Jaquet Droz ( Jacques Dro ) - an old brand of luxury Swiss watches . Its founder, Pierre Jaquet-Droz, became world famous thanks to the creation of interior clocks and automatons, non-electric devices that simulate the movements and sounds of people and animals - androids.
| Montres Jaquet Droz SA | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Base | 1738 |
| Founders | Pierre Jacquet-Droz |
| Location |  La Chaux-de-Fonds ( Switzerland ) |
| Industry | Watch industry |
| Products | Clock |
| Parent company | The Swatch Group Ltd. |
| Site | www.jaquet-droz.com |
Content
History
Pierre Jacquet-Droz , a famous pioneer of watchmaking, was born in 1721 in the Swiss city of La Chaux-de-Fonds . He became a skilful creator of animated clocks with singing birds and fountains, a musical clock, and also a brilliant master in creating automatic mechanisms - automatons .
In 1738, Pierre Jaquet-Droz opened his first manufactory in La Chaux-de-Fonds, and then, after a resounding success, opened two more manufactories in London ( 1774 ), and Geneva ( 1784 ), where he invited the most skilled craftsmen of his time. So he laid the foundation for one of the most prestigious brands [1] .
The most famous of his automatons became: a writing boy, a girl playing the organ and a drawing boy. Thanks to his creations, he was introduced to the royal courts of Europe (including Russia ) and China . Moreover, the creation of automatic machines was only a way to attract the attention of noble people for the sale of watches .
During the war at the beginning of the 19th century , communications with London manufactory were blocked, and most of the Jaquet Droz customers emigrated, or were killed or busted, and the brand’s popularity waned. In 1989, the brand was revived by Investcomp, which at that time owned the Breguet brand. In 2000, Jaquet Droz was acquired by Swatch Group [2] .
Automatons
Automatons are rightfully considered the first robots in the world, they were so skillfully executed. Wherever they were shown, they always made a sensation. Today, automatons can be seen in the Museum of History and Art in Neuchatel ( Switzerland ).
Musician
A musician is a girl playing the organ and consisting of 2500 parts. The music is not fake, it is not recorded and is not played by the music box : the doll actually touches with the fingers the keys of an instrument made by special order and consisting of 24 pipes. The doll even “breathes” (you can see how the chest moves) and makes some movements, like a real musician, and her eyes follow where the fingers move. The girl can play five tunes that were written by the son of Pierre Jacques-Droz - Henri-Louis Jacques-Droz.
Artist
An artist is an automaton, created in 1773 and consisting of 2000 parts. He can draw three pictures: a portrait of Louis XV and his dog with the inscription “Mon toutou” (from French - my dog ), the royal couple Marie Antoinette and Louis XVI , as well as a scene with Cupid driving a chariot drawn by butterflies.
The mechanism consists of a system of cams that control the movement of the hand in two dimensions, and are also responsible for lifting the pencil. In addition, the automaton fidgets on a chair and periodically blows dust off a pencil.
Calligrapher
Calligrapher is the most complex automaton, completed in 1772 and consisting of 6,000 parts. Using a mechanism similar to a drawing boy, he can write 40- letter text. The text is encoded on the wheel and the letters are selected sequentially one after another. The boy uses a quill pen , which he periodically dips in the inkwell , while shaking the pen to prevent blots. Automaton's eyes move after the text, and his head turns to the inkwell when he dips a pen at her. It was in this text that the word “android” first appeared - a derivative of the surname of Pierre Jacquet-Dro.
Today at Montres Jaquet Droz you can order an automatic calligrapher up to 80 cm tall. Toy production will require a little less than a year, depending on which face, body and dress, as well as what makeup, hairstyle and posture the client wants [3] .