Haute Time Presents An Inside Look At Maitres Du Temps Timepieces With Founder Steven Holtzman At Basel World

At Basel World 2012, Haute Time sat down with Steven Holtzman, the founder of the very exotic and exclusive watch brand Maitres Du Temps.

The company was founded in 2007 with the concept of working with master watchmakers. The name Maitres Du Temps in English actually translates to “Masters Of Time.” With mixing two or three master watchmakers together, they have created something different that a solo watchmaker could not do.

Maitres Du Temps’ projects are created as “Chapters”with the goal of each Chapter being a page in watchmaking history.

The Chapter One timepiece features a rolling bar that has a day and moon phase display with a very powerful tourbillon created by Christophe Claret and Peter Speake Marin. The exquisite piece is just under half a million dollars. It’s very limited and very exclusive, with only 11 of each watch made. We also took a look at the Chapter One “Tonneau ” version which had a similar look to the original but with a curved shape that really fits the wrist nicely.

The Chapter Two watches resembles the Chapter One timepieces but has more daily use with a month, big date and day display. With a triple calender, it’s the one watch which tells you everything. Price point is the mid $80,000s. There was also a special novelty Chapter Two created for Basel with diamonds, limited to 15 pieces.

The Chapter Two also features a round timepiece model which has a more sporty feel and is made out of titanium so it’s very lightweight. The price of this entry level piece is $69,000. The gold rotor on the back features the company’s motto “Masters In Their Craft, A Lifelong Pursuit Of Excellence.” It’s always indicated somewhere on Maitres Du Temps watches.

The Chapter Three watches are the first to use Maitres Du Temps’ own in-house caliber, where the movement was designed from scratch. It boasts the date, a small second hand and a moon phase. The Chapter Three Reveal is a 42mm watch that is simple, classic and fits nicely on the wrist. This watch also has a special secret: The GMT. When you press the button, the dial drops and opens. The back features two rollers on the bottom which slide on a pivot which is very special. Price point of The Chapter Three Reveal will be in the mid $80,000s and will be released in the fourth quarter of this year.

Check out the video above to get an inside look at my meeting with Steven Holtzman and the amazing
Maitres Du Temps timepieces at Basel World.

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