Parmigiani Fleurier Ovale Pantographe Owner Review : Impressive, astute and unusual

If there is one watch that I believe leaves no one indifferent, it is the Ovale Pantographe by Parmigiani. This is a watch that is quite rightly what is called an OHNI (Unidentified Horological Object). And for good reason, the prestigious Fleury brand is the only one to have produced a wrist interpretation of the famous 18th century pocket watch created by Vardon & Stedmann, a rare example of which (restored by Michel Parmigiani himself) can be admired at the Patek Philippe Museum in Geneva. Here is a generously sized piece composed of a large elliptical case (45*37.6mm for 12mm thickness) topped with the 4 protruding water drop horns, signature of the house of Fleurier, a sumptuously lacquered dial, an 8-day power reserve indicator at 12 o'clock, a trailing date at 6 o'clock but above all these intriguing riveted hands in blued aluminum and their mirror-polished barrel in the shape of a small tube... The reality of this complication starts from a simple principle... On a shaped watch, the hands, when the hour runs, are never at the same distance from the edges of the dial. They can move closer to it (particularly at 3 o'clock and 9 o'clock) or further away from it (for example at 4 o'clock or 5 o'clock). Vardon and Stedmann, the inspiration behind the Oval Pantograph, imagined in the 1700s an authentic piece of watchmaking engineering whose hands would retract and unfold according to the passage of time, so that the hands would always be equidistant from the edges of the dial. This idea was taken up again in the early 2010s by Michel Parmigiani with a desire to offer the complication in a wristwatch, which was a world first. We can say that this complication is completely useless and therefore monstrously indispensable! This piece is quite imposing in size, it is noticeable, but its diameter and its monumental character, opulent, even because of the brilliance of its pink gold (it also existed in white gold and a version with a guilloché dial and gold movement was produced in dribs and drabs, which brings according to my sources the number of copies in circulation to around 110, small being very beautiful!), its originality, make it a sort of archetype of the "conversation starter piece" as it resembles strictly nothing else on the watch market. To experience it singularly during the watch events I attend, the comments on this piece (which many lovers of Haute Horlogerie have heard of but few have actually seen) are frequent and all without exception dithyrambic, praising both the ingenuity of the complication and the rarity of seeing a Parmigiani and particularly this one. On the back of the watch you can admire the sumptuous PF111 (a derivative of the PF110 but which has the Pantograph module in addition), a true watchmaking cathedral with nickel silver bridges with a cloud-like aesthetic and above all a host of re-entrant angles, Côtes de Genève, mirror-polished screws, circular graining... A high level of finishing. And the piece itself makes me dream, tells me stories. Having been during the May bank holidays spent in Alsace, having visited the Schlumpf Collection and seen the Royale Coupé Napoléon, the Ovale Pantographe reminds me a little of the latter... It is at the forefront of artistic craftsmanship with a complication never again reproduced after it, its curves, its sculptural character, its generous presence on the wrist, the warmth of its pink gold giving it a luxurious appearance, its rather old-fashioned character of a museum piece, all this reminds me of the prestigious car with the dancing elephant. Especially since the similarities between the Fleurier and Molsheim brands are quite numerous, to the point that the former partnership between the two houses is missed as it seemed so obvious (oval logo, Gouttes d’Eau horns reminiscent of the mudguards of old Bugattis, common Italian origins of Michel Parmigiani and Ettore Bugatti, commercial links with Hermès, passion for artistic crafts and prestigious crafts, names of the models evoking the automobile (e.g.: Tonda GT)). To conclude, the Ovale Pantographe is a piece that is in my eyes sublime, rare, technical, sculptural, monumental and with top-notch finishes. I therefore consider it a must-have for lovers of exotic and different watchmaking, who want to stand out, especially since the beauty, when found (which is not easy, especially since you have to pay attention to the condition of the hands, their technicality making an intervention expensive), knows how to make itself "affordable" (important quotes), undergoing a significant discount. A beautiful example can be yours for a little less than €20K while the list price was around €55K, which is in my opinion an incredible offer for such a connoisseur's piece offering such a cocktail of unique features, exclusivity and finishing!