Given the dominance of Swiss watchmaking in modern times, it is
difficult to imagine an age when another horological culture and
tradition held sway in Europe. The late 18th century, however, was
an age when English watchmaking reigned supreme. The country's
watchmakers developed an aesthetic entirely of their own, dictated
partly by contemporary taste but also by their desire to roll back
the boundaries of a field that combined art, tradition and
technology like no other.
John Arnold and his son played an influential role in the
directions taken by English watchmaking. They combined a finely
developed aesthetic sense with an ability to find solutions to
technological problems, crafting magnificent movements and designs
with cutting-edge mechanical features that garnered several
patents.
Today, Arnold & Son is proud to draw on and maintain that
unique heritage. The models in the Royal Collection reflect many of
the features that made the original company's name. The TB88, for
example, demonstrates Arnold & Son's ongoing quest for
state-of-the-art technology and clearly reflects the influence of
English design. With its True Beat (TB) complication and the
symmetrical arrangement of twin barrels, balance wheel and seconds
display, it is beautifully balanced and unites many of the
technical and aesthetic qualities associated with the brand's
heritage.
The other members of the Royal Collection are just as
impressive. The deceptively simple lines of the HMS1, for example,
house an ultra-slim hand-wound movement with twin barrels that
generate an 80-hour power reserve. HMS Lady retains the same
elegant proportions as the larger version because the movement is
so precisely scaled down. Another member of the HMS Family, the
HMS1 Dragon, a fabulous special edition featuring a beautifully
sculpted three-dimensional 22-carat dragon figure, showcases the
brand's ability to replicate Arnold & Son's prowess in the
decorative arts.
Other Royal Collection models, like the TE8 - another example of
trailblazing technology - are fitted with complications such as a
tourbillon, or as in the case of the Hornet World Timer, a wealth
of complex indications including equation of time and true solar
time, together with big date and multiple time zone displays. The
True Moon watches have uniquely realistic perpetual moon phase
displays, while the Hornet James Cook Set features hand-painted
miniatures of major events in the explorer's life. Common to them
all, however, is traditional craftsmanship, as evidenced by the
hand-finished and embellished movements, combined with outstanding
technical features and the opulent design of the Royal
Collection.
