The World Watch and Jewelry Show in Basel, held every April, with thousands of watches, watch parts and accessories. Some companies go all out, building half-million dollar booths. "Technically it's an industry fair," said Muller-Maerki, but added that practically any jeweler can score a pass. "If you have connections in the jewelry business, you can get tickets."

Happy hunting.

See our slideshow of Swiss Watches.

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