POINÇON DE GENÈVE
alternativeIn the early 17th century, watchmakers in Geneva organised themselves into trade guilds. The strict regulations imposed by the tight control thus exercised upon local exponents of the profession resulted in an extremely high level of quality that earned Swiss watchmaking its enviable reputation and led to the creation of the Poinçon de Genève quality hallmark. In order to prevent abusive use of the name of Geneva on poor-quality movements made elsewhere, the Canton of Geneva issued the official Poinçon de Genève regulations. For watch manufacturers, earning this certification means incorporating a number of operations including manual decoration of watch components, as well as committing to performing the assembly and adjustment of their watches exclusively in Canton Geneva. A dedicated certificate guarantees the quality of the work performed with a view to securing this seal of approval. The State authorities also demand that movements bearing the Poinçon de Genève be numbered. Representing the coat-of-arms of the city of Geneva, the Poinçon de Genève is a significant quality hallmark for mechanical movements. Its twelve criteria include very precise specifications with regard to the origin of the movement parts, construction, materials and finishes, covering every component of the movement and its auxiliary mechanisms. A number of aesthetic demands are also involved: steel parts must feature polished angles, sides drawn out with a file and visible surfaces smoothed down; wheels must be chamfered with polished sinks; and screw heads must be polished with their slots and rims chamfered. Even the nature of the stud serving to pin up the balance-spring is precisely regulated. Since the very beginning of the L.U.C collection in 1996, Chopard has always considered the Poinçon de Genève to be an exclusive certification testifying to the exceptional finishing of its timepieces. The L.U.C movements assembled within the territory of Canton Geneva comply with the stringent criteria of the Poinçon de Genève. Such is for example the case for the L.U.C Lunar One, the L.U.C Quattro and for certain L.U.C Tourbillon watches. BACK TO THE L.U.C COLLECTION