Land of Winter wonders【誕於寒冬的奇幻故事】
What could be more Swiss than watches and the Alps. We've recreated some mountains for our "Hours & Ages" event, but did you know that without them the watchmaking might never have happened!
The Vallée de Joux, a quiet, rural corner of a land-locked nation. Running roughly from Geneva to Biel this 'precision valley' is a far cry from the dazzling lakes and soaring Alpine peaks on top of every tourist's itinerary.
Yet at HORAGE we owe our livelihoods this inconspicuous part of Switzerland.
Here, the Swiss watchmaking tradition was born. Imprisoned in their homes for 6 months on end by metres of snow and winter temperatures as low as -40 degrees summer farmers accidentally became winter clockmakers.
A craft, which spread throughout the mountainous Jura region. Each family unit became a specialist supplier of one particular watch component - a tradition that continued until global industrialisation transformed forced migration to the new factories.
They had always needed to supplement their farming in one way or another, the harsh climate and rough terrain made agriculture alone unsustainable. Over centuries wood and metalworking crafts became staple cottage industries.
Watchmaking arrived in Switzerland with religious refugees - banished from Catholic France the Protestants watchmakers fled to the tolerant city of Geneva.
A fable for our modern world?
阿爾卑斯山、精緻腕錶，還有什麼比它們更能代表瑞士呢!
我們在Hours & Ages裡將揭開更多秘密 - 假若沒有它們，製錶工業甚至不會興起?
在這地形封閉的國度裡，日內瓦向比爾一帶，漫佈著湖泊與河谷，朱拉谷(Vallée de Joux) 靜謐而碩麗地座落，偕同阿爾卑斯山，深植每位遊客的旅程清單。
HORAGE的我們對此處滿懷感謝，這裡是無限生機 – 製錶工業的起源。由於冬季零下40度的冰雪與嚴寒，在夏季務農的人們無事可做，便在避寒的六個月期間，意外地揭開製錶工業的篇章。
於是，精緻工藝的技術，自朱羅山一帶拓展。人們起初以家庭為單位，紛紛為腕錶業供應零件，久而久之形成延續的傳統，直到全球化工業體制的時代，才轉作新型工廠。
嚴厲的氣候、崎嶇的地形，冬季的農作顧慮，致使他們蔚為獨立堅定的文化。於是歷經幾世紀，木製與金屬工藝，已儼然成為主要產業。
當法國天主教以國法驅離教徒時，信徒中的製錶工匠們也隨之遷移日內瓦，更巧妙地為製錶工業添上助力。
集結巧合、意外、因果，一切簡直是則奇妙的現代寓言!
更多關於Horage資訊: www.horage.com
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