Geneva Seal

The Geneva Seal (English), Poinçon de Genève (French), or Genfer Siegel (German) is the official seal of the City and Canton of Geneva, Switzerland. When a variation of the official seal is applied to wristwatch movements, the Geneva Seal is the quality seal of the Watchmaking School of Geneva and it has an official purpose as defined by the law.

The term is often mistakenly translated from the French as the "Geneva hallmark", as the word means "punch" and is the word used for hallmark. However, a hallmark is an official mark attesting to the fineness of a precious metal object. In this context the German translation of hallmark, which is "stempel" or "stamp" may be helpful to foster an understanding of and distinguish the terms. The motif of the Geneva Seal is the seal of the Canton of Geneva. This becomes evident when one translates its name from the German. As the reader may recall the official languages of Switzerland are German, French, Italian and Romantch (used in that order). But this issue about the translation is still a matter of debate because the term used by Timelab is the "Hallmark of Geneva". (Timelab is an organization which is composed of a centre for certifications (Hallmark of Geneva, COSC, Sport time-keeping) and a centre for Research and Development.)

The Geneva seal in horology (watches), is a certification reserved for wrist watch movements made in the City or Canton of Geneva. Although it is concerned mainly with the finishing and decoration of the watch movement, it is considered a high accolade in the industry. Precision testing, though not mandatory, is an option in the inspection process.

The Geneva Seal is the quality and Canton of Geneva. It is a certification reserved for wrist and pocket watch movements made in the City or Canton of Geneva. Although it is concerned mainly with the finishing and decoration of the watch movement, it is considered a high accolade in the industry. Precision testing, however, is an option in the inspection process. Among the Geneva watchmakers who regularly submit their movements for the Geneva Seal certification are: Cartier, Chopard, Roger Dubuis, Vacheron & Constantin, Louis Vuitton and Ateliers deMonaco.

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