George Daniels Anniversary

George Daniels, London Anniversary Number 24 | A historically important yellow gold wristwatch with date and power reserve indication, Circa 2013

Dial: silvered guilloché Caliber: single wheel Daniels Co-axial escapement as conceived by Roger Smith, mechanical, jewelled Movement number: no. 24 Case: 18k yellow gold, sapphire crystal display back Closure: 18k yellow gold George Daniels folding clasp Size: 40 mm diameter Signed: case, dial, and movement Box: yes Papers: no Accessories: George Daniels presentation box with key, product literature, polishing cloth and setting pinDr. George Daniels CBE is revered as one of the greatest watchmakers of the 20th and 21st century. A horological master, he is the inventor of the coaxial escapement which had a profound impact on horology history. The invention of the coaxial escapement was a radical feat of engineering resulting from Daniels’ study of all known previous escapements, and it was designed to incorporate key features required for a practical, high precision escapement. It functions with a system of three pallets separating the locking function from the impulse, avoiding the sliding friction of the lever escapement. This makes lubrication of the pallets theoretically unnecessary and thereby eliminates one of the shortcomings of the traditional lever escapement. Throughout his illustrious career, Daniels sought inspiration by studying timekeeping history and the great technological feats of masters of the past and seeking to improve upon their innovations. He especially studied the works of Abraham‐Louis Breguet, becoming a leading authority on Breguet, who Daniels said was his single greatest influence. An influence that we can see today in the dials found on George Daniels’ timepieces that echo the timeless dial configurations of Breguet pocket watches of centuries past. Another, less physically tangible mark on horology history, was his influence on his protégé Roger W. Smith OBE. Born in Bolton near Manchester in 1970, Roger W. Smith enrolled in the local Manchester School of Horology at age 16. He excelled in his academics and passed at the top of his class, winning the British Horological Institute’s Bronze medal. George Daniels left an indelible mark on a young Smith during his time at the institute when he met Daniels who was a visiting speaker. The encounter inspired Smith to create timepieces completely by hand, and made his first pocket watch using instructions from Daniels' book Watchmaking . In 1990, Smith, who was 22, presented the watch to Daniels, who instructed him to start from zero because the watch looked ‘handmade’, not ‘created’. Undeterred, Smith spent the next five years remaking and perfecting his second pocket watch, until he had mastered the know how on handcrafting watches according to 'The Daniels Method'. This time, upon presenting his second pocket watch, he received the Master Horologer's approval. Thus began a period of collaboration between master and protégé that started with the ‘Daniels Millennium’ series. To celebrate the 35th anniversary of the groundbreaking innovation of the coaxial escapement, George Daniels set out to produce 35 completely handmade watches crafted using the same techniques of centuries past in 2010. George Daniels again collaborated with Roger Smith to create a British caliber that was to be produced by Smith and finished to Daniels’ exacting standards and design. The result was a timepiece featuring a hand guillochéd dial and a deceptively simple design paired with a British movement bearing the famous coaxial escapement. Our example, watch number 24, has a particularly interesting history having originally been owned by renowned British entrepreneur Robert White who founded his eponymous specialist camera retailer company. White, a noted enthusiast of mechanics and engineering, collected motorcycles, motorcars, vintage Leica cameras - and happened to be a resident of the Isle of Man. It should come as no surprise then, that White would come to own such a mechanical wonder from his neighbor Roger Smith. White grew incredibly fond of his Daniels Anniversary and was known to wear the watch with great regularity. So much so, that it even left an impression upon his friend and mutual car collector Jay Leno. At the time of White's passing, Leno was quoted as stating that "The evening ritual of winding his George Daniels watch, for example, was an active delight to him as an opportunity to take pleasure in its mechanism." The Daniels, along with the rest of White's collection of motorcars, motorcycles, and cameras, was sold to benefit Poole Hospital in Dorset - marking the first time that this watch would leave the Isle of Man since its creation. The present timepiece offered is a culmination of decades of watchmaking genius, and the perfect distillation of Daniels' ingenuity and aesthetics over the years. Alas, this would be the final collaboration between the two watchmaking masters with Daniels passing in 2011. The present Anniversary watch is a symbol of the passing of the torch of high horology tradition from one master to the next. Dating circa 2013 from the British Hallmarks, two years after the passing of George Daniels, the watch was most certainly finished by Roger Smith, and carries their collective know how and history of traditional watch making. Kept in good, unpolished condition, it has been freshly serviced by Roger Smith in September 2024. We are pleased to offer this pinnacle of haute horology with its incredible provenance that continues to delight and inspire watch enthusiasts.