59Σ︎
Vianney Halter
Trio Small Seconds Prototype
An incredibly intriguing and experimental gold-plated brass prototype wristwatch with small seconds indication and date
Estimate
$60,000–120,000
Manufacturer
Vianney Halter
Year
Circa 2007, Switzerland
Model Name
Trio Small Seconds Prototype
Material
Gold-plated brass
Calibre
Automatic, Frédéric Piguet cal. 1150, 29 jewels
Bracelet/Strap
Crocodile
Clasp/Buckle
18K yellow gold Vianney Halter pin buckle
Dimensions
42mm length x 30mm width
Signed
Dial and buckle signed.
Accessories
Accompanied by printed photo of letter signed by Vianney Halter dated 21 December 2022.
Full-Cataloguing
GOOD TO KNOW
• Piece-unique prototype formerly retained at Vianney Halter’s manufacture
• Functional caliber with an incomplete printed date wheel
• Fresh-to-the-market
The present piece is an extraordinary full-scale design-study model created during Vianney Halter’s research and development of the celebrated Trio. Executed in gold-plated brass, its unconventional architecture features a large hours-and-minutes display, subsidiary seconds register and circular date aperture. Its riveted porthole-form bezels, blued hands, stylized Arabic numerals and studded crown embody the unmistakable retro-futurist vocabulary that established Halter as one of contemporary independent watchmaking’s most original voices.
Its remarkable history is documented through collector photographs spanning nearly a decade. The model appears among Halter’s prototypes and early-production pieces exhibited in Basel in 2008 and was subsequently photographed at his Sainte-Croix workshop in 2017. A photo of an associated letter dated December 21, 2022 and signed by Vianney Halter, formally identifies it as a “1:1 scale, non-functional design-study mock-up in gold-plated brass,” resulting from his research and development work for the Trio.
Originally conceived as a non-functional design model, the piece is fitted with an automatic movement bearing Frédéric Piguet caliber 1150 markings, rendering its time and subsidiary-seconds indications operational. As of the time of cataloging, it has has not been confirmed to be reworked by Vianney Halter. The importance of the present piece lies in its documented history as an original Halter-designed prototype, offering a rare physical record of the creative experimentation behind one of independent watchmaking’s most distinctive designs.
• Piece-unique prototype formerly retained at Vianney Halter’s manufacture
• Functional caliber with an incomplete printed date wheel
• Fresh-to-the-market
The present piece is an extraordinary full-scale design-study model created during Vianney Halter’s research and development of the celebrated Trio. Executed in gold-plated brass, its unconventional architecture features a large hours-and-minutes display, subsidiary seconds register and circular date aperture. Its riveted porthole-form bezels, blued hands, stylized Arabic numerals and studded crown embody the unmistakable retro-futurist vocabulary that established Halter as one of contemporary independent watchmaking’s most original voices.
Its remarkable history is documented through collector photographs spanning nearly a decade. The model appears among Halter’s prototypes and early-production pieces exhibited in Basel in 2008 and was subsequently photographed at his Sainte-Croix workshop in 2017. A photo of an associated letter dated December 21, 2022 and signed by Vianney Halter, formally identifies it as a “1:1 scale, non-functional design-study mock-up in gold-plated brass,” resulting from his research and development work for the Trio.
Originally conceived as a non-functional design model, the piece is fitted with an automatic movement bearing Frédéric Piguet caliber 1150 markings, rendering its time and subsidiary-seconds indications operational. As of the time of cataloging, it has has not been confirmed to be reworked by Vianney Halter. The importance of the present piece lies in its documented history as an original Halter-designed prototype, offering a rare physical record of the creative experimentation behind one of independent watchmaking’s most distinctive designs.
Vianney Halter
Swiss | 1994Vianney Halter seeks to change how we view time and creates mechanical timepieces with retro-futuristic innovative timekeeping displays. One of his most famous models, the groundbreaking Anitqua, takes inspiration from the nineteenth century with an industrial, steampunk aesthetic, using a case with four separate dial displays that wowed collectors when it was first launched in 1998. For some of Halter's creations, literature — in particular that of Jules Verne — has been a source of inspiration. Halter continues to create futuristic case designs and works with complicated movements.