Some big news today that watch industry rock star Jean-Claude Biver has relinquished the top spot at Hublot to longtime company insider Ricardo Guadalupe.  Guadalupe, who has played an increasingly prominent role at events and product unveilings over the last couple years, is a 20 year veteran of the company as well as close friend and confidant of Biver.  Even though Biver will stay on as Chairman, the eponymous “face” of Hublot is no more.  While Hublot is surely in good hands under Guadalupe, there is no denying that Biver’s larger-than-life personality will be a sorely missed by Hublot and many of us who follow the industry at arm’s length.

Pioneering the art of “fusion”, Biver basically resurrected Hublot from the ashes to become one of the hottest and most innovative brands on the market today.  Biver’s many successful exploits — from Blancpain (1980′s) to Omega (1990′s) to Hublot (2000′s) — are largely highlighted on Biver’s Wikipedia page, though numerous interviews can be found via Google.

Congrats on all your achievements Mr. Biver.

Jean-Claude Biver (l) and Ricardo Guadalupe (r)

From Hublot:

All of us at Hublot are very pleased to inform you that Mr. Ricardo Guadalupe, former Managing Director of the Company, and personal friend of Mr. Jean Claude Biver with whom he has been working since nearly 20 years, has been appointed Chief Executive Officer effective January 1st 2012.
This  step was  planned a long time ago in consideration of  Mr.  Guadalupe’s significant and instrumental achievements together with Mr. Jean Claude Biver since joining Hublot in 2005.  Mr. Jean Claude Biver will continue to serve Hublot as the company’s Chairman of the Board, and as in the past give his precious insights into business strategy and product development.

As the official spokesperson of Hublot, Mr. Biver will also coordinate communications activities
with the press, collectors as well as trade and industry.

“There is a time for learning, a time for doing, a time for handing over, and a time for moving on. I’ve happily made it safe and sound to the hand-over stage. With the gratification of being able to hand over to a friend and colleague of more than twenty years. And happiness at the prospect of remaining part of the team on matters relating to strategy, products and corporate relations.”

This morning Hublot unveiled a sneak preview of the King Power Unico GMT watch, set to debut in January 2012.  This watch not only features one of Hublot’s new in-house movements (its “Unico” series), but it also an interesting, though somewhat confusing, manner of showing 24 timezones on the dial.  I have several mixed opinions about this watch.  At first glance I saw a clear influence from Urwerk’s rotating satellites and I thought “kinda cool.”  At second glance, I was scratching my head about the various “rings” of cities which go from bezel to dial, all in different font sizes and even in different planes/orientations (horizontal vs. vertical).  So as far as the GMT (24-hour) goes, I I must say that am not too keen this execution. but perhaps my appreciation will change once I better understand it.

This said, I must admit I’ve been waiting for something like this from Hublot — it is now clear to me that now that it has its own in-house movements ( the “Unico” series) and some new in-house talent (BNB and others), we are finally starting to see Hublot diversify its product lineup.  This is a very good thing for Hublot and also for the many of us who have been feeling a bit of “limited edition” Big Bang fatigue lately.  But at the same time, I would like to see Hublot would start offering some more modest case sizes (42-44mm range), as these 48mm monsters are just too big for most wrists.  Perhaps we will see something to this effect in 2012, so stay tuned in.

Hublot King Power Unico GMT Watch

48mm gold or black ceramic case, automatic mechanical Hublot Caliber 1220 (GMT function)

Look carefully and you can see that there are four GMT discs attached together by arms that form ” + ” shape — these discs are all linked and they move/rotate centrally with the main time.   As they do so, you are able to tell time in each of the 24 time zones which is marked off by little red lines and city names around outer edge of the dial.

Swiss luxury watch brand Hublot brought “The Art of Fusion” to Dalian, China today, where it held a grand launch ceremony for its Hublot Jet Li limited edition watch.  Jet Li joined the Hublot family in November 2010 to become its first brand ambassador in Asia. The limited edition Hublot Jet Li watch designed together by Jet Li and Hublot will be limited to 200 pieces globally, and features a matte black open-worked skeleton with Chinese screen decoration on the watch face, with an Yin-Yang symbol and the signature of Mr. Jet Li on the back.  The sapphire crystal also appears to be red-tinted (something we first saw on the Hublot F1 Monza watch).

