SimplyAbuDhabi XV

7 9 S I M P LY A B U DH A B I S imply Abu Dhabi and celebrated German watchmakers Grieb & Benzinger pay tribute to the memory of the late, great Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, founder of the United Arab Emirates. Elizabeth Doerr brings you the story of this one-of- a-kind timepiece’s inspiration and the attributes that make it so incredible. Arnie Hira, Jordana Lynch and Georg Bartkowiak have been friends since the inaugural edition of Simply Abu Dhabi magazine. Hira and Lynch, of course, are the founders and publishers of this highly recognised title, as well as the media gurus behind the ever so popular social media channels under the same title on Instagram and Facebook, while Bartkowiak is the managing director and creative whirlwind behind the luxury and rare timepieces of German boutique watch brand Grieb & Benzinger. Bartkowiak often spends time in the Emirates to visit his friends and find inspiration for his brand’s one-of-a-kind, often bespoke timepieces. Not too long ago, Hira and Lynch invited him to visit the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque, a majestic structure embodying the testament of its founder, located at the entrance of Abu Dhabi City Island. Its strategic position – it is visible from all three main bridges connecting the island to the mainland – is a symbolic expression of the area’s emotional connection to the seven-year-old structure and the legendary Sheikh buried right beside it: His Highness Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan. His Highness Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan, reverently known as Baba Zayed to his people, is the founder of the United Arab Emirates. He was the ruler of Abu Dhabi since 1966 and president of the UAE upon its formation in 1971 until his death in 2004. Learning about his people’s way of life when he was a young man, he accompanied Bedouin tribesmen into the desert, where he studied falconry. His vision and mandate upon becoming ruler was to develop his Emirate as quickly as possible; the export of oil starting in the 1960s allowed him to begin putting his plans for schools, housing, hospitals and roads into practice. His clear philosophy endeared him to the rulers of the six other Emirates, who elected him as president of the UAE every five years until his passing. His rule was one of consensus, tolerance and humanitarianism. Sheikh Zayed passed away in 2004, leaving not only a legacy of philanthropy and harmony, but also a clear path for Abu Dhabi as well as the dream of the at the time not-yet-completed Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque. Each and every one of the mosque’s elaborate design elements was carefully planned and executed. This includes the fusion of Mamluk, Ottoman and Fatimid styles so as to represent the entirety of the diverse Islamic world, creating one summary, aesthetic artistic edifice. Another is the ornamental development comprising multiple types of naturally coloured marble; it is but one element comprising the symphony of natural hues and shapes found in the mosque. Finally, this dazzling place of worship, which opened in 2007, was created using both modern and traditional artistic techniques. The structure, which comprises four minarets and 82 domes and can accommodate more than 40,000 worshippers, is truly overwhelming. It is no wonder that the trio was so inspired by the beauty and magnificence of the awe-inspiring building that they jointly decided to honour the late, great Sheikh Zayed by incorporating artistic elements inspired by the mosque and the man into a unique timepiece. “For some time now, it has been our dream and vision to create something of artistic value in memory of His Highness Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan for Abu Dhabi and, of course, for all the United Arab Emirates,” Hira explains. “So we at Simply Abu Dhabi decided to form a partnership with German luxury watchmakers Grieb & Benzinger and together have created the beautiful ‘Baba Zayed Simply Abu Dhabi’ timepiece.” This watch by Grieb & Benzinger is a unique edition, a timepiece that will never be reproduced in this form. Its design and details emulate the beauty, artistry and design of the mosque and thus honour the late, great Sheikh Zayed. As a brand that defines itself by tradition, Grieb & Benzinger is the ideal choice of collaborator to create a timepiece like this. Known for mixing time-honoured techniques with the best of what is available to today’s craftsmen, Grieb & Benzinger started by utilising a Swiss movement base. However, the amount of work that watchmaker Hermann Grieb and engraver Jochen Benzinger have put into shaping, modifying and altering the movement not only make it fully unrecognisable from the unadorned base, but also rendered it much more valuable, as the process has made it truly one-of-a-kind. Grieb is a master watchmaker who learned his art in the wholly classic manner, including time as an apprentice and a journeyman before completing his master training at Pforzheim, Germany’s school for watchmaking and goldsmithing. His special little workshop for antique watches and clocks in Dätzingen Castle, a baroque edifice built in 1263, is located right next to the fully refurbished, common workshop shared by the three partners in the same regal building. Grieb, an expert in traditional micromechanics, loves to explain how a clockmaker originally lived on the premises to care for the mantel clocks, grandfather clocks, and later pocket watches that graced every room of the manor. His workshop is now located here as a Forever Baba Zayed… B Y S I M P L Y A B U D H A B I A N D