When Antoine Martin launched in 2011 as the new venture of veteran watchmaker Martin Braun, it did so with the Quantième Perpétuel au Grand Balancier. In the small town Alpnach (near Lucerne), Martin Braun and business partner Bruno Jufer set up Antoine Martin in 2011 to create watches that push watchmaking forward both technically and aesthetically by utilizing Braun’s decades of experience designing movements from the ground up.
The brand’s first release, the Quantième Perpétuel au Grand Balancier, utilizes the Calibre AM 39.001, which is an entirely in-house manufacture movement incorporating technological innovations pioneered by Braun himself. It features a specially modified level escapement called the HPE (High Performance Escapement) with silicium components, twin mainsprings that provide a 6-day power reserve, a free-sprung balance, and a 17.5mm titanium balance wheel. You can see this balance beating at 18,000 vph through the sapphire window on the caseback. The Calibre AM 39.001 is also manually wound, a charming detail on an otherwise extremely modern watch.
Reading the Quantième Perpétuel’s dial is as easy as it gets. Broad central hands tell the time of day with no running seconds. There are vertical windows at 10 and 2 o’clock with the day of the week and the month (respectively) and a dual-window date display at 6 o’clock as well. Up at 12 o’clock is a subdial for the leap year cycle and at 9 o’clock a simple AM/PM indicator.
The case itself is quite complex too – it is comprised of 84 components and both case and dial feature a number of different finishes. This example is in black DLC over stainless steel. The original price for this model when launched in 2012 was CHF 48.500 (ex VAT). This piece is in excellent, hardly worn condition. It was completely checked and serviced by Chronext before it was offered for sale by them. This is an extremely high end and unique watch with amazing technical features as well as an intricate and striking design. It is a limited edition of only 28 pcs.
