Ferdinand Berthoud made its mark on the watchmaking world in 2015.

The Chopard Group revived the brand, named after the legendary 18th-century watchmaker, and reestablished it that year to represent the pinnacle of handmade watchmaking, free of compromise.

Since its rebirth, Ferdinand Berthoud has released three highly acclaimed timepieces. The FB1 won the Aiguille d'Or, the highest honor at the 2015 GPHG, while the FB2 secured the Chronometry prize in 2019 and 2020 and the Mechanical Exception prize in 2022. The company’s third creation, the Chronomètre FB3 SPC, claimed the Chronometry prize at the 2023 GPHG.

The FB3 SPC is the brand’s most wearable and accessibly priced watch to date, though it still features a 42.30mm × 9.43mm case crafted from 18k white or pink gold, paired with a six-figure price tag. True to its name, it is a certified chronometer, meeting the ISO 3159 standard as verified by COSC. However, the standout feature of this watch is its remarkable regulating organ.

A 2023 Ferdinand Berthoud Chronomètre FB 3SPC.2 in 18k rose gold that's available for immediate purchase from Phillips PERPETUAL in London. Price: £119,000

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Prominently displayed on the left side of the watch is a cylindrical hairspring, a three-dimensional concentric balance spring that offers improved precision and pays homage to Ferdinand Berthoud's historical roots. Its design draws inspiration from a pocket watch created by Louis Berthoud (Ferdinand's nephew) in the late 18th century, which featured both a decimal time display and a cylindrical hairspring.

The cylindrical hairspring in the FB3 SPC is produced entirely in-house, resulting from extensive research and development by Ferdinand Berthoud’s team in Fleurier. Unlike many cylindrical hairsprings, which are often paired with tourbillons to counteract positional errors, the FB3 SPC does not rely on a tourbillon. This makes its precision even more challenging to achieve. The watchmakers overcame this by hand-curving the hairspring with a profile projector at two critical points: the attachment to the balance wheel and the connection to the balance cock. Perfecting the hairspring design to meet COSC chronometer standards took two years of meticulous effort.

Due to the complexities involved in its production, only 25 examples of the FB3 SPC are made annually.

A 2023 Ferdinand Berthoud Chronomètre FB 3SPC.2 in 18k rose gold that's available for immediate purchase from Phillips PERPETUAL in London. Price: £119,000

Visually, the FB3 SPC reflects the marine chronometers crafted by the original Berthoud firm in the mid-18th century, representing the zenith of horological precision at the time. Translating that legacy into a modern wristwatch is no small feat.

The watch’s “dial” comprises six nickel-silver bridges that form the mainplate of the movement, harmonizing with ten additional bridges visible through the sapphire crystal caseback. The time display consists of an inner ring with a peripheral minute track, a suspended small seconds sub-dial at six o’clock, and a power reserve indicator positioned near two o’clock.

The movement, composed of 230 individual components, requires over 100 hours of decoration work. The bridges feature hand-polished chamfered edges, a galvanic coating, and manually sandblasted matte surfaces.

A 2023 Ferdinand Berthoud Chronomètre FB 3SPC.2 in 18k rose gold that's available for immediate purchase from Phillips PERPETUAL in London. Price: £119,000

Historical references are woven throughout the movement’s architecture. The balance bridge evokes the design of Ferdinand Berthoud’s No. 3 astronomical watch, while the mainspring barrel bridge mirrors a quarter-repeater watch made by Louis Berthoud, distinguished by its 120-degree angled bridge. The faceted, skeletonized hands—crafted from 18k gold—are inspired by a Ferdinand Berthoud astronomical regulator clock from 1785, now housed in the brand’s archives in Fleurier.

The FB3 SPC also incorporates modern innovations. A stopwork mechanism allows for hacking seconds, and a small sapphire crystal window embedded in the caseband at nine o’clock offers a side view of the hairspring in motion, breathing life into this intricate masterpiece.

A 2023 Ferdinand Berthoud Chronomètre FB 3SPC.2 in 18k rose gold is currently available for purchase from Phillips PERPETUAL in London. Price: £119,000

Please contact Perpetual@phillips.com for more information, or browse additional offerings here.

FEATURED WATCH

Ref. FB3 "Helical Hairspring"

Ref. FB3 "Helical Hairspring"

Ferdinand Berthoud

£114,000.00 GBP

  • About Logan Baker

    Logan has spent the past decade reporting on every aspect of the watch business. He joined Phillips in Association with Bacs & Russo at the start of 2023 as the department's Senior Editorial Manager. He's based in Geneva.