Hublot Big Bang Jet Li Watch

Limited Edition 200 pieces

44.5mm black micro-blasted ceramic case, ceramic bezel, automatic mechanical movement, black rubber and black gummy alligator strap with red stitching

 Yin-Yang crystal and the signature of Mr. Jet Li

Ref. 311.CI.1130.GR.JLI11

Jet Li went on the record saying:

“As a world-renowned creator of premier timepieces, Hublot’s fusion of traditional watchmaking art and modern high technology is second to none. I truly admire that as a luxury brand, Hublot also remains incredibly active in its support of charity initiatives worldwide with its “Sharing and Caring” philosophy, sharing its success with individuals who need caring most. “

Here are a few live looks at the new Hublot Big Bang Chrono Tourbillon Ferrari watch that I showed you just recently…for my commentary on this watch and the future Hublot-Ferrari pieces we can expect at Baselworld 2012 (March 2012), click through to my original feature — otherwise, enjoy the photo reel…

Hublot Ferrari Big Bang Chrono Tourbillon (Live Looks)

damn the Prancing Horse is a beauty, ain’t she?

can’t take my eyes off of the Prancing Horse emblem…reminds me of time me and a ‘mate were doing 150+mph on a West Texas highway in a 360 Modena Spyder (or perhaps my man will recall more fondly the land speed record we set in the 550 Maranello (right, Harris? )

Hublot recently concluded the 2011 F1 season at the Interlagos circuit in Sao Paulo with the unveiling of the F1 King Power Interlagos watch. This marks the second new Hublot F1 watch unveiled this month and the eighth model overall for the Hublot F1 collection.  The watch is in the now familiar F1 King Power theme, except the cobalt blue color which is found in the centre of the Brazilian flag (pantone 280, anyone?).  Also this watch comes on a hornback alligator strap rather than the often seen Nomex-style strap.

More Hublot F1 Watches >>> Hublot F1 King Power Abu Dhabi, Hublot F1 King Power Gold, Hublot F1 King Power Ceramic, Hublot F1 King Power “Suzuka” Watch, Hublot King Power F1 – the Official Watch of Formula 1, F1 King Power Monza (red sapphire), F1 King Power India

 Hublot F1 King Power Interlagos Watch

Limited, Numbered edition of 250 pieces

48mm carbon fiber case, ceramic F1 “brake disc” style bezel, automatic mechanical chronograph movement, horback alligator strap with cobalt blue stitching

 (Ref. 703.QM.1129.HR.FIL11)

close-up:

Did you Know?

Formula 1

Formula One™, which began in 1950, is the world’s most prestigious motor racing competition and is the world’smost popular annual sporting series. In 2010 it was watched by 527 million unique television viewers from 180 countries.

Interlagos F1

The Sao Paolo circuit is notorious for, among other things, the fact that unlike other F1 courses it is run counterclockwise.

And so it begins…

Girard-Perregaux disappointed.  Panerai  fared only slightly better.  And now Hublot becomes the third fourth (five if you count the highly limited Cabestan Scuderia) high-end watch brand to try its hand with Official Ferrari-themed watches.  Live from Guangzhou, China, Hublot unveiled the first genuine Ferrari-Stamped Hublot watch – a pure collectors’ item of just 20 pieces.   This watch was expected given Hublot’s recent announcement of its global partnership with Ferrari, but rest assured that it is only a teaser — we can expect one if not multiple Hublot-Ferrari watches to be unveiled next March at Baselworld 2012 (I’ll be bringing You the first looks, of course).

As far as this piece goes I like the carbon fiber case, red sapphire-tint crystal, and the hornback crock strap with red stiching.  However, I will definitely expect much more than this in March 2012 and beyond.  After all, there is really nothing new in terms of design or functionality from Hublot (not even the red-tinted sapphire crystal — it debuted in the Big Bang Monza).  My bet (and hope) is that the Hublot-Ferrari pieces will evolve off of Hublot’s F1 watch series (see ‘em all here), which are quite impressive and distinct.  Stay tuned…

Hublot Big Bang Chrono Tourbillon Ferrari Watch

20 pieces LE for the 20th Anniversary of the First Ferrari in China

44mm carbon fiber case, automatic mechanical column-wheel chronograph movement with tourbillon, red tinted sapphire crystal

up close you can see the red-tinted sapphire crystal — nice!

