Where to begin with F.P. Journe? Started by the man himself in 1999, Journe had previously spent quite a few years restoring and producing movements and also made a couple of pocket watches during that time. It took quite a few years before his brand went from something only a hardcore collector could appreciate to being understood by a more mainstream audience, and today, he is considered by many as one of the most successful and important independent brands to have emerged.
In my opinion, F.P. Journe has hit the sweet spot, producing around 900 – 1,000 pieces a year only. This ensures that they are exclusive enough that people consider any Journe a rare piece, but not so rare that it becomes esoteric. There are brands like Roger Smith and Philippe Dufour, both of whom are considered godfathers of high horology, but they make so few pieces a year that the average watch collector would not know about them. Mention F.P. Journe, though, and you’ll have collectors jumping with joy.
Of all the watches F.P. Journe has ever made, none has caught the public attention more than the Chronomètre Bleu. While there are certainly more complicated, rare and special timepieces from the brand, the Chronomètre Bleu is the watch that really made Journe into a household name and into the mainstream. Released in 2009, it was made largely as a response to the 2008 crisis that threatened many businesses around the world. In order to stay afloat, the Chronomètre Bleu was priced as an entry-level watch to keep sales going.
While that may seem strange, the story of this watch gets even more interesting. It is widely known that after many years on, what was meant to be the ‘entry-level’ piece has become the most desired production F.P. Journe watch in the world. Waitlists at boutiques are huge, and to make matters even more difficult, in 2019, Journe decided to cut production for the Chronomètre Bleu.
There are several things unique about this watch, most significantly, of course, being the fact that it is made completely out of tantalum, a very unusual material for watches. It is a material that is rarer than gold, and it is extremely hard to both mine and machine, making it very expensive to produce. The result is a material that has dark blue and silver tones, and something you do not see very often. It is a beautiful look that sits stealthily on the wrist and throws off different hues depending on the light source. On top of this, not only is the Chronomètre Bleu the only watch in the F.P. Journe line-up that is made from Tantalum, but also from a 39mm case.
Moving on to the dial, it certainly would have to be one of the most impressive dials out there. The chrome blue dial is super reflective, and it is achieved through multiple layers of blue lacquer that is hand-applied and polished multiple times. It is very well known that the Chronomètre Bleu dial is the most complicated and expensive dial that Journe produces, with a high failure rate. The result, though, is a beautifully enigmatic dial that can look from a deep blue/black to a super-light electric blue.
It is for all of these reasons that F.P. Journe decided to cut production of the Chronomètre Bleu. It was just too expensive to continue producing for an ‘entry-level’ piece, and as a result, demand for this watch has surged even more in recent years. I would say that this could be the most significant ‘independent’ watch ever produced, as it really put the spotlight on artisanal, independent watchmaking. Today, it is very commonplace to collect independents, but before the Chronomètre Bleu, that realm was only reserved for the most hardcore of watch collectors.
