152 F.P Journe A technically impressive, extraordinary and incredibly rare, Astronomic Souveraine, with 18 functions and complications such as tourbillon, minute repeater, perpetual calendar, equation of time… wristwatch in steel, with box and papers.

Estimate: € 1.000.000 –⁠ 2.000.000

Born in Marseille in 1957, tempered in Parisian watchmaking schools and his uncle Michel Journe’s atelier, François-Paul emerged a contrarian talent who preferred first principles to received wisdom. By the late 1990s he stepped onto the Basel fair floor not as a supplier but as “Montres Journe SA,” a one-man declaratioof independence under the austere Latin motto Invenit et Fecit—“invented and made.” It was 1999, and the modern era of independent watchmaking had just found its standard-bearer.With almost no capital and a waiting list of believers, Journe financed his launch the old-world way: a souscription series of 20 tourbillons—each paid in advance, each numbered on the dial—followed by a companion subscription for his next great idea, the Chronomètre à Résonance. The gambit worked; it also became a template for how an independent could self-fund, keep control, and cultivate a collector base that feels more like a fraternity.What came next re-drew the vocabulary of contemporary watchmaking. In 1999 the Tourbillon Souverain married a tourbillon to a remontoir d’égalité—constant force in a wristwatch tourbillon, a world premiere—yielding both poetry and pulse-steadying precision. In 2000, the Chronomètre à Résonance put the elusive physical phenomenon of resonance on the wrist, the first serial wristwatch to do so. And in 2001, the automatic Octa calibre arrived with an audacious 120-hour autonomy and real-world efficiency that has needed only minor evolutions in two decades. This was not complication for its own sake; it was a program of chronometry.Then, in 2004, Journe changed the backdrop entirely: movements in solid 18-karat 5N rose gold—bridges and plates—an aesthetic and technical statement that neatly divided the “brass period” (1999-2004) from the golden age that followed. No other manufacture of his scale had that audacity; collectors noticed, and a market was born.By mid-career, the juries caught up with the gavel: multiple Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève top honors—including the Aiguille d’Or in 2004 (Tourbillon Souverain), 2006 (Sonnerie Souveraine), and 2008 (Centigraphe). In an era dominated by conglomerates, Journe proved that one mind, one manufacture, and fewer than a thousand watches a year could still bend the arc of the industry. Finally, conceived by François-Paul Journe as a culmination of his lifelong pursuit of chronometric and astronomical excellence, The F.P. Journe Astronomic Souveraine transcends the conventional boundaries of watchmaking. It is not merely an instrument to measure time: it is a philosophical statement, a manifestation of knowledge, craftsmanship, and poetic vision, all enclosed within the humble circumference of a wristwatch. After the course of two decades of painstaking work, it is a wristwatch of staggering complexity and poetic ambition, uniting no fewer than 18 complications within a 44mm stainless steel case — a material deliberately chosen for its understated nature, despite housing one of the most sophisticated calibers of our time. At the heart of this tour de force beats the hand-wound calibre 1619, boasting a tourbillon with remontoir d’égalité for constant force, a minute repeater with cathedral gongs, dual time zones, annual calendar, power reserve indicator, and, true to its name, a full suite of astronomical displays: moonphase, sunrise and sunset times, equation of time, and a sidereal time dial on the caseback. Each element is not merely functional, but integrated with such symmetry and grace that the dial remains harmonious, legible, and unmistakably Journe. The dial itself, rendered in solid white gold with clous de Paris guilloché subdials, exemplifies Journe’s relentless pursuit of balance. This is no laboratory experiment in mechanical bravado. It is a wristwatch intended to be worn, to be understood, and most of all, to be appreciated by the few who can grasp its philosophical and technical implications. Originally previewed in prototype form at the 2019 Only Watch auction, where it captivated the collecting world (hammering at CHF 1.8 million), the final production version presents subtle refinements, both ergonomic and visual, enhancing its wearability without compromising on ambition. Offered with its original wooden box, additional straps, bracelet, tools, and complete documentation, the present lot is an impressively rare opportunity to acquire not just a technical landmark of modern watchmaking, but a personal expression of its creator’s genius. In the pantheon of contemporary haute horlogerie, the Astronomic Souveraine occupies a space all its own — a celestial instrument that bridges astronomy, art, and audacity.