Update:  Live Look added (first two pics)

Hublot, the Official Watchmaker of Formula 1, has introduced a new model in its popular but limited “F1″ series.  The newest Hublot F1 King Power was unveiled at the penultimate Grand Prix of the Formula 1 season, Abu Dhabi.  While TAG Heuer ambassador Lewis Hamilton raced to the checkered flag, Hublot’s JC Biver was seen with with F1 Boss Bernie Ecclestone showing off this new piece.  Like all Hublot F1 pieces, this one is a limited edition (250 pieces) and sports a light blue color inspired by the Yas Marina Cicruit in Abu Dhabi.  The brake-disc style ceramic bezel, the Nomex strap and F1-inspired pushers are all there, too.

More Hublot F1 Watches >>> Hublot F1 King Power Gold, Hublot F1 King Power Ceramic, Hublot F1 King Power “Suzuka” Watch, Hublot King Power F1 – the Official Watch of Formula 1, F1 King Power Monza (red sapphire), F1 King Power India

Hublot F1 King Power Abu Dhabi

48mm carbon fiber case, black ceramic bezel, automatic mechanical movement (split seconds), Nomex strap

close-up:

A few live pics of Dwyane Wade’s special edition Hublot, courtesy of Hublot Nation.  Catch my full overview of the Hublot D-Wade watch here.

Hublot Dwyane Wade Watch (Live Look)

For the love of horology…

Here’s the first live looks at the Hublot Antikythera mechanism, courtesy of Hublot.  In the ~3 minute video below, you also get a glimpse into the history of the Antikythera mechanism and why Hublot has decided to recreate it scaled down to wristwatch size.  Listening to Hublot Chief Jean-Claude Biver, it sounds like Hublot will make four, and only four, Antikythera wristwatches — one for the Athens Museum, one for the Musee des Arts de Metiers, one for the Hublot museum, and one piece that will be auctioned for charity (supporting the Athens Museum and the Musee des Arts de Metiers).  See our prior coverage of the Antikythera mechanism here and here.

Hublot Antikythera Mechanism Video

Hublot Antikythera Mechanism Pics

(c) Hublot

As promised in my initial story (which by the way was the first to tell of the the pending launch of an interesting new timepiece under development at Hublot (see my July, 2011 report here), here is an update on what is now confirmed to be the Hublot Antikythera project.  The Antikythera is not a watch, per se, but rather a horological machine of sorts.  The recreation of this mystical and ancient Greek device has been under the leadership of Mattias Buttet since before his time at Hublot (now Hublot’s head of Research and Development, Buttet formerly headed BNB Concept until its acquisition by Hublot in 2009).

As I noted in my July 2, 2011 story, while working replicas of the original Antikythera mechanism have been built, never before had the device been scaled down to fit into a wristwatch (20 centimeters down to 30 millimeters).  This really makes the re-creation of the Anitkythera device by Hublot more about horological adventurism and proof of watchmaking skill than an exercise in commercialism.  And for this I must applaud Hublot for embarking upon a project such as the Antikythera that is of limited commercial potential, but of great historical and horological interest.

Anyway, here’s a look at the device as it has been constructed and modernized by Hublot.  I’ve also included some of my own original pics of an Antikythera replica that is on display at the National Watch and Clock Museum in Columbia, PA, USA.  Because I know that the Antikythera will not appeal to many “normal” watch enthusiasts, I’m going to leave the full details of the project to the Hublot press/media team — and because they have put together a very informative press release on the Antikythera, its discovery, its functions, and more — all reproduced below. 

