Ébauche
Encyclopedia
Ébauche is a term used in art
to denote the first preliminary underpainting or quick sketch in oils for an oil painting
. One early criticism of Impressionist painting
was that its practitioners sought to elevate the status of the ébauche to the level of finished painting. Horology
, clockmaking and watchmaking appropriated the term ébauche to refer to an incomplete or unassembled watch movement
and its associated components. The French term is regularly used by English-speaking artists and art historians
, as well as horologists and hobbyists.
, fusée, index
, pawl
and ratchet-wheel, along with a few assembling screws. These parts were all roughly filed
and milled
. The steel
and brass
were manufactured in a special workshop. The ébauche was finished by watchmakers in a finishing shop.
During the Industrial Revolution
, new components were introduced by the Waltham Watch Company
and the development of the American System of Watch Manufacturing
, establishing the base of modern watch manufacture.
watch movement, without its regulating organs, mainspring
, dial, or hands.
, Venus, France Ébauches and Lemania. Many of these producers have gone out of businesses over the past few decades, succumbing to the Quartz Revolution
. Most were unable to compete with the inexpensive electronic movements produced by Asian manufacturers, which flooded the market during the 1960s and 1970s.
Those ébauche producers that remain today are almost all owned by ETA, which is a subsidiary of the Swatch
Group.
Art
Art is the product or process of deliberately arranging items in a way that influences and affects one or more of the senses, emotions, and intellect....
to denote the first preliminary underpainting or quick sketch in oils for an oil painting
Oil painting
Oil painting is the process of painting with pigments that are bound with a medium of drying oil—especially in early modern Europe, linseed oil. Often an oil such as linseed was boiled with a resin such as pine resin or even frankincense; these were called 'varnishes' and were prized for their body...
. One early criticism of Impressionist painting
Impressionism
Impressionism was a 19th-century art movement that originated with a group of Paris-based artists whose independent exhibitions brought them to prominence during the 1870s and 1880s...
was that its practitioners sought to elevate the status of the ébauche to the level of finished painting. Horology
Horology
Horology is the art or science of measuring time. Clocks, watches, clockwork, sundials, clepsydras, timers, time recorders and marine chronometers are all examples of instruments used to measure time.People interested in horology are called horologists...
, clockmaking and watchmaking appropriated the term ébauche to refer to an incomplete or unassembled watch movement
Movement (clockwork)
In horology, a movement is the internal mechanism of a clock or watch, as opposed to the case, which encloses and protects the movement, and the face which displays the time. The term originated with mechanical timepieces, whose movements are made of many moving parts...
and its associated components. The French term is regularly used by English-speaking artists and art historians
Art history
Art history has historically been understood as the academic study of objects of art in their historical development and stylistic contexts, i.e. genre, design, format, and style...
, as well as horologists and hobbyists.
History
Until about 1850, the watchmaker's ébauche consisted of two plates with pillars and bars, the barrelBarrel (horology)
Used in mechanical watches and clocks, a barrel is a cylindrical metal box closed by a cover, with a ring of gear teeth around it, containing a spiral spring called the mainspring, which provides power to run the timepiece. The barrel turns on an arbor . The spring is hooked to the barrel at its...
, fusée, index
Indexing (motion)
Indexing in reference to motion is moving into a new position or location quickly and easily but also precisely. After a machine part has been indexed, its location is known to within a few hundredths of a millimeter , or often even to within a few thousandths of a millimeter , despite the fact...
, pawl
Pawl
Pawl may refer to:* A common component of a ratchet* A part of the adjustable height locking mechanism of an extension ladder* Pawl , a former racing car constructor...
and ratchet-wheel, along with a few assembling screws. These parts were all roughly filed
Filing (metalworking)
Filing is a material removal process in manufacturing. Similar, depending on use, to both sawing and grinding in effect, it is functionally versatile, but used mostly for finishing operations, namely in deburring operations. Filing operations can be used on a wide range of materials as a finishing...
and milled
Mill (grinding)
A grinding mill is a unit operation designed to break a solid material into smaller pieces. There are many different types of grinding mills and many types of materials processed in them. Historically mills were powered by hand , working animal , wind or water...
. The steel
Steel
Steel is an alloy that consists mostly of iron and has a carbon content between 0.2% and 2.1% by weight, depending on the grade. Carbon is the most common alloying material for iron, but various other alloying elements are used, such as manganese, chromium, vanadium, and tungsten...
and brass
Brass
Brass is an alloy of copper and zinc; the proportions of zinc and copper can be varied to create a range of brasses with varying properties.In comparison, bronze is principally an alloy of copper and tin...
were manufactured in a special workshop. The ébauche was finished by watchmakers in a finishing shop.
