Premier Story

About the book

"The Premier Story is very much the story of the chronograph, as is any book about Breitling," writes author Fred Mandelbaum, a leading Breitling collector and brand historian, about the company that defined the look and function of the chronograph as we know it today. Three generations of Breitling founders contributed to its formation. Leon Breitling patented a mechanism that made his pocket chronographs mass-produced; his son Gaston introduced the first wrist-worn version with an independent pusher at two o'clock, and his grandson Willy patented a second independent pusher at four o'clock.

center center hide

Willy Breitling then took his family's legacy even further, ushering in the golden age of chronographs. From the 1940s, he used his vision and marketing prowess to reinvent the wristwatch. His Premier, Duograph, and Datora lines, refined in form and equipped with the most demanding watchmaking complications, transformed the chronograph from purpose to style.

ISBN 978-2-940506-51-4

Number of pages 256

371 colour and black and white photos

Hardcover book

Language English

Archival pieces

The third volume in the WATCH STORIES series, it features stunning photographs, including rarely seen archival pieces, a comprehensive guide for collectors to authenticate watches, and traces the journey of the Breitling Premier from its roots as a pocket chronograph to its richly appointed iterations in the 21st century.

Special edition signed by Fred Mandelbaum.