Spellbound's deep dive into the Girard Perregaux Casquette offers a compelling look at a pivotal, albeit brief, era in horological history. His personal connection to 1970s LED watches, combined with a detailed exploration of the Casquette's unique development and rarity, provides invaluable context for understanding this distinctive timepiece. This article not only celebrates a significant acquisition but also highlights the enduring appeal of these 'time on demand' devices.
Hi All,
Being born in the Sixties, one of the first watches I wore proudly at boarding school in England was a Light Emitting Diode (LED) watch. These LED watches first started appearing in the early Seventies, and soon some major houses like Omega, JLC and Girard Perregaux had jumped on the bandwagon and released their versions.
The first electronic "solid state" watches, so called as they had no moving parts, were developed by electronics and computing companies like Electro-Data and HP, and the very first, instigated by the Hamilton Watch Company and developed by Electro-Data, was launched in 1972 as the Pulsar LED P1.
LED watches were short lived and very soon replaced by the more energy efficient Liquid Crystal Displays (LCD), and by the end of the decade, LED watches had all but vanished from retail outlets.
Because LED watches consumed so much power, they were typically "time on demand", meaning that the user would effectively need to push a button on the side of the case in order to tell the time, which would after a few seconds turn itself back "off", or sleep mode as we now call it. Although impractical, for me at least, there was a certain charm about this time on demand concept, and although i jumped on the LCD bandwagon and ditched my LED, I never felt the same connection with the LCD displays.
In the last few years, we are seeing quite a revival of interest in the LED watches of the Seventies, partly due to nostalgia, partly due to the funky space age designs, and partly because they are of historical significance to the world of timekeeping, albeit for a short period.
After two years of internal development, Girard Perregaux launched their own version, the Casquette watch, in 1976. GP went all out to develop the best LED watch on the market. Rather than outsourcing the modules like other houses did, GP had their own electronic department complete all the R&D and manufacturing, and also went the extra mile using pre-aged quartz crystals to ensure accuracy and durability.
Girard Perregaux produced three versions of the Casquette, in Macrolon, Stainless steel, and 18k gold filled, for a total of just over 8000 pieces before being discontinued in 1978. I was fortunate enough to come across an extremely rare "New Old Stock" version of the 18k gold filled version. Only 2,200 pieces were produced and these were definitely considered luxury watches in the Seventies, commanding a hefty SFr 775. price tag. Although "solid state" digital watches should be extremely durable in theory given that there are no moving parts (aside from the oscillating quartz), not many working examples have survived since many were stored with the battery still inside, and as you know, even small batteries have a tendency to leak after a prolonged time. So it was hard for me to resist when I found a NOS version with box and papers, and in, I am assured, working order !
Now for my 1000th post, I was hoping to provide you with a live review and live pictures, but unfortunately the watch is still in transit, on it's long journey from Switzerland to Shanghai with a stop in HK to wait for a friend to carry it across the border.
But here are some actual pictures of my incoming Girard Perregaux Casquette, and my very first GP! Most of you will recognize the design as one of the influences for MB&F HM5, or the Romain Jerome Spacecraft.
I will be back soon with some fresh pictures.
Dean
