Haute-Rive

The Haute-Rive name originates from Chez-le-Bart on the shores of Lake Neuchâtel, where Irénée Aubry — a watchmaker from the Franches-Montagnes — established his workshop in the late 19th century. Aubry was no ordinary watchmaker; nicknamed "the inventor" by his neighbors, he held around 30 patents and invented the eight-day Hebdomas pocket watch mechanism, patented in January 1889. His most celebrated creation was the Montre du Pape (Pope's Watch), a pocket watch commissioned by the canton of Jura in 1887 as a gift for Pope Leo XIII's Jubilee. It ran for 40 days on a single winding — an unprecedented feat. Aubry received the Croix pour l'Église in 1888 and exhibited at the 1889 Paris World's Fair. Stéphane von Gunten, Aubry's great-great-grandson, revived the Haute-Rive brand in 2023 after nearly 20 years working at prestigious Swiss maisons, accumulating more than 30 patents of his own. His inaugural piece, the Honoris I, directly references the Pope's Watch: a flying tourbillon with a 1,000-hour (41-day) power reserve from a single mainspring — one day longer than his ancestor's achievement. The caliber HR01 is wound via the bezel rather than the crown, using a column-wheel function selector. Production is limited to approximately ten pieces per year, with prices starting at CHF 148,000.