Paul Gerber is the holder of not one but two Guinness World Records: for the smallest clock made of wood, with a movement 2.2cm high, and, in 2005, for the Superbia Humanitatis, the most complicated wristwatch by number of components - 1,116. The fact this record is rarely mentioned on the list of “most complicated watches ever” takes nothing away from the remarkable achievement of the watchmaker behind this masterpiece, created from a calibre by Louis-Elysée Piguet that was initially modified by Franck Muller then completed by Paul Gerber over an eleven-year period. After qualifying as a watchmaker, Paul Gerber, who was born in Berne in 1950, opened a shop in Zurich where he sold and repaired watches, always with the firm intention of letting his creative talents out. He won his spurs in an unusual domain, crafting wooden clocks small enough to fit in a doll’s house. Tiny creations from a man with grand designs. In 1993 he sold the shop to his employees and set up a new business, still in Zurich, where he could spend his time working on his own ideas while fulfilling commissions and crafting bespoke pieces for outside customers.
Paul Gerber
Celebrities
The holder of two Guinness World Records, Zurich-based watchmaker Paul Gerber is reputed for his inventive horology.
So it was that, while satisfying demand from third parties such as Fortis, for which he made the first automatic chronograph with a mechanical alarm in 1977, or Fabergé, supplying them with the sumptuous Œuf de Lune in 2002, featuring a musical movement, jumping hours, signs of the zodiac and moon phases, Paul Gerber busied himself with his own production. His speciality: incorporating new functions or technical improvements of his own devising into existing movements, without altering their size or form. The first Paul Gerber watch to see daylight, in 2001, would be the Retrograde, with the addition of retrograde seconds to a Peseux 7001 base movement. He later perfected this model with the automatic Retro Twin wound by synchronised double rotors. Next came the Modell 33, which incorporated a “Paul Gerber” escapement with a double coaxial escape wheel interacting with a lever with three pallets to separate the locking and impulse phases. Plus a spherical moon-phase indication that requires no adjustment for 128 years. This was followed by Modell 41 and Modell 42, both of which run off an ETA 2824 base that Paul Gerber modified to incorporate three rotors, a large date and either a GMT function or a day/night indication.
Any visitor to the Musée International d’Horlogerie in La Chaux-de-Fonds these past years is sure to have come across the official MIH watch – produced by Paul Gerber to specifications drafted by the museum’s then curator, Ludwig Oechslin. Packaged in its no-frills design is a chronograph with annual calendar and day/night indication which Paul Gerber built on a Valjoux 7750 base. From crafting lilliputian clocks, Paul Gerber has shown he is a giant among watchmakers.
1976
Opened a shop in Zurich, retailing and repairing watches, which he sold in 1993.
1977
Completed his first timepiece: a miniature wall clock.
1989
Became a member of the Académie Horlogère des Créateurs Indépendants. Entered the Guinness Book of Records for the world’s smallest clock with wood gears (2.2cm high).
1993
Set up a watchmaking workshop in Zurich.
2001
Retro Twin automatic watch with retrograde seconds and double rotor.
2004
Tonneau Modell 33 with a Paul Gerber escapement and moon phases that are accurate for 128 years.
2005
Superbia Humanitatis with 1,116 components. Eleven years in development on a Louis-Elysée Piguet base, first modified by Franck Muller then by Paul Gerber. Entered in the Guinness Book of Records.
2007
Awarded the Prix Gaïa in the Craftsmanship-Creation category.
2010
Modell 41 with three synchronised micro rotors for 100 hours of power reserve on an ETA 2824 base.
