Ornatus-Mundi shares a heartfelt account of Master Watchmaker Paul Gerber's 65th birthday celebration, offering a rare glimpse into the personal side of an independent horological legend. This post not only commemorates a significant milestone but also highlights Gerber's continued dedication to watchmaking, even as he reaches traditional retirement age. Readers gain insight into the intimate atmosphere surrounding a master craftsman's life and work.
Many of the great masters were considered monoliths of excellence, being always there and this since ages, and they were thought to stay forever. But then, somewhere deep inside they share features with us mere mortals, and one of them is called: retirement age!
Earlier this year, Master Watchmaker Paul Gerber - famed for his ultra complicated Piguet/MĂĽller/Gerber watch (which earned him a mention in the Guinness Book of Records as the most complicated wristwatch in the world), his multi-rotor automatics and many, many pieces more, finally turned 65.
(image credit: one of the guests ;-))
PuristSPro was invited to celebrate his anniversary, and I am glad to let you - virtually - take part:
The evening before:
I met with Paul the evening before in his workshop, scheduled to revise some English text for a brochure. It was a Friday, but still he was as aver busy with some tricky minuscule details work, secluded in his atelier, still working. In his hand a newborn Cal. 41 watch, his own development featuring a 100h power reserve movement, his proprietary triple rotors, and a fun (and in this
particular case (pun intended!) as well as cleverly designed jumping second hand:
This is the last watch he
officially (;-)) completed in his
active career . It was a very touching moment for Paul (and for me to take part) to see his last creation finished - more on this piece later,
promised!
The celebration:
Fast forward 24h, the sizeable group of felicitators met at the
restaurant Winzerhaus ('winemaker's house'), which very aptly is situated atop of a few of the largest vineyards in the canton of Zurich.
So we were not surprised to find ourselves whisked away into the wine-cellar, atmospheric home of quite a some oenological jewellery...
Oh yes, one could become quite distracted... Mot only the wines, but also - anybody recognise the gentleman on the left? Thanks God,
Winzerhaus owner and host
Martin Bühler (Officier Mâitre Rôtisseur, Vice Conseiller Culinaire of the
Confrérie de la Chaîne des Rôtisseurs) came to draw our attention to the feast that was about to start soon.
Well, it appears like both Paul Gerber and his wife Ruth needed a separate call to order...
This is how nice people should look like...!!!
TEMPTING times immediately ahead....
But what about the seating arrangements? Well, being invited by a master watchmaker you can be sure that this will be taken care of by a mechanical solution to the problem... Quite rightfully so, although the tiny machines caused quite a bit of curiosity!
So here such wondrous little object is in close-up (more in a few days!)...
"A one, a two, a three..."
YES - I found my seat (congratulations to self...)!
But others were faster...
As many of you probably know, Paul Gerber is an avid
control-line model plane pilot (image taken from
my 2011 report):
Quite a few of his colleagues and even a retired Swissair pilot being present as guests. Thus, delivery of gifts called for an
adequate mode of transport...
Toasts? On friendship, and on love. If you ever have seen Paul and Ruth together you know why... But why do I have the feeling that certain guys to the left are not fully attentive?
... but then again, everybody is susceptible to his/her own source of distraction (or better:
contemplation?). I wonder what Paul is thinking... Perhaps... He secretly told me that his imaginative calibre list (both for now use as well as for undisclosed clients) goes well into the
50s (with Cal.
42 currently the last on in production carrying his now name)...
Speaking of which, this is an interesting specimen. Not really a Paul Gerber , not really for sale, but with a dial that looks so familiar to quite a few watch lovers: Outer section RetroTwin, inner section Paul's PPro watch? I will come back to this piece in due time!
A real stunner is
Andreas Strehler's Sauterelle , a twin-barrel watch with so many intricate details. One of them is a
remontoir d'égalité (constant force) integrated into the seconds gears (thus, over its 78h power reserve the amplitude always remains the same). For me, this is the one which expresses Andreas' unassuming personality best. Definitely worth another look!
An old favourite of mine,
IWC's original
Da Vinci . This one belongs to a former Swissair pilot and has been worn in many places around the world. The result? A very special patina and personal charm.
What is an anniversary celebration without a view back on the life of the birthday boy? As much as we despise smart watches, we also need a
mechanical PowerPoint presentation - granted, and this with
in-house movement (pun intended):
The
passions of Paul Gerber... In German we have the proverbial
Wein, Weib und Gesang, which in English translates a bit awkward into 'Wine, Woman, and Song', but see also Johann Strauss II (Op. 333)):
Precious memories shared with friends!
So:
three cheers (for Paul)!
Friendship, an evening well filled with it, and more to come! Paul Gerber in the midst of
Andreas Strehler and clock maker
Matthias Naeschke - embraced by yours truly:
The Final Word:
Paul sent me a few days later this image: danke - THANKS to all of you for your support and your patronage. Without the decades of interaction with watch lovers Paul could not have accomplished all those impressive feats he did so far.Thank you for all your comments, criticism and applause.
Paul wants to express his sincere thanks to PuristSPro...- for being the prime community to celebrate Paul's work. He still remembers fondly (and hosts a copy on his website) the reports published here on the Piguet/Mueller/Gerber watch
- for the invitation to join IGOTT-2 in Las Vegas
- for awarding the honour of being selected to create one of the
PuristSPro 10th Anniversary watches (
click here for a review by Art)
Final? Well, a Word about the Future:
When I said in my the subject line to this post that 'retirement' depends on its definition, than this is above all true for Paul as well. Having reached the official Swiss retirement age, Paul decided to change his watchmaking setup and concentrate more on projects dear to him. No more trainees or employes to care for. Only he himself and Ruth.
This implies we will see more exceptional creations, less 'collection'. More individual watchmaking than 'produced' watches.
For us I think there is a lot to look forward to in the next future. Two new calibres are almost ready for launch - a few days, weeks?
Stay tuned!
Thanks for reading (and please leave a word to Paul!),
Magnus
This message has been edited by Ornatus-Mundi on 2015-03-06 05:32:30 