Hublot Antikythera Caliber 2033-CH01

30mm wide x 38mm long case (14mm thick)

hours, minutes, seconds (via tourbillon cage), flying tourbillon

dial side:  Egyptian Calendar, Calendary for Panhellenic games, Zodiac, moonphase, moon and sun apertures

back side:  Metonic cycle, Saros cycle, Callippic cycle, Exeligmos cycle

Antikythera Project (Video)

Antikythera Mechanism on Display at the National Watch and Clock Musuem

(c) Perpetuelle.com

Antikythera Mechanism Background (provided by Hublot)

The Antikythera mechanism is one of the most mysterious objects in the history of civilisation. Nowadays it is renowned and studied in great detail by the scientific community, but when it was first discovered back in 1901, its great historical and technical value remained a mystery to be uncovered. The very idea of a “machine” created in Greco-Roman Antiquity did not enter the conceptual framework of the specialists of the time. Thereafter, obscurantist statements from non-scientists claimed that the artefacts from Antikythera were almost extraterrestrial in nature, which only served to muddy the waters.

Toothed wheels eaten away by corrosion
The fragments of this “machine” were only analysed in-depth, taking a multidisciplinary approach, at the beginning of the 21st century. This work enabled the complexity of this extraordinary mechanism to be better understood. It is now clear that this “astronomical instrument” dates from the 2nd century BC (between 150 and 100 BC, with a more recent estimate dating it around 87 BC). Originally, it served as a “calculator”; its bronze gear trains were housed in a wooden box measuring approximately 33 cm x 18 cm and its case was sealed with two bronze plaques covered with inscriptions.

Only 82 fragments of this “machine” still remain, some minuscule, all corroded: they are now forever protected in the National Archaeological Museum of Athens. A state-of-the-art tomography study (using an X-ray scanner) has provided images which can be used both scientifically and archaeologically, revealing numerous internal gear trains which are invisible to the naked eye, toothed wheels and new inscriptions hidden under the concretions: less than a quarter of the ancient Greek lettering of this text engraved on the “machine” has successfully been deciphered, but it is believed to be a sort of “instruction manual” for the mechanical calculator, also thought to show the movement of some major planets. The gears were driven by what is believed to be a side handwheel – but the possibility of an auxiliary hydraulic system has not been ruled out.

On the trail of the great Archimedes…
It is now accepted that this machine could have been designed in Rhodes, home to a community of astronomers including Hipparchus, as well as “mechanical engineers” such as Posidonios. A new hypothesis has been sketched out: this machine is probably closely linked to Syracuse, in Sicily, the city of the famous mathematical genius Archimedes, then a prosperous Corinthian colony. The Antikythera mechanism could have been designed there before the shipwreck which subsequently gave the island its name.

According to current knowledge and based on the inscriptions which have been deciphered, the Antikythera mechanism could show the different cycles of the sun, the moon and (in all

likelihood) the planets, relating these to the civil calendars of several large Greek cities (Corinth, Delphi or Olympia), and showing the dates of the different games in these cities….

The study of the Antikythera mechanism – only very recently begun – is far from being finished, but it has given rise to a great wave of reinterpretation and reassessment of our knowledge of Antiquity. The reality of the mechanical knowledge held by these Greek scholars is a fantastic field to explore. It may even be that a record is found, in the texts or in the hidden reserves of museums, of other “machines” like the Antikythera mechanism.

Mechanical gear trains which express a mathematical vision of the cosmos
The Antikythera mechanism is not a clock capable of showing the time: the ancient Greeks did not experience time as we do. A genuine cosmograph (a machine to describe the cosmos), and more precisely a selenograph (a machine to describe the movements of the Moon), the Antikythera mechanism was highly accurate and could show multiple astronomical cycles, including the Metonic cycle (named after the Greek astronomer Meton: it runs for 19 years, equal to 235 lunar months) or the Callippic cycle (named after the Greek astronomer Callippus: it runs for 76 years, equal to 940 lunar months or four Metonic cycles), correcting any inaccuracies. The Antikythera mechanism also showed the Saros cycle (223 lunar months covering just over 18 years), as well as the Exeligmos cycle (equivalent to three Saros cycles, or 54 years) which served especially to predict eclipses.

