Gaël Petermann and Florian Bédat are one of the most creative, young and inventive duo in contemporary watchmaking. A long time friendship before being a partnership, the two met at watchmaking school in Geneva in 2007, went on to work together and hone their skills at A. Lange & Söhne, and eventually they opened their workshop on the outskirts of Lausanne.
Deadbeat seconds reference 1967 is their first creation. Launched in 2018, the timepiece features an incredibly inventive design, merging tradition with modernity. The center of the dial is a frosted disc, a finish reprised on the outer minute track - featuring a five-minute chemin-de-fer minute divisions, a scale typical of mid-century watchmaking. Between the central disc and outer track, the top plate acts as dial providing contrast to the numerals painted to the underside of the crystal. The semi-skeletonized construction features a main opening which allows the beholder to enjoy the gearwork of the winding crown stem, and smaller round apertures showcasing screws and jewels. The final result of this dial architecture is extremely unusual, blending historical details with modern aesthetics in a surprisingly powerful, but at the same time very elegant, package. The movement side of the timepiece is as fascinating as the dial side, featuring the highest level of decoration: coats de Geneva to the bridges, hand-polished chamfers, perlage to the mainplate, hand-polishing and hand-black polishing to the bevels of the steel parts and so on. It truly is and ode to traditional watchmaking techniques and finishing.
Production of Petermann-Bédat timepieces is extremely limited given the ridiculous level of perfectionism they demand from themselves, and unsurprising their waiting list is daunting. Thus, this lot would seem the perfect occasion to skip the wait and acquire immediately one of these supreme timepieces, but the present watch is so much more than that. As unmistakably declared on its dial, this is a 1/1 piece unique example, and what makes it unique is as subtle as it is appealing: out of the three 1967 specimen in steel ever made, this is the only one with luminous hands. Any connoisseur knows the intellectual pleasure that derives from having a sublime horological creation fitted into a stainless steel case - one of the most mundane materials. This contrast is nearly blasphemous: high watchmaking should be fit into precious metals cases, according to logic. Thus, high-end complicated watches in steel are as rare as they come, usually made in restricted limited editions (as in this three-pieces instance) or even as piece uniques, and they are considered the ultimate catnip for even the most seasoned of collectors. The presence of the unique luminous hands is the proverbial cherry on top of this outstanding horological masterpiece.
