Caliber (horology)
Encyclopedia
Caliber: at the beginning the denomination indicated only the size of a watch movement.
Today, caliber designs a precise movement type, indicating the size, the style (men/ladies’ – mechanical / automatic/ Quartz - number of hands – calendars – complications), followed by the mark of the Ebauche
s manufacturer (e.g. see http://swisswatchguy.blogspot.com/2008_02_01_archive.html ), duly registered with the Swiss Federal Trademark Office as well as by the Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry FH
.
Each single Swiss Made movement must be marked with the caliber indication.
Following WTO’s rules applicable for Custom’s & Excise, the precise caliber must be indicated on each export invoice with the coordinated international Custom’s code.
Proper markings and calibre indication has become all the more important with the increased counterfeiting of “bona fide” Swiss Watch Brands.
Today, caliber designs a precise movement type, indicating the size, the style (men/ladies’ – mechanical / automatic/ Quartz - number of hands – calendars – complications), followed by the mark of the Ebauche
Ébauche
Ébauche is a term used in art to denote the first preliminary underpainting or quick sketch in oils for an oil painting. One early criticism of Impressionist painting was that its practitioners sought to elevate the status of the ébauche to the level of finished painting...
s manufacturer (e.g. see http://swisswatchguy.blogspot.com/2008_02_01_archive.html ), duly registered with the Swiss Federal Trademark Office as well as by the Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry FH
Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry FH
The Federation of the Swiss Watch Industry FH is the Swiss watch industry's leading trade association.-History:...
.
Each single Swiss Made movement must be marked with the caliber indication.
Following WTO’s rules applicable for Custom’s & Excise, the precise caliber must be indicated on each export invoice with the coordinated international Custom’s code.
Proper markings and calibre indication has become all the more important with the increased counterfeiting of “bona fide” Swiss Watch Brands.
Reference & External Links
- http://books.google.com/books?id=2U8VAAAAQAAJ&pg=PA76&lpg=PA76&dq=calibres+horlogers&source=bl&ots=bj3LUxs6b6&sig=GqqQlHMHOW94m_5J9Rr6xu-74Xs&hl=en&ei=11BmSrPDDIygnQP1yMyvDw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=84 ancient dictionary: definition “calibre horloger” pages 76 & 77
- http://hiro.alliancehorlogere.com/en/Under_the_Loupe/Calibres_by_Make Alliance Horlogère: calibre listings as per several definitions
- http://www.fhs.ch/en/swissm.php FH: Swiss Made definition
- http://www.invenitetfecit.com/fabricants/page-ETA.html Historique du regroupement des diverses fabrique d'Ebauches sous ETA SA
- http://swisswatchguy.blogspot.com/2008/03/from-ebauches-sa-to-eta-sa-75-years-of_15.html unofficial translation of above “Historique” ETA SA