Letter from the Publisher

A wINDow oN ThE STARS
In western civilization, the moonphase display is an essential
part of the first large medieval clocks. It appears on the dials
of the first pocket-watches in the 14th century, alongside
other astronomical and astrological indications, and well
before horologers were able to measure the minutes
and later, the seconds. In the late 18th century, the
great Abraham-Louis Breguet made ample use of
it on various use of it on watches featuring various
complications by creating pure and refined dials of a
nature echoed by the recent Breguet Classique 7337,
a wristwatch with an offset chapter ring, asymmetrical
small seconds, moonphase and day of the week and
date appearing in two windows at 10 and 2 o’clock. In
2010, Blancpain provided a masterful reinterpretation of
the classic moonphase calendar tradition introduced in its
Villeret collection and named Phase de Lune Demi-Savonnette.
Il comprises a fully secured calendar mechanism with underlug
correctors and a red-gold half-hunter type case. In its Annual
Calendar Ref. 5205 model, Patek Philippe chose a calendar
requiring just one correction per year, at the end of February.
The moonphase aperture at 6 o’clock is rimmed by a counter
for the 24-hour indication. Meanwhile, A. Lange & Söhne and
Audemars Piguet have opted to associate the moonphase with a
traditional perpetual calendar on the Saxonia Annual calendar and
Jules Audemars Perpetual Calendar, while Vacheron Constantin
has done likewise and also added a column-wheel chronograph in
its Patrimony Traditionnelle Perpetual Calendar Chronograph.
top left
A. Lange & Söhne, Saxonia Annual calendar
top right
Audemars Piguet , Jules Audemars Perpetual Calendar
above
Vacheron Constantin , Patrimony Traditionnelle
Perpetual Calendar Chronograph
Moonphases 455 •