Swiss independent watchmaker Henri Grandjean & Cie has officially stepped onto the contemporary haute horlogerie stage with the launch of Magician, its first high-watchmaking collection. Rather than revisiting the past through vintage-inspired design, the new timepiece seeks to continue the intellectual and technical legacy of Henri Grandjean, one of Switzerland’s pioneering chronometer makers of the 19th century.
Founded in the canton of Neuchâtel, the modern Maison draws inspiration from Henri Grandjean (1803–1879), whose contributions to marine chronometry, observatory testing and precision watchmaking helped establish Switzerland’s reputation for scientific excellence.
The Magician collection embraces that heritage while presenting a thoroughly contemporary interpretation built around innovative mechanics rather than nostalgia.
At the heart of the collection is a completely in-house developed hand-wound movement featuring a striking mysterious triple-axis tourbillon. Designed with an unconventional architecture that conceals its visible anchoring points, the regulating organ appears to float freely while rotating simultaneously across three separate axes. The three cages complete their rotations every 10 seconds, 18 seconds and 60 seconds respectively, creating a constantly evolving mechanical choreography that contributes to both precision and stability rather than serving as a purely visual spectacle.
The movement comprises 218 components, operates at 21,600 vibrations per hour (3Hz) and incorporates twin barrels, a Swiss lever escapement, a flat hairspring and a variable-inertia balance wheel. Housed inside a 45mm 5N rose gold case, the calibre is protected beneath a box-shaped anti-reflective sapphire crystal, while meticulous finishing includes Geneva stripes, hand-executed bevels, circular graining and manually chamfered wheels. Dial options in black onyx, aventurine or rose gold are carefully designed to highlight the floating tourbillon while maintaining excellent legibility with central date and day-night displays.
Henri Grandjean & Cie will offer the Magician in six distinct versions, each showcasing the same movement through different materials and artistic treatments. Cases are available in 18-carat rose gold, white gold or Grade 5 titanium, while selected editions incorporate baguette-cut diamonds and sapphires. Among the highlights is a fully hand-engraved rose gold edition inspired by decorative motifs once produced in Henri Grandjean’s original 19th-century workshop, ensuring every individually engraved case is unique.
Remaining true to its artisanal philosophy, production of the Magician will be deliberately limited. Every movement, including the intricate tri-axial tourbillon, is assembled, regulated and tested individually within the Maison’s workshops in Neuchâtel. Founder and CEO Sohail Aziz describes the watch as “a contemporary interpretation of an old idea” — a timepiece designed to surprise through refined engineering and understated elegance rather than extravagance.
With the Magician, Henri Grandjean & Cie introduces itself not simply as another heritage-inspired brand, but as a modern independent manufacture dedicated to extending one of Swiss watchmaking’s most significant historical legacies through original mechanical innovation, exceptional craftsmanship and limited-production haute horlogerie.
To learn more about Henri Grandjean & Cie, click here.
