Pre-Owned Gallet by Analog Shift Gallet Multichron --

Why We Love It

Gallet & Cie has been around for so long that archeologists have probably dug up a fossilized Gallet clock right next to trilobites.

Ok, that’s slightly exaggerated, but when a watchmaker has been around since 1466, it’s fair to say they know a thing or two about horology and watch making.

Of the many watches produced by Gallet in the 20th century, the MultiChron chronographs are some of the most significant and collectible today. Although they are refined and stylish, they were initially intended as tool watches for military and industrial professionals. The MultiChron 12H, so named for its third register and capability of recording up to twelve hours, found use in aviation, motorsports, and military applications, as the easily readable dial, black Arabic numerals and colored outer scales, allow for quick and precise reading.

This particular three-register chronograph dates to circa 1940s and is in excellent condition throughout. This example features a satin silver dial with black Arabic indices and a blued steel feuille handset, square pushers, and inner tachymeter and telemeter scales. To top off the package, this particular watch has a double-signed dial printed with both Gallet as well as Paul Breguette, a well known formerly Pennsylvania based jeweler. Powered by a hand-cranking Valjoux movement and with perfect proportions for a vintage chronograph, this piece is clean, understated, and flat out cool.

In terms of elegant design and horological prowess, this a watch that punches way above its weight class.

Don't miss it!

The Story

The Gallets have been making watches in Switzerland since 1466, when Humbertus Gallet became a citizen of Geneva. Nearly four hundred years later, in 1826, Julien Gallet registered the name Gallet et Cie for his watchmaking company and relocated to La Chaux-du-Fonds. From then on, the company only started to expanded, even into the United States, becoming one of the best-known names in watchmaking.

Gallet is well known to hard-core vintage collectors, but they’ve flown under the radar among enthusiasts in general. Interestingly, the manufacture has long been on the forefront of horological innovation, and they’ve racked up a number of impressive wristwatch “firsts," including the first waterproof chronograph wristwatch, the first wristwatch with a 28,800 BPH escapement, first wristwatch with rotating bezel and the first chronograph wristwatch with a 24-hour GMT complication. Considering how often we see these features in watches from nearly every significant brand today, one cannot overstate Gallet’s contributions to the watch industry.