The Grand Prix d'Horlogerie de Genève (GPHG) 2024 awarded the “Aguille d’Or” Grand Prix to IWC Schaffhausen’s Eternal Calendar, with a calendar mechanism so precise it requires no adjustment until the year 3999! CEO Christoph Grainger-Herr was at the November awards ceremony in Geneva to personally accept the award. He speaks exclusively to Tatler GMT on winning the prestigious prize
How does it feel to win the “Aguille d’Or” Grand Prix?
It is an incredible honour for all of us at IWC Schaffhausen. This recognition highlights the relentless passion, skill, and dedication of our teams across all departments. It also underscores our commitment to pushing the boundaries of engineering excellence while crafting timepieces that embody timeless elegance and innovation.
Read more: GPHG 2024: The list of winners
The award-winning IWC Schaffhausen Portugieser Eternal Calendar
What aspects of the Portugieser Eternal Calendar do you believe captivated the jury, and how do they embody IWC's commitment to horological excellence?
The Portugieser Eternal Calendar stands as a milestone in mechanical watchmaking. Its innovative 400-year gear, which accounts for the Gregorian calendar's leap year exceptions, ensures unmatched accuracy over centuries. Another highlight is its Double Moon phase display, recognised by Guinness World Records as the most precise in the world. This mechanism deviates by just one day in 45 million years, demonstrating the extraordinary technical ingenuity behind the timepiece. This recognition from the GPHG jury affirms our vision of continuously redefining what is possible in haute horlogerie.
See also: The 3 best perpetual calendar watches for leap year 2024
Christoph Grainger-Herr holding the GPHG award
Christoph Grainger-Herr on stage to accept the “Aguille d’Or” Grand Prix at the awards ceremony in Geneva
How do you see the role of the perpetual calendar evolving at IWC?
Perpetual calendars hold a special place in IWC's history, thanks to the groundbreaking work of Kurt Klaus in the 1980s. His ingenious design, featuring a crown-controlled mechanism, transformed the perpetual calendar into a more accessible and user-friendly complication, setting a new standard in watchmaking. Building on this legacy, we continue to innovate, ensuring that the perpetual calendars remain an enduring symbol of our expertise and creativity.
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