Henrik, known as shortys home, presents an in-depth look at the Hentschel H1 1877 in platinum, featuring the brand's proprietary 'Werk 1' caliber. This article offers a detailed photographic journey, highlighting the watch's subtle design elements and the intricate craftsmanship of its movement. Henrik's post serves as a valuable resource for understanding this independent watchmaker's dedication to traditional German horology.
It was hard to resist the temptation to fulfil the wish of various purists and show the backside of this watch in the first teaser, now it's my pleasure to show a lot of pictures of this (so far) top end Hentschel watch.
Now that this photo journey has started with the backside, let's pause for a moment with some pictures of the front 😉
The H1 1877 has a diameter of 40mm, the case shape is similar to the H1 Chronometer, which has been featured here before. Besides the platinum case, the hands are different (a little less curved minute hand) and the dial is coated with platinum, showing a very subtle grained structure, the sparkling effect under the light can only be shown in HDR photos:
The dial color changes with light, it gets darker in the shade, almost impossible to capture in photos. You may get an idea here:
Now, let's move to the backside with more photos of Werk 1:
The calibre was developed entirely by Andreas Hentschel, featuring his own large screw balance, although it features some parts from a Revue calibre from the 1960s (some wheels, levers and the balance cock). Also, you may find yourself reminded of the three-quarter plate, which is a typical element of traditional Glashutte watchmaking. Well, Hamburg can do that as well 😉
Let me finish this introduction with a couple of additional shots using some artistic freedom, some wristshots and side views - hope you enjoyed and the wait was worth it 😎
Finally, let me point out that the watch shown is an exhibition piece from the Hentschel workshop, it may not show the absolute refinement a final timepiece for a customer will have.
Cheers
Henrik
