An iconic backbone of the brand, the Chronomètre Souverain epitomises F.P. Journe’s undying commitment to cognitive design and precision. Translated from marine chronometers of the early 20th century, the model was introduced in 2005 and received instant recognition at the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève, winning the Favourite Men’s Watch award of the year. Granted the GPHG is the most prestigious award ceremony in Haute horology, it not only cemented his standing within the industry but further elevated his presence beyond the watch community. With only a small number of pieces produced, along with a handful of custom requests from existing clients, this model has since established itself as one of the brand's most coveted dress watches.

Relinquishing Journe’s iconic design, the present example features an opaline silvered dial, boasting a smooth granulated finish in favour of the distinct Clous de Paris guilloche centre. Complementing its warm and inviting pink gold case, the dial is topped with manually polished hands and applied Arabic numerals, creating a mirror-like sheen that brilliantly contrasts against the muted grainy backdrop. The power reserve indicator, flanked at 3 o’clock, is an interesting mechanism that indicates upwards towards “0”, rather than reading downwards heading from “0” to “56”. A calculated move by the watchmaker, this feature was borrowed from marine chronometer clocks and is supposed to tell its wearer how many hours have advanced since the watch was wound, instead of the number of hours remaining. Complete by a subsidiary seconds register, strategically placed between 7 and 8 o’clock, the dial is well-balanced and very easy on the eyes.

Belonging to the manual-winding Souverain family, the present timepiece is the reflection of independent watchmaking at its finest, driven by the in-house cal. 1304 made entirely of 18K pink gold. Shining through its sapphire caseback, the movement has two mainspring barrels in parallel, working in unison to power the wristwatch. Beautifully executed, each component is hand-finished with a combination of perlage and sunburst patterns, further defined by the chamfered edges and Côte de Genève bridges.

Measuring at 40mm in diameter, the current Chronomètre Souverain is a tastefully crafted precision instrument made for the modern gentry, offered in excellent overall condition with its original accessories.