F.P. Journe

Francois-Paul Journe began his career as a clock restorer in France. Ultimately, the talented watchmaker created his own manufacture in 1999. His innovative approach to watchmaking and great sense of design inevitably made Francois-Paul Journe one of the most acclaimed independent watchmakers and the only one to win the celebrated Aiguille d’Or prize three times.

The F.P. Journe Octa Automatique Lune ‘Havana’ (AL) was only in production for two years, from 2016 - 2018, before being replaced by the AL2. What makes this model especially striking is the unique Havana dial, compared to the classic silvered dial. It was developed by F.P Journe’s in-house dial makers in a process lasting several months, by mixing a combination of gold and ruthenium.

While this piece is undeniably attractive, it is the movement that F.P. Journe is famed for. In 2007, the Octa Automatique Reserve and Octa Automatique Lune debuted the new 1300.3 movement, which is the third major update on the movement used in the Octa line (it has slowly spread to the rest of the Octa line). Known for its useful and impressive 120-hour power reserve, this movement also has a big date and moonphase complication, all of which can be set via the crown. The key difference between the updated caliber and the previous 1300 movements was the introduction of a new rotor with a ball bearing system allowing for uni-directional winding. Collectors previously had problems getting their watch’s power reserve to its full capacity, so the idea of the new movement was that every small movement was utilized to wind the watch.