Laurent Ferrier is a true independent. It is headed by Laurent Ferrier himself, who worked at Patek Philippe for 40 years, finishing as their creative director. Beyond his watchmaking pedigree, Ferrier is also notable for having raced at the 24 Hours of Le Mans, where he came third in 1979, behind none other than Paul Newman. Located in the village of Vernier in Switzerland, his small workshop resides in a converted single-family home, where each watch is hand-assembled by a single watchmaker.
The Galet Annual Calendar series takes inspiration from popular mid-century triple calendar watches, as seen in the dial layout, muted palettes, and elegant case shape. The first piece in the collection was the "Montre Ecole", a nod to Ferrier's own school watch from 1968, created to fulfil the graduation requirements from the Geneva Watchmaking School. The introduction of the Galet Annual Calendar also ushered in their fifth in-house calibre, the LF126.01. This "Vintage" variant is part of a very limited 5-piece release.
While this watch bears the Galet name, the case is distinctly different, with straight, vintage-inspired lugs that are separate from the case, although the rounded concave shape of the case and glass are reminiscent of the Galet's pebble-like form. At 40mm, it's a sizeable piece in keeping with modern tastes. The dial colour is a muted sand tone with a matte finish, perhaps evoking the patina that develops over time with vintage pieces. A recessed sub-dial sits at 6 o'clock, with a guilloché pattern in concentric circles placed right at the centre. The dial is visually divided by a cross shape, another tribute to vintage watches from the 40s, and providing another nod towards symmetry.
The day and date apertures sit just below 12 o'clock, above the "Laurent Ferrier – Geneva" signature. The dates are printed in black and run along the outermost part of the dial, evenly spaced and in a stylised, rounded font. "31" is placed directly at 12 o'clock, and is the only date rendered in red. The hour and minute hands make use of Ferrier’s signature Assegai-inspired shape, invoking the appearance of the javelins used by Zulu warriors. These are in a shade that matches the case, further streamlining the watch's appearance. A slim white pointer hand is used to indicate the dates.
The calibre LF126.01 can be seen through the sapphire caseback, with two main bridges that are decorated with even Côtes de Genève. Most of the movement is covered by these bridges, but the escapement and several wheels are still visible on the right-hand side. Perlage can be seen on the baseplate below, and the golden accents provided by several components give a nice visual contrast. Ferrier makes use of a more traditional lever escapement here, as well as a freesprung balance. Newer innovations are still present, with the LIGA micro-moulding technique used for the openworked escape wheel and pallet fork.
