The man is noted for is fantastical creations that mix playful details with extreme complications. The Mickey Mouse watches are no doubt icon of sorts for the watchmaker.
Cool story: I actually met Daniel Roth, the brand's watchmaker, some two years ago at BaselWorld. I own a Mickey Mouse watch. Of course it's nothing like this incredibly pricey mechanical masterpiece. In fact, I got it for a couple hundred bucks at Disneyland. It's got an oversized dial that's well into the 40mms. But the reason I got it is because of this hands; the hands of the watch are literally hands, Mickey's hands for that matter. It's incredible the amount of attention I got at the fair from fellow journalists, collectors and a few watchmakers.
So back to the Daniel Roth story. I met him at the Gerald Genta/Daniel Roth booth at Basel. He saw my watch and immediately demanded that I take it off so he could have a look. As I fidget to hand over the timepiece, he tells me he's working on a piece with moving Mickey Arms. He then proceed to take of his watch- a Daniel Roth Endurer, and offered me a trade! He examined my watch for a bit and was rather impressed with the lacquered stainless steel inlay of Mickey.
Daniel Roth Endurer with a chronometer at 6 o'clock position
And of course, we switched back at the end. But nevertheless, it was still pretty neat to have spent some time with the master watchmaker.
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