Engraving is the finishing of cutting patterns, decoration, numbers or letters into the parts of a watch movement. It serves two purposes. Watchmakers use it either to convey information or simply to decorate. The same word covers work done by hand and work done by machine.
How is engraving done?
A watch part can be engraved by hand, by machine, chemically, by laser or by photolithography. Machine engraving is faster. Still, WorldTempus argues that it cannot match the touch of a hand engraver. The two approaches can also be combined. A part engraved by machine can be touched up by hand with a burin. This makes the finished pattern look less mechanical.
What tools and techniques does a hand engraver use?
Hand engravers work with burins, chisels and sharp blades, each set in a wooden handle. The burin, also called a graver, is the main tool for taking metal off a dial. The chisel is used in relief engraving. Here the artisan cuts away the metal surrounding the design, not the design itself. The result is a design or lettering that stands up above a flat background. Hammering and stippling work differently. They cover a surface in many small dots, and those dots catch the light.
Where it comes from
Engraving has a long history on timepieces. Patek Philippe describes hand engraving as the oldest kind of decorative art used on timepieces. Revolution makes a similar point, suggesting engraving may be the oldest of the five métiers d’art crafts it covers. Some makers trace their methods to a particular place and time. A. Lange & Söhne says its engraving techniques come from 19th-century Saxon precision watchmaking.
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