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Kullberg Edition

Creating a unique timepiece inspired by a pair of vintage Beretta shotguns

Designed from scratch, starting with a hand rendered illustration, this project started with a pair of ornately engraved vintage Beretta shotguns and a list of ideas from the client for inspiration. This marked the beginning of two years of conversations, meetings in the Struthers’ Jewellery Quarter workshops and regular updates with step by step design options for their client. As the project evolved, the Struthers found an independent gun engraver who had apprenticed at Purdy and Holland & Holland to complete the traditional acanthus scroll engraving on the dial and movement.

For the base of this project, the Struthers chose a rare high-grade English movement with free-sprung balance, fusee and power reserve. Originally retailed by the Army & Navy Co-operative Society, the movement was made by celebrated London-based Swedish watchmaker Victor Kullberg in around 1880.

The movement was salvaged after its original case was scrapped for its gold. Badly damaged and missing a number of components, the Struthers managed to locate a complete example at the British Museum which they studied as reference to recreate the missing parts. To preserve the integrity of the historic calibre, the Struthers re-made the modified components of the watch, storing the original parts including the top plate and dial in a secret compartment within its case. There isn’t a single modification that can’t be reversed.

Every detail of the watch has been tailored to the requests of their client, including the left hand wind set up to make the large case more comfortable to wear.

The box, loosely based around a shotgun case, was crafted in the Cotswolds by furniture designer Howard Butler from walnut and oak. Multiple hidden compartments contain two additional interchangeable straps, spare screws and screwdriver, a UBS containing the history of the watch and over 130 photographs of the build process. With hidden details throughout, even the pot containing the spare screws dates back to the same era as the watch movement.

Case

50mm sterling silver

Dial

hand engraved sterling silver with acanthus leaf scrolling and printed

Movement

re-built Victor Kulberg calibre for the Army & Navy Co-operative, made in London, with up-and-down dial, fusee and free-spring balance. Original movement components housed in a secret compartment in the box

Strap

three interchangeable straps on silver swing lugs