Czapek
The story of Francois Czapek and his watchmaking art is certainly one of the most exciting and continues to this day. Born in Bohemia in 1811, Czapek emigrated from Poland to Switzerland, where he founded his first atelier, Czapek & Moreau. As early as 1839 he formed a new partnership, now with Antoine Patek, who had also emigrated from Poland to Switzerland.
During this time together, extraordinary timepieces of the highest quality were created. In 1845, after six successful years, they decided to go their separate ways in order to develop their own watches from now on. At the height of his career, Czapek became a supplier to the French royal court and had his own boutiques in Geneva, Warsaw and on Place Vendome in Paris. In 1869 the story of Francois Czapek came to an end: he disappeared without a trace - to this day it is not clear what happened.
Revitalizing the brand
In 2012, the Czapek brand was revived by three entrepreneurs and watch enthusiasts and re-registered as a company. Right from the start, the new team relied on a strategy of horizontal production: Following the motto “We Collect Rare People”, Czapek works with the best specialists in Switzerland for each new project and names them.
In 2016, Czapek was awarded the coveted GPHG (Grand Prix d'Horlogerie de Genève) industry prize for the first model, the Quai des Bergues No. 33bis, excellent. The proprietary 7-day movement, developed exclusively together with the Chronode Manufactory, follows the same splendid symmetry of Francois Czapek's historical watches. A tourbillon (Place Vendome) and a high-speed chronograph (Faubourg de Cracovie) with COSC certification continued the development of the brand.
In 2020, the Antarctique collection was the first sporty model to hit the market: The first limited editions Orion Nebula and Terre Adelie were sold out after a few weeks, the non-limited successor Passage de Drake - uses the SXH5 movement with a microrotor made from recycled material, which was completely designed by Czapek Platinum and a power reserve of 56 hours.
The new highlight in 2021 was the world novelty Antarctique Rattrapante, a split-seconds chronograph whose chronograph mechanism is arranged on the dial side and makes it possible to watch the work of the mechanics while wearing it. The 77 copies were sold out after just a few hours on the day of publication.
Antarctique Rattrapante Silver Grey
Price: 51,700 €
Antarctique Passage de Drake Ice White
Price: 24,900 €
Antarctique Passage de Drake Deep Blue
Price: 24,900 €
Antarctique Passage de Drake S Salmon S Di
Price: 24,900 €
Antarctique Passage de Drake S Glacier Blue
Price: 24,900 €
Faubourg de Cracovie Chinook
Price: 41,700 €
Faubourg de Cracovie King
Price: 41,700 €
Quai des Bergues N°25 Ter
Price: 23,000 €
Quai des Bergues No.33bis
Price: 33,100 €
Quai des Bergues Sapphire Blue S
Price: 23,000 €
Quai des Bergues Emerald Green S
Price: 23,000 €