Cradle of watchmaking

The story goes that Calvin decided to ban the wearing of jewellery during this particularly austere period and that the city’s goldsmiths had to find an alternative and turned to watchmaking, delicately decorating watches and clocks with precious stones and materials. Thus was born in the city of Geneva, the luxury watchmaking industry and its unique pieces.

Introduced by the Republic and Canton of Geneva in 1886 as the ultimate standard of excellence and the emblem of the know-how of Geneva’s fine watchmaking, the Poinçon de Genève (Geneva Seal) guarantees the origin, quality and reliability of the craftsmanship.

Geneva’s watchmaking expertise has spread throughout the world for several centuries. The Poinçon de Genève is a guarantee of authenticity, of a product made by the best craftsmen of the Republic and Canton of Geneva, whose success is recognised throughout the world. Only a handful of select, Geneva-based watchmakers and “manufactures” have been awarded this certification.

Have you ever heard of a “cabinotier”? A cabinotier was, in Geneva, a worker employed by a “cabinet”, i.e. a small watchmaking workshop at the time. A cabinotier was not necessarily a watchmaker, he could be a jeweller, an engraver or a gem-cutter (lapidary).

In the 18^th century, the cabinotiers forged a solid reputation based on the quality of their work, meticulousness and precision. They contributed greatly to Geneva’s reputation throughout the world.

They were based in the Saint-Gervais district on the left bank of Geneva. As they needed as much light as possible to carry out their meticulous tasks, they moved to the top floors of the buildings, which had many small windows that almost touched each other. Walking through this district, these windows can still be seen today.