A Grand Complication
Title | A Grand Complication PDF eBook |
Author | Stacy Perman |
Publisher | Simon and Schuster |
Pages | 527 |
Release | 2013-02-19 |
Genre | History |
ISBN | 1439190100 |
Two wealthy and powerful men engage in a decades-long contest to create and possess the most remarkable watch in history. James Ward Packard of Warren, Ohio, was an entrepreneur and a talented engineer of infinite curiosity, a self-made man who earned millions from his inventions, including the design and manufacture of America’s first luxury car—the elegant and storied Packard. Henry Graves, Jr., was the very essence of blue-blooded refinement in the early 1900s: son of a Wall Street financier, a central figure in New York high society, and a connoisseur of beautiful things—especially fine watches. Then, as now, expensive watches were the ultimate sign of luxury and wealth, but in the early twentieth century the limitless ambition, wealth, and creativity of these two men pushed the boundaries of mathematics, astronomy, craftsmanship, technology, and physics to create ever more ingenious timepieces. In any watch, features beyond the display of hours, minutes, and seconds are known as “complications.” Packard and Graves spurred acclaimed Swiss watchmaker Patek Philippe to create the Mona Lisa of timepieces—a fabled watch that incorporated twenty-four complications and took nearly eight years to design and build. For the period, it was the most complicated watch ever created. For years it disappeared, but then it surfaced at a Sotheby’s auction in 1999, touching off a heated bidding war, shattering all known records when it fetched $11 million from an anonymous bidder. New York Times bestselling author Stacy Perman takes us from the clubby world of New York high society into the ateliers of the greatest Swiss watchmakers, and into the high-octane, often secretive subculture of modern-day watch collecting. With meticulous research, vivid historical details, and a wealth of dynamic personalities, A Grand Complication is the fascinating story of the thrilling duel between two of the most intriguing men of the early twentieth century. Above all, it is a sweeping chronicle of innovation, the desire for beauty, and the lengths people will go to possess it.
A Grand Complication
Title | A Grand Complication PDF eBook |
Author | Stacy Perman |
Publisher | Simon and Schuster |
Pages | 342 |
Release | 2013-02-19 |
Genre | Antiques & Collectibles |
ISBN | 1439190089 |
"The race between two ambitious, complicated men in the early 1900s to create the most extravagant, complicated timepiece ever"--
The Grand Complication
Title | The Grand Complication PDF eBook |
Author | Allen Kurzweil |
Publisher | Hyperion |
Pages | 372 |
Release | 2002-08-21 |
Genre | Fiction |
ISBN |
Critically acclaimed for his international bestseller, "A Case of Curiosities," Kurzweil presents "The Grand Complication"--a modern-day tale of literary intrigue, deviant passions, and delicious secrets.
Grand Complications
Title | Grand Complications PDF eBook |
Author | Grit Laskin |
Publisher | |
Pages | 0 |
Release | 2016-10-04 |
Genre | Art |
ISBN | 9781927958841 |
"Grand Complications is the story behind the story of fifty of these original designs from 2003 to the present. It is a look inside guitarmaker William "Grit" Laskin's creative process: how he teases out a client's interests and intentions, how he develops and refines his ideas, and how he brings them to life in his mind and on paper. From "Short Stories" that fill only the headstock of a guitar to full narratives that run the length of the neck, each inspired design is the product of research, deep thinking, and a little alchemy. Featured here are projects ranging from an homage to John Lennon to a paean to humpback whales to a tribute to the fall of the Berlin Wall."--
Grand complications
Title | Grand complications PDF eBook |
Author | |
Publisher | |
Pages | 582 |
Release | |
Genre | Wrist watches |
ISBN |
Patek Philippe
Title | Patek Philippe PDF eBook |
Author | Nicholas Foulkes |
Publisher | |
Pages | |
Release | 2016 |
Genre | |
ISBN | 9781848094451 |
Hermitage, Wat and Some Druids
Title | Hermitage, Wat and Some Druids PDF eBook |
Author | Howard of Warwick |
Publisher | The Funny Book Company |
Pages | 281 |
Release | 2015-12-20 |
Genre | Fiction |
ISBN | 0992939372 |
Brother Hermitage is at it again - this time with druids. Is it a murder mystery? Is it a thriller? Is it just something gone horribly wrong? When his nemesis, the Norman conqueror Le Pedvin orders him to Wales, Brother Hermitage knows it is going to go wrong. He's had a prophecy it's going to go wrong. And from his first steps on the road it strides firmly in that direction. Brother Hermitage, Wat, weaver of pornographic tapestry and Cwen, weaver in her own right and the fiercest of the lot, are commanded to find one dead Norman in the whole of Wales - as usual under pain of death. Add to that some treasure and a druid curse or two, and we have the recipe for a laugh out loud historical tale like no other. (Apart from the other Chronicles of Brother Hermitage) It's all complicated enough, but when what seems like the whole of the country wants to join in, things get very messy. And then there are the druids, and stone circles, and sacrifices.... "he who has laughter on his side has no need of proof" Theodore Adorno