History
1865-1900
When the La Chaux-de-Fonds Watchmaking School opened in 1865, the teachers were tasked with building a collection, primarily for educational purposes. The rich array of pieces collected led a small group of devotees, under the leadership of watchmaking entrepreneur Maurice Picard, an Israeli citizen of French origin, to propose the opening of a museum.
1900-1910
In 1901, the municipal council, acting on the submission from Mr. Picard proposing the creation of a museum dedicated to the history of watchmaking, established an ad hoc commission and allocated temporary premises for the museum at Rue du Collège 9.
On the 24th March 1902, the authorities of the City of La Chaux-de-Fonds signed the charter of foundation for the Watchmaking museum. A room in the Watchmaking school was dedicated to the museum. 1902 also saw the addition to the collections of Ferdinand Berthoud's large no. 12 marine chronometer, an exceptional piece dating from 1774, demonstrating that, even at that time, the choice of objects required close scrutiny from the members of the commission.
Donations poured in, requiring the museum to reorganise its exhibition in 1908. Success and recognition had arrived.
1910-1920
However, the war slowed the addition of new pieces to the collection. The museum's activities only resumed in 1920, with a wealth of donations and acquisitions. To celebrate its 25th anniversary, the collection was enriched by an extraordinary musical clock from Pierre Jaquet-Droz featuring a 9-bell carillon and a set of 12 flutes, with rich decoration depicting the fable of the fox and the stork by Jean de La Fontaine. This acquisition was thanks in large part to financial assistance from the Gottfried Keller foundation.
1930-1950
In 1931, the effects of the Great Depression were being felt: acquisitions, donations and visitors were in sharp decline, and the fate of the museum itself hung in the balance: space was limited, and the large, precious collection was housed in cramped premises. The war years would once again hinder the museum's development, and the collections were stored in cases to protect them. A 5-year interval followed before the arrival of a fresh outlook thanks to the patronage of two important organisations: the Syndicat patronal des producteurs de la montre (Employer's Union of Watchmakers) and the Bureau de contrôle des ouvrages en métaux précieux (Inspectorate of precious metal artefacts).
1950-1960
The premises were renovated and a new room added in 1952. The museum reopened to the public in the spring of 1953. This heralded a new period of prosperity for the institution: superb enamelled watches were acquired, some from the sale of King Farouk's collection in 1954, such as the magnificent tact watch by Abraham-Louis Breguet, dating from around 1800. Both sides of the watch are decorated with enamel, and neither face shows the time. The distinguishing feature of this type of watch, invented by Breguet at the very end of the 18th century, is that it allows the time to be read by touching. The decorated background featuring Cupid holding his bow turns, bringing the tip of the arrow into contact with the small buttons and allowing the time to be read discreetly by touch. Distinguished visitors such as Max Petitpierre, president of the Confederation in 1955, discovered the museum, as the guest book reveals.
1960-1970
In the 1960s, space was once again in short supply. By this time, it was clear that a new building capable of housing the museum would be needed. In 1963, professor Georges-Henri Rivière of Paris, then director of the International Council of Museums (ICOM), was asked by the municipal council to carry out a study into the collections of the city's museums of history, fine arts and horology. The report revealed the major importance of the watchmaking museum's collection and emphasised the need for new spaces in which to exhibit it: “La Chaux-de-Fonds is the world's watchmaking capital; its watchmaking museum must be the finest in the world...”. Pierre Imhof, president of the watchmaking museum's commission, could now set about envisaging a future worthy of the city and its collections. 1967 marked an important turning point with the creation of the Maurice Favre foundation, whose purpose was to generate a large part of the funds required to build the new building.
In 1968, the museum adopted the name Musée international d'horlogerie (International watchmaking museum, MIH) with the subtitle “L'homme et le temps” (Man and time), and an architectural competition was launched to build the museum as part of the History museum park, with the aim of creating a synergy with the latter and the neighbouring Museum of fine arts. From more than thirty projects submitted, it was architects Pierre Zoelly and Georges-Jacques Haefeli that received the commission.
1970-1980
Work began in 1972, culminating two years later in a building featuring avant-garde architecture, much of which was underground - a worthy setting for the world's only collection of its kind. It was also an opportunity to exhibit the frescoes of Hans Erni, produced for the Brussels World Fair in 1958 and donated to the MIH in the year of its inauguration by the Swiss Chamber of Watchmaking – they decorated the main room intended for exhibitions, conferences and other events.
A new museographical design for the exhibition of the collections created by Serge Tcherdyne, Pierre Bataillard and Mario Gallopini, as well as a new scientific concept, the MIH is unique in combining three different centres of competence: a museum, a restoration centre for old timepieces and an interdisciplinary time study centre whose library and archives contain periodicals, original works, sales catalogues, adverts, varied visual documents, the collection forming a centre of global importance for researchrecherche.
1980-1990
1980 saw the final stage in the construction, with the installation of the monumental carillon to complete the museum's external architecture: a kinetic clock and a musical instrument, it chimes the hours and quarter hours, with tunes according to the seasons. It was also the year in which the friends of the MIH association, known as “amisMIH”, was created. Largely thanks to their efforts, a number of remarkable pieces were acquired, expanding and enriching the collection.
In 1989, the Institut l'homme et le temps (Man and time institute) was founded in order to strengthen links with the scientific world of higher education, and conferences on a variety of themes were regularly held, alternating with temporary themed exhibitions. The publications of the same name regularly feature exhibition catalogues published as thematic and scientific works.
1990-2000
As a natural extension of its work to recognise watchmaking, its history and its technology, the MIH awarded the Prix Gaïa for the first time in 1993; the prize is awarded to those who have worked in the field of watchmaking and time measurement, be it from a design, industrial or historical perspective.
From: “Le Pays de Neuchâtel et son patrimoine horloger”, 2008