The volume of astronomical data compiled to create a mathematical model able to summarise such cycles using mechanical gear trains is astonishing evidence of the conceptual abilities of the scholars and engineers of Antiquity. Given that a computer can generate data other than that entered into it, the Antikythera “machine” really is the first mechanical computer known to man. It was a good thousand years ahead of the first astronomical clocks created on a whole different scale in the main European cities in the Middle Ages.

The first watch ever to be inspired by an archaeological finding
In 2008, the revelation by the scientific journal, Nature, of tomographic analyses performed on the fragments of the machine certainly fuelled the imagination of some less conservative watchmakers. Mathias Buttet, current Director of Manufacturing and R&D at the Hublot manufacture, wanted to pay homage to the historical legacy which this first mechanical masterpiece represents. A technical tribute and a miniature recreation of the entire Antikythera mechanism as revealed by scientific analysis, crafted to fit perfectly on the wrist. It is also a homage to watchmaking, as it adds a new dimension to this astronomical calculator: that of a timepiece in its own right, capable of accurately measuring the time.

It is the first time in the history of watches that a watchmaking development office has taken direct inspiration in this way from an “archaeological” mechanism dating back to Antiquity. It is also the first time that a watchmaking team has worked hand in hand with a team of scientists bringing together leading international figures in archaeology, epigraphy and historians of mechanical engineering.

The watchmakers helped the archaeologists to better understand some gear trains and to confirm some hypotheses relating to the mechanics, while the scientists shared with the watchmakers technical solutions hitherto lost in Antiquity (in particular circular gears with non-linear cycles).

The sheer ability of the mechanical engineers of Antiquity to create such efficient bronze gear trains opens up new horizons in their philosophical relationships with technical progress and with the place of machines in their conception of the world – which can only in turn make us question our own relationship with modern-day machines and “gadgets”…

Faithful reproduction of the astronomical indications of the mechanism conceived by the ancient Greeks
The challenge facing Mathias Buttet’s team was to integrate a watchmaking movement in a miniaturised reinterpretation of the Antikythera mechanism, respecting the architecture of the original, and in particular its double-sided display. The team’s first task was to create in a few cubic centimetres what the mechanical engineers of Antiquity had developed over several hundreds of cubic centimetres, ensuring their creation was perfectly in keeping with the spirit of the original mechanism, both in terms of its accuracy and the legibility of its indications.

The hours and minutes are displayed in the conventional manner, at the centre of the movement recreated by Hublot and presented for the first time at the Musée des Arts et Métiers de Paris (the Museum of Arts and Crafts in Paris), as part of its exhibition entitled “Antikythera, the enigmatic machine which arose from the depths of time”. This watchmaking movement is regulated by a conventional tourbillon whose “cage” at 6 o’clock completes one revolution in one minute.

The various known indications of the Antikythera “machine” have been faithfully reproduced on its modern-day counterpart, both on the front and on the back. The primary face of the movement shows: the calendar for the Panhellenic games (which designated those cities hosting the games), the Egyptian calendar (12 months each of 30 days, with the epagomenal, or additional, days), the position of the sun in the constellations of the Zodiac, the phases of the Moon (with a magnificent hand and aperture which shows the position of the Moon in the zodiac throughout the sidereal month), as well as the sidereal year. The back of the watchmaking movement shows the Callippic cycle, the Metonic cycle, the Saros cycle and the Exeligmos cycle.

A modern micro-mechanical tribute to the mechanical engineers of Antiquity
This is the first time in the history of timepieces that these cycles – a legacy from Antiquity – have been studied, reproduced and displayed mechanically: to create some of these gears, the Hublot team had to develop a highly innovative concept of noncircular telescopic hands, capable of pointing to the spiral discs of varying diameters.

The Hublot “Antikythera” watch housing this watchmaking movement, a concept devised in Antiquity, will be presented at the Baselworld watch show in Spring 2012. After that, the movement will be on show at a permanent exhibition which the Musée des Arts et Métiers is dedicating to the Antikythera mechanism: a 2D and 3D film produced by Hublot will be projected at the exhibition to share with the public the whole story of this Antikythera “machine” from Antiquity to the modern day, creating a bridge between the knowledge of the mechanical engineers of Antiquity and the expertise of 21st century watchmakers. This film is also available on YouTube (http://www.youtube.com/user/antikythera2012).