In 2002, Hermès approached Vaucher Manufacture Fleurier—a member of the same group as Parmigiani Fleurier—in order to gradually develop the capacity for creating the brand’s own exclusive movements. This collaboration gave birth to the Dressage timepiece in 2003, the first watch to be equipped with a high pre-cision HermÈs H1928 calibre, but whose ‘exclus-ivity’ was still limited to decoration evoking its ‘identity’ made up of the emblematic ‘H’.





With a progressive move up-market, other watches in the Dressage line followed, such as the lunar phases complication and the retrograde date, equipped with the Hermès calibre H1929, as well as the Cape Cod 1928 featuring a simple date, automatic winding mechanical movement, and the Cape Cod 8 Days, a manual winding timepiece with a power reserve of eight days and jumping hours.

Increased synergies
At the end of 2006, Hermès acquired a 25 percent stake in the capital of Vaucher. A new synergy was created that would allow La Montre Hermès to increase its offer of complicated watches, while assuring consistency in the supply of movements—a point that has become highly strategic in the current situation.
On the movement side, this synergy would see the birth of a totally new creation, the Calibre H1 ‘Simple Date’, with automatic winding, that was designed and developed entirely in-house by Vaucher Manufacture Fleurier for La Montre Hermès.
In its ‘simple’ execution, this calibre operates at 28,800 vibrations per hour and incorporates a double barrel giving it a power reserve of 50 hours. It integrates the classic watch functions with the display of hours, minutes, date, and a large central seconds hand. It is also equipped with a stop seconds hand, thus allowing the timepiece to be stopped for manual correction.
In its more ‘complex’ execution, the Calibre H1 ‘Big Date’ is equipped with an additional module that displays the date by means of two large numerals shown on two separate discs (instantaneous calendar). In addition, it is notable for its protected manual adjustment of the day and the hour, with a mechan-ism that allows the watch and calendar to be corrected at any time.
Resolutely sporty, the Clipper H1 comes in a 43.5mm large steel case that features screw-in horns and a unidirectional rotating bezel. The white, charcoal or silvered dial is decorated with the HermÈs ‘H’ while its hands are coated with Superluminova for easier visibility. The piece is mounted on a leather strap in black Barenia calf, natural or smooth Etoupe calf, or black or ‘Havana’ alligator, by Hermès, of course.


Source: Europa Star April-May 2008 Magazine Issue