INNOVATION
The C9 watch wunderkind
THE CREATOR OF THE CALIBRE 2824-2-MOD-JJ01 IN THE C9 HARRISON JUMPING HOUR MADE HIS REPUTATION AT THE TENDER AGE OF JUST 22 YEARS WITH A MASTERPIECE OF A WATCH THAT SELLS FOR ABOUT £70,000. THE MAGNIFICENT “KING ALBERT OF SAXONY” WATCH WAS MADE ON BEHALF OF DRESDEN- BASED LANG & HEYNE, WHOSE MARCO HEYNE HAD SPOTTED AND ENCOURAGED THE EXTRAORDINARY TALENT OF JOHANNES JAHNKE.
B
orn in East Germany, Johannes first dismantled and repaired a broken clock at the age of 12. Championed by Marco Heyne of Lang & Heyne, he first made a functional escapement model by building the wheels and cogs by hand. The “King Albert of Saxony” is a column-wheel chronograph with a central minute counter. The necessity for a vertical clutch, together with the position of the chronograph, makes this construction extremely challenging. With some assistance from Lang & Heyne, in 2006 Johannes finished his watch
“When ‘King Albert of Saxony’ went on sale there was a lot of buzz about me being so young but I don’t think I am particularly special,” says Johannes. “A hundred years ago there were several watchmakers in their early twenties making wonderful watches – there just aren’t any now.”
In 2008 Johannes, eager to produce watches that were not merely the preserve of monied collectors, was offered a job by Jörg Bader, Christopher Ward’s Swiss partner. The partnership with Christopher Ward that produced the exciting C9 JH suits
16
Johannes particularly well as the relationship allows him to bring luxury watches within the reach of more people. He also appreciates the very close relationship the company has with its customers.
“There are a lot of barriers between watchmakers and their customers and that is a shame. Creating a watch for someone you don’t know and never hear from isn’t that rewarding. Christopher Ward not only sells directly to its customers, it also engages with them on an independent forum, by email and over the ‘phone. The company really listens to what they say and several of our designs have been changed or even inspired because of what customers have said.”
Johannes is an ideal collaborator for a UK- based design company like Christopher Ward because he loves all things British. He owns and runs immaculate, original examples of the Series I Jaguar XJ6 and a Norton bike. “I am hoping that one day I will get my hands on a historic aircraft!” says this softly- spoken mechanical wizard. For now, however, he is flying high with the C9 Harrison Jumping Hour.
christopherward.co.uk
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52