During the Industrial Revolution
Industrial Revolution
The Industrial Revolution was a period from the 18th to the 19th century where major changes in agriculture, manufacturing, mining, transportation, and technology had a profound effect on the social, economic and cultural conditions of the times...
, new components were introduced by the Waltham Watch Company
Waltham Watch Company
The Waltham Watch Company, also known as the American Waltham Watch Co. and the American Watch Co., produced about 40 million high quality watches, clocks, speedometers, compasses, time fuses and other precision instruments between 1850 and 1957...
and the development of the American System of Watch Manufacturing
American System of Watch Manufacturing
In the mid 19th century Aaron Lufkin Dennison became inspired by the manufacturing techniques of the United States Armory at Springfield, Mass. The "armory practice" was mainly based on a strict system of organization, the extensive use of the machine shop and a control system based on gauges...
, establishing the base of modern watch manufacture.
Assortiment
The assortiment (literally "assortment" in English) are the parts of a watch other than the ébauche, in particular the regulating organs and include the balance, hairspring or spiral, escape wheel, anchor lever and pallet stones or jewels. The modern ébauche is a jeweledJewel bearing
A jewel bearing is a plain bearing in which a metal spindle turns in a jewel-lined pivot hole. The hole is typically shaped like a torus and is slightly larger than the shaft diameter. The jewel material is usually synthetic sapphire...
watch movement, without its regulating organs, mainspring
Mainspring
A mainspring is a spiral torsion spring of metal ribbon that is the power source in mechanical watches and some clocks. Winding the timepiece, by turning a knob or key, stores energy in the mainspring by twisting the spiral tighter. The force of the mainspring then turns the clock's wheels as it...
, dial, or hands.
Historic producers of ébauches
Historic producers of ébauche movements have included companies such as, A. Schild, Peseux, Fabrique d'Horlogerie de Fontainemelon (FHF), Landeron, ValjouxValjoux
Valjoux is a Swiss manufacturer of mechanical watch movements. It is known primarily for chronograph ébauche movements that are used in a number of mid- to high-range mechanical watches: The company has been a part of ETA for a number of years and is a member of the Swatch Group...
, Venus, France Ébauches and Lemania. Many of these producers have gone out of businesses over the past few decades, succumbing to the Quartz Revolution
Quartz crisis
The Quartz Crisis, also known as the Quartz Revolution is a term used in the watchmaking industry to refer to the economic upheavals caused by the advent of quartz watches in the 1970s and early 1980s, which largely replaced mechanical watches...
. Most were unable to compete with the inexpensive electronic movements produced by Asian manufacturers, which flooded the market during the 1960s and 1970s.
Those ébauche producers that remain today are almost all owned by ETA, which is a subsidiary of the Swatch
The Swatch Group Ltd.
The Swatch Group Ltd. is a Swiss company and watch manufacturer. It was formed in 1983 through the merging of the two Swiss watch manufacturers ASUAG and SSIH, and took its present name in 1998 . The company is led by G...
Group.
Related concepts
| Term | Explanation |
|---|---|
| Chablon | French term for a watch movement (not including the dial and hands), of which all or part of the components are not assembled. |
| Ébauche | French term (but commonly used in English-speaking countries) for a movement blank, i.e. an incomplete watch movement which is sold as a set of loose parts, comprising the main plate, the bridges, the train, the winding and setting mechanism and the regulator. The timing system, the escapement and the mainspring, however, are not parts of the "ébauche" |
| Établissage | French term for the method of manufacturing watches and/or movements by assembling their various components. It generally includes the following operations: receipt, inspection and stocking of the "ébauche", the regulating elements and the other parts of the movement and of the make-up; assembling; springing and timing; fitting the dial and hands; casing; final inspection before packing and dispatching. |
| Établisseur | French term for a watch factory which is engaged only in assembling watches, without itself producing the components, which it buys from specialist suppliers. |
| Factory, works | In the Swiss watch industry, the term manufacture is used of a factory in which watches are manufactured almost completely, as distinct from an "atelier de terminage", which is concerned only with assembling, timing, fitting the hands and casing. |
| Manufacture d'horlogerie | French term for a watch factory which itself produces the components (particularly the "ébauche") needed for the manufacture of its products (watches, alarm and desk clocks, etc). |
| Terminage | French term denoting the process of assembling watch parts for the account of a producer. |
| Termineur | French term for an independent watchmaker (or workshop) engaged in assembling watches, either wholly or in part, for the account of an "établisseur" or a "manufacture", who supply the necessary loose parts. |