Chinese tourbillon

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More than 230 years since the invention of the Tourbillon by renowned Swiss watchmaker Abraham Louis Breguet, Swiss watchmakers have been the only craftsmen skilled enough to create the intricate fine mechanics of a Tourbillon movement. Recently however, China, as the first country other than Switzerland, has successfully created their own version of the Flying tourbillon, one of the most intricate and thus difficult complications to create even in today's world of high technology!

Moreover, not only have they managed to create a similar watch movement, they have streamlined the production process in such a way, that for the first time in over 230 years, buying a Tourbillon is within the reach of watch collectors who dreamed of owning such a complex mechanical complication but refused to spend the high prices demanded so far by the traditional watch houses. No longer in the exclusive realm of the wealthy, Chinese Tourbillon watches are destined to be worn for everyday pleasure.

Watches have united China and Europe in a long and marvelous history of mutual fascination for several centuries giving rise to La Montre Chinoise crafted by Europe’s finest watch houses. Historically, time was the elite provenance of emperors and fine timepieces carried great prestige amongst the imperial court. Chinese enthrallment with mechanical movements and ornate design directly influenced the development of European craftsmanship in luxury watches.

Not since the water clock of the 10th century, the first timepiece ever to have a mechanical escapement, has China attained a breakthrough in mechanical horology. In the 1970s, the Swiss mechanical watch industry underwent a crisis caused by the advent of the quartz watch and began selling specialized watch making machines to China. Still, it took the Chinese nearly 30 years to finesse watch making skills to develop their first finely tuned Tourbillon. The revitalization of the Made in China Tourbillon is partly attributed to the renowned grandfather of the Chinese Tourbillon, Mr. Kiu Tai Yu of Hong Kong.