Last year Laurent Ferrier introduced the Galet Square at Baselworld, while it was greeted with some skepticism, it was great to see Laurent design and execute a watch they wanted to produce, which many (like me) thought was a touch of genius. But this is one of the many great things about independent watch manufacturers, they don’t have to worry about what the market wants, they just produce the great watches the market needs. This year, Laurent and his team have taken the Galet Square a step further by making it, in my opinion, even more desirable.
We looked at the Galet Square last year and couldn’t help but emphasis just how pure their watch designs are: simple elegance that is functional, legible and most importantly – harmonious. And then there’s the movement, which has been finished with an incredible amount of detail. But above all, Laurent Ferrier’s timepieces are distinctive and the Galet Classic Square still preserves all of their signature aesthetics.
The 18-carat white gold case of the Galet Classic Square measures 41.5mm x 41.5mm making it a mere 0.5mm larger than the Galet Square. While this may sound large for a dress watch, I can assure you because of its svelte shape, it is nothing short of the perfect size (trust me, I wore one for a week.) Fastening this symphony of pure aesthetical artistry to your wrist is a grey leather alligator strap with Alcantara lining, secured by an 18-carat white-gold pin buckle.
Beneath the sapphire crystal is probably one of the most beautiful dials I’ve seen on a Laurent Ferrier. Previous Galet Square dials were minimalist and rather sparse but displayed all the necessary details that one would of need. The Galet Classic Square is much of the same but incorporates little details, which any WIS alike just simply adores.
The dial is framed by a traditional railway minutes track, which contributes to the overall sophistication of the design, surrounding the luminous silver-toned gleam of a circular satin-brushed chapter ring that ensures legibility of its applied hour-markers. This satin-brushed section is pleasantly counter-balanced by a silver-toned opaline-finish centre, creating a contrast of textures on this dial distinguished by its pure composition and legibility that are unmistakable hallmarks of Laurent Ferrier models.
The inscription “Tourbillon Double Spiral” appears on a velvet-like silver-toned grey creating a beautiful tonal contrast, while the pair of “assegai-shaped” ruthenium-treated white gold hands make a perfect match with the characteristic Laurent Ferrier drop-shaped hour-markers. The diameter of the hollowed and snailed small seconds display at 6 o’clock has been subtly enlarged. Although the ruthenium-treated white gold baton-type hand occupies its customary place, the seconds markers appear in an outer circle, reflecting the aesthetic codes of the chapter ring and endowing the two-zone dial structure with an appealing halo effect.
Without question, one of the most charming features of the Galet Classic Square is the tourbillon but like tourbillons of yesteryear, Laurent Ferrier in traditional style have hidden this mechanism allowing you to appreciate the dial. Turning the Galet Classic Square over affords a glimpse of this fine workmanship and reveals an intricately balanced structure stemming from a clever combination of lines and curves, which incorporates, probably, the most beautifully hidden tourbillon in watchmaking.
The tourbillon device is equipped with two head-to-tail mounted balance-springs in the centre of the balance. Naturally the use of a tourbillon is to compensate the effects of gravity but this construction conceived by Laurent Ferrier guarantees even greater reliability of this regulating system. True to form, no hand-crafted Laurent Ferrier calibre would be complete without the iconic Côtes de Genève motif on the bridges and the excessive attention to detail in finishing.
I fondly remember last year when Laurent Ferrier introduced the Galet Square, it wasn’t a timepiece that many would’ve predicted from this independent watchmaking brand but one thing was for sure; it was completely different to what was already available in the LF line up. One year on and the Galet Square has been warmly embraced by the masses. Laurent Ferrier even produced a piece unique Galet Square for Only Watch, which also featured a ridiculously cool sector dial. The Galet Classic Square of course takes things up a notch in the movement department but it does so in an elegant and sophisticated manner. There is no denying that what the craftsmen of LF have done is take the GPHG winning formula of the Galet Classic Tourbillon Double Balance-Spring and Galet Square to produce, in my opinion, one of their finest timepieces to date.
The Laurent Ferrier Galet Classic Square is only available in 18-carat white-gold and is priced at £151,100. For more information, visit the official Laurent Ferrier website.
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