Watch Your Time 2016 - European Edition

SPECIAL WAT C H E D I T I O N

THE FACE OF TIME

D I SCOV E R TH E WO R LD O F TH I S Y E A R ’ S N E W WATC H E S

AS SEEN BY BVLGAR I , CARTIER , CHOPARD, HUB LOT, IWC, JAEGER- LECOULTRE , MONTB L ANC, PATEK PH I LI PPE , PIAGE T, ROLE X , TAG HEUER , VACHERON CONSTANTIN , VAN C LEEF & ARPELS, ZEN ITH…

EU RO P E A N ED I T I O N 2016 — S P E C I A L F E AT U R E — T H U RS DAY A P R I L 7, 2016 . P RO D UC ED F O R T H E DA I LY T E LEG R A P H BY ED I T I O N S T E M P S I N T ER N AT I O N A L W H O TA K E SO LE R ES P O N S I B I L I T Y F O R T H E C O N T EN TS . (AVA I L A B LE I N LO N DO N A N D SOU T H R EG I O N S O N LY )

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THE CHANEL MOMENT

WATCH YOUR TIME

SPECIAL WATCH EDITION PRODUCED FOR THE DAILY TELEGR APH ON THURSDAY APRIL 7, 2016 BY EDITIONS TEMPS INTERNATIONAL WHO TAKE SOLE RESPONSIBILIT Y FOR THE CONTENTS.

PUBLISHER-FOUNDER CHRISTIAN LL AVALL-UBACH MANAGING DIRECTOR ISABELLE BOUDRINGHIN EDITIONS@TEMPS-INTERNATIONAL.COM DEVELOPMENT MANAGER ERIC DUMATIN EDITORIAL DIRECTOR CHRISTOPHE ROULET CONTRIBUTORS THIERRY BR ANDT (SWITZERL AND), PETER BR AUN (GERMANY), VINCENT DAVEAU (FR ANCE), PAOLO DE VECCHI (ITALY), JAMES GURNEY (UNITED KINGDOM),

13 FOCUS

HERMÈS, A FINE ART

15 EDITORIAL

RENÉ PRÊTRE, THE SOUND OF LIFE

PIERRE MAILL ARD (SWITZERL AND), PALOMA RECIO (SPAIN), CHRISTOPHE ROULET (SWITZERL AND) TRANSLATORS PETER BR AUN, SANDR A PETCH, PALOMA RECIO, RITA IANNICIELLO MANUFACTURE

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17 FOCUS

SIMULTANEOUSLY WITH LE MONDE (FR ANCE),

IL SOLE 24 ORE (ITALY ), EL MUNDO (SPAIN)

HUBLOT, HERO WORSHIP

FR ANKFURTER ALLGEMEINE (GERMANY ),

DE TR ADUCTION, PAOLO DE VECCHI, AMAÏA TR ADUCTIONS PHOTOGRAPHER MARKUS & KOAL A ARTISTIC DIRECTOR VINCENT FESSELET, GENEVA PHOTOENGRAVERS BOMBIE, GENEVA, PRINTED IN THE EU — REPRODUCTION, EVEN PARTIAL , OF MATERIAL PUBLISHED IN WATCH YOUR TIME IS STRICTLY PROHIBITED. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED IN THE U.K . AND OTHER COUNTRIES.

22 FOCUS

CHOPARD, A DREAM COME TRUE

24 FOCUS

CHANEL, “MONSIEUR” IS SERVED

26 FOCUS

MONTBLANC, TRANSATLANTIC ODYSSEY

28 CLASSIC

TRUTH IN TIME

THIERRY BRANDT

34 FOCUS

PANERAI, TWO OF A KIND

38 JEWELLERY

BEAUTY IN TIME

PALOMA RECIO

44 SPORT

EFFICIENCY IN TIME

PAOLO DE VECCHI

49 FOCUS

VAN CLEEF & ARPELS, THE POETRY OF TIME

50 DIVING

