Booklet of 12 stamps - The measure of time

This booklet, produced in collaboration with the Musée du Temps in Besançon (25), explores different time-measuring instruments, from sundials to wristwatches, from Comtoise clocks to the emblematic wall clocks of the 60s. - Planetary clock: Dating from 1872 and made by Joseph Lanfrey (1843-1898), it was inspired by the astronomical clocks of Antide Janvier. Lanfrey's planetary clock takes the form of a black marble pedestal surmounted by a planetary, i.e. a mechanism representing the movement of planets and stars. In this case, the Sun, Earth and Moon. Presented at the Exposition Universelle in Lyon in 1872, it won a gold medal and was subsequently built in several examples. - Complication watch : The great collector and watchmaking enthusiast António Augusto de Carvalho Monteiro commissioned this watch from Louis Leroy, based in Paris and Besançon, at the end of the 19th century. The watch was to combine "all that science and mechanics could achieve in the volume of a watch". Assembled in the Leroy workshops in Besançon, started in 1897, it was completed in 1904 and remained in the collector's family until 1953. Bringing together 24 complications in a single watch was a real technical challenge. Louis Leroy surrounded himself with experts and watchmakers with exceptional know-how. In addition to the time and date display, this exceptional watch includes time in 125 cities, barometer, seasons, chimes, compass and more. Between 1904 and 1989, this was the most complicated watch in the world. - Marine chronometer: Made in London around 1866 by renowned British chronometer-maker Thomas Mercer, this is a clock accurate enough to be used as a portable time base, even on a moving vehicle. In the 19th century, the marine chronometer was an indispensable precision instrument for maritime navigation, used primarily to determine longitude at sea. - Regency inlaid Boulle cartel: Regency-style inlaid Boulle cartel signed Nicolas Gribelin in Paris, 1st quarter of the 18th century. It features a winding hole pierced at five and seven o'clock, and is set by a dial located on the back plate of the movement. - Minilip wristwatch: A model created by the Lip company (Besançon) especially for children. The design of the hands makes it easy to read the hours and minutes (differentiated colors). It's an educational model for learning to tell the time. This model came out in 1969, accompanied by a small brochure designed to help children learn to tell the time. - Augsburg-type portable sundial: A portable sundial that, unlike many sundials, is designed to read the time in the sun wherever you are (sundials are often fixed). Dial made in Germany in the 18th century. A vogue in these years for portable sundials that are richly decorated (and therefore also collectors' items) (Germany, VOGLER Andreas, 18th). - Pocket watch Montre Bréguet: Signed Breguet in Paris, this is a skeleton watch, meaning that the watch's movement, its heart, is deliberately left visible. A technical exercise and challenge for watchmakers, who use decorated parts. It's also a collector's item for watchmaking enthusiasts. - Réveille-matin: A mechanical alarm clock from the second half of the 20th century by Jaz, an iconic French watch brand that made its name by distributing the many alarm clocks that everyone had on their bedside table. - Horloge comtoise: Beneath the familiar name "la comtoise" lies one of France's most popular clocks. Originating in the Haut-Jura region, the "comtoise" has furnished homes throughout France and beyond. Proof of its success, the term "comtoise" is still commonly used to designate any floor clock. However, it corresponds to a very specific type of clock, manufactured since the end of the 17th century in the Morbier and Morez region. - Wall clock: The Jaz Peintic model featured in this booklet was manufactured between 1963 and 1968, and can be seen in many kitchens. This wall clock, from the Jaz Transistor range, is recognizable by its raised black numerals, gold hands and bright red or black central second hand. Its free-form shape, resembling a painter's wooden palette, is probably the origin of its name. - Building clock: Several of these clocks can be admired in the vaults of the Galerie de La Poste in the Louvre, Paris. Photographed in the early 1900s, they appear on postcards and on the "1979 Stamp Day" stamp. This clock was built by Henry-Lepaute in 1885, industrialist and watchmaker to Louis-Philippe and Napoleon III. In 1837, his company became the exclusive supplier of clocks for the Northern, Paris to Orleans, Eastern and Western railway networks. In addition to clocks and optical equipment for lighthouses, the company also marketed measuring instruments such as tide gauges and riverographs.

Photos © musée du Temps, Pierre Guenat sauf : Timbre Horloge d’édifice, photo S.Vielle ((c) La Poste, timbre Horloge d’applique photo Collection Elzingre / Bridgeman Images : Timbres "Pendule d'applique" et "réveille-matin" (R) société DATA ACCESS, détentrice de la marque d’horlogerie JAZ ; Timbres "Montre bracelet" et montre à fleurs sur couverture Les montres représentées sont la propriété LIP Besançon. La reproduction de leur image est utilisée avec l’autorisation de LIP Besançon. Tous droits réservés.