Year: 2023
Movement No: Movement engraved "One of One"
Model Name: "Waterford 2023"
Material: Stainless steel
Calibre: Manual, cal. 55W
Bracelet/Strap: Leather
Clasp/Buckle: Stainless steel pin buckle signed Paul Gerber
Accessories: Accompanied by Gerber/Weber fitted box, Letter to the Owner, additional leather strap and outer packaging.
Paul Gerber may not be one of the best known names of independent watchmaking, but he is definitely one of the most respected. Opening his workshops in 1976, he has created watches under his name including the world’s first double rotor and triple rotor movements and has developed movements for major brands. For eleven years he worked on the most complicated wristwatch in the world (Piguet/Muller/Gerber Grande Complication), which consists of 1,116 parts and led the watch and Gerber to be featured in the "Guinness Book of Records" in 2005.
The present unique creation was created to support the Festival of Time in Waterford, Ireland, an exhibition dedicated to independent artisanal watchmaking. Gerber always up for a challenge, had decided on using a Unitas pocket watch movement as a base, and adding to it an oversized balance with an almost unheard of slow beat 14400 VPH frequency. It also features a moustache anchor. While working on this project, Gerber was approached by Anny Weber - a horology student who felt she needed a bit more challenge than her training curriculum would provide her. Gerber decided to have her work with him on the development of this watch accepting her technically challenging ideas, including the addition of a Breguet overcoil to the balance. Weber’s participation was so important that Gerber decided to have her name on the dial alongside his. The hand guilloché dial is made to resemble the waves of the sea at the shores of Waterford, a “Festival of Time” engraving was added around the hour track and the movement features a plaque filled with green lume engraved Waterford. In addition to supporting the future Festival of Time exhibitions, parts of the proceeds from the sale of this unique timepiece, engraved “One of One” on the movement will be donated to the ‘Join Our Boys’ Trust, a charity registered in Ireland dedicated to raising awareness and to offer practical support for families with children suffering from Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy in Ireland, and to Anny Weber herself for her watchmaking career development.