Montblanc Villeret: Minerva's Enduring Legacy

MTF's report from a 2008 Montblanc Villeret event in Hong Kong offers a deep dive into the integration of Minerva's heritage into Montblanc's high horology division. This article explores the historical continuity of Minerva, the strategic vision behind Montblanc's investment, and the unique personalities driving the manufacture. Readers will gain a comprehensive understanding of Montblanc Villeret's journey and its commitment to traditional watchmaking.

Star Ferry - Hong Kong
This scene immediately evokes the flavour of Hong Kong: busy, bustling, riding the waves and reaching for the sky.

On 22 Nov 2008, Montblanc Villeret kindly hosted a iW (Chinese Edn) - PuristSPro GTG in Hong Kong for iW magazine readers and PuristS community, it was an opportunity to get up close and personal with Montblanc Villeret (Minerva) to learn more about this high horology division of Montblanc and also to dispel some myths.

King Fook Watch VIP Rooms - Kowloon

Ostensibly, the event was to celebrate 150 years of continuous watchmaking at Minerva, as well as to introduce the Montblanc Collection Villeret 1858 Grand Tourbillon Heures Mystérieuses. We were there to also find out about the high-end Montblanc timepieces from a brand better known for it's pens, leather goods and accessories.

It seemed a logical step-wise progression:

First, there were watch designs that matched the pens; I remember looking for a Montblanc watch to match my pens.

Then, there came watches with reliable 3rd party and Montblanc in-house Rieussec movement.

Finally, the high-end Manufacture in Villeret.

Alexander Schmiedt welcomed guests and presented

Alexander Schmiedt is Business Director of 'Villeret 1858' Manufacture of Montblanc. The technical Director of Institut Minerva de Recherche en Haute Horlogerie is Demetrio Cabiddu, whose signature is found on some of the Collection pieces.

Monique Wyssmueller

Monique Wyssmueller was a key member of the "demonstration team" on her first trip to a number of cities in the Far East. We were rather intrigued to hear that Monique's hobby is restoring vintage tractors...yup - those hulking, agrarian machines are her "other love". She has more than 60 tractors! We thought that she must have the largest garden in Villeret but Moniquer tells us that she parks them very, very, close together

 

Let's start with a little Unauthorised History of Minerva:

1858 – H & C Robert Co. founded in Villeret
1887 – Minerva and Arrow trademarks
1902 – Pocket Watch movements
1908 – Pocket Watch Chronograph
1909 – Wristwatch movements
1923 – Cal. 20 wristwatch chronograph
1929 – Renamed Minerva S.A.
1935 – Sold to 2 employees; 19-ligne Caliber 42 @ 36,000vph; 1/100th second chronograph
1936 – Winter Olympics timekeeper
1978-1984 – Swiss Watchmaking Crisis
1998 – Low point and Internet watches
2000 – “Italian Holding Group”; “Wanna-be” Patek Philippe prices; “gift watches” for Italian owner
2006 – Montblanc investment; Institut Minerva de Recherche en Haute Horlogerie

Note the dials and movements of past famous high-beat chronographs and stop-watches 1/100th seconds resolution.

Minerva survived the quartz era by continuing to make small production runs of stop watches and simple time only watches.

Grand Tourbillon Heures Mystérieuses
The Grand Tourbillon Heures Mystérieuses will be available as unique, bespoked versions in platinum and editions of eight in either white or rose gold (5N). The tourbillon revolves around its own axis once a minute; including the balance, it comprises 95 individual parts and weighs in at 0.96 grams. The tourbillon cage, measuring 18.4mm in diameter, contains a large balance 14.6 mm in diameter, which has a high moment of inertia of 59 mgcm2 and a classical frequency of 2.5 Hertz (18 000 bph).

There are three moveable compensating weights with the Minerva arrow, which can be pushed to and fro on the curved arc of the tourbillon cage to obtain perfect equilibrium. The steel tourbillon bridge takes the form of two horizontal, overlapping figures of eight, which are also symbols of infinity. All the steel parts in the bridge and cage are carved from solid pieces of metal and then painstakingly shaped, chamfered and polished by hand; that takes three weeks for each tourbillon and calls for standards of craftsmanship mastered by only a handful of master watchmakers.

There has also been comment over the Internet that this watch was presented in 2005 before Montblanc acquired Minerva. Mr Schmiedt made it clear that although development prototypes and concept may have been discussed before, no finished and production grade pieces were realised until the Montblanc investment allowed the concept to become reality. Like the previous series of owners, Montblanc's investment allowed the Manufacture to continue existence and even re-establish traditional production methods.

Each timepiece in the Montblanc Collection Villeret 1858 is accompanied by a set of lithographs presented in a leather-bound case: historic depictions of the old Minerva workshops, landscape impressions of the Jura mountains, illustrations of watch movements, and a lithograph of the watch in question.

The latter is at the very heart of each portfolio because, like the watch itself, it is unique. It bears the watch‘s serial number, its number in the limited edition, and the handwritten signature of master watchmaker Demetrio Cabiddu. Each set of lithographs is assembled individually and is thus a document of the philosophy that makes each and every watch in the Montblanc Collection Villeret 1858 something unique.

The process tha blew us away was that Montblanc Villeret (Minerva) is amongst a handful of Manufactures in Switzerland that poise their own balance wheel and make their own spirals (hairsprings) by hand. There has been much discussion on the Internet as to the reasons for this.

In the first place, slow-beat large diameter (14.6mm) balance wheel and spirals with Phillip's terminal curve cannot be sourced from Nivarox. Minerva have to make their own and that they do so allows autonomy for future designs and preserves the patrimony of the watchmaker's art.

Unlike some other brands, the screws on the Minerva balace wheels actually perform a task. They fix the washer-like weights at appropriate positions on the wheel to poise or balance the weight distribution.

Starting with straight round wires, the manufacture flattens the wires and forms them into coils. Heat treatment alters the 'memory' of the wire to maintain their spiral shape. The central collets are fixed by hand to the spirals with the wedge-like wire.

The exact length of spiral determines the beat frequency (18,000 vph), and that length is determined by using this machine. The large reference balance wheel has been calibrated and selaed  by a official observatory. The test balance wheel is set in motion with the reference wheel.

By altering the length of the spiral, the test balance wheel achieves the same beat frequency as the reference wheel. This "counting" process compares the difference in beat count of the two wheels, hence the French term for the process. The spiral is cut at the right length.

Monique bends the Philipps terminal curve by hand to improve isochronism.

The product of 4 hours work: hand-made spiral with terminal curve and balance poised

Monique is one of only 2 balance wheel spiral makers at Minerva; both are ladies.

Monique trained the other lady to keep the art alive at Minerva. Prior to being re-employed by Minerva, Monique worked at the village post-office and did part-time work attaching hands to quartz watches for Cartier. Such was the devastation of the 1970s quartz revolution to tradtional skills but luckily, she kept her tools and skills alive.
 

Alexander Schmiedt showing Hong Kong PuristS the Collection

 

PuristS all !

Regards,

MTF

We would like to thank:

Montblanc Villeret and Montblanc Hong Kong teams for an educational and eye-opening evening.

iW (Chinese Edn) magazine for photos and helping with logistics.

Hong Kong watch-fans and PuristS for joining the event, asking questions and holding discussions.

Photo credits as marked.

Text Copyright Dr Melvyn Teillol-Foo & PuristSPro LLC, 2008.