GADROON

The gadroon is a circular ornament, in relief or engraved, composed of ovoid motifs — evoking pods, flutes, or olives — arranged side by side, vertically or obliquely. Inherited from the vocabulary of goldsmithing and architecture, it creates a regular set of Lightand material that animates the surfaces. In watchmaking, gadroons are frequently found on the elements of External parts (case, dial, hands): bands of Case middle, fluted bezels or backs of Case, where they provide both decoration and grip. Made by turning, stamping, Guilloché (engine-turning) or machining, the gadroon requires regular execution, as the slightest irregularity in the succession of motifs is immediately noticeable. Decorative but sometimes functional — a bezel gadrooned offers better grip for the fingers —, it illustrates how watchmaking borrows from the decorative arts to personalize its cases and assert a model’s style.

The word gadroon comes from the old French “godet”, which referred to a rounded fold of fabric or metal, before being applied, from the Renaissance onward, to relief motifs adorning goldsmithing and architecture. In watchmaking, the motif reached its full development with the fob watches of the 18th and 19th centuries, before returning, in the 20th century, to certain classic wristwatch cases. Technically, gadrooning requires a perfectly regular distribution of the motifs around the circumference of the piece: an irregular spacing, even a minimal one, breaks the visual harmony sought. Depending on the manufacturing process, the motif is obtained by turning on a rose engine (guilloché lathe), by press stamping, or by numerically controlled machining.