It was in Le Locle, during one of those interminable winters that numb the Neuchâtel mountains, that Abraham- Louis Perrelet was born, on 9 January 1729, to a family that had lived there since the 14th century. His father, Daniel Perrelet, was a farmer and carpenter but also a skilled craftsman who manufactured some extremely precise tools for local watchmakers.
Following in his father’s entrepreneurial footsteps, Abraham- Louis worked in the fi elds and helped out with the joinery during the winter months, sharpening saws and fashioning little bellows. He soon developed a passionate interest in watchmaking, a craft that had developed extensively since the beginning of the century. At the age of 20, he decided to focus all his attention on it. His ingenuity soon allowed him to overcome all obstacles. Lacking specialised tools, he focused on method. He first endeavoured to create a certain number of precision instruments to allow him to tackle the heart – or rather the soul – of his work: the mechanism of the watch.
From that moment on, Abraham-Louis Perrelet was an innovative force to be reckoned with. With a combination of intelligence, imagination and clear-sightedness, he developed a series of new techniques designed to improve the way timepieces work. He produced the first ever watches with cylinder, duplex, date and equation escapements. He perfected the finishing and enhanced the pinions, wheels, escapement and winding mechanism.

As his reputation steadily grew, his expertise was soon in great demand. Abraham-Louis Perrelet was a constant source of wonder. And his dexterity and extraordinary steadiness of hand did not diminish with age: the Musée International d’Horlogerie in La Chaux-de-Fonds houses what is surely one of the very last works of this brilliant watchmaker, completed at the age of… 96.
In spite of his pioneering status, Abraham-Louis Perrelet always remained close to his roots, spending his entire life in the family residence in Le Locle. He passed away in 1826, having spent almost 80 years developing watchmaking techniques.
His heritage will live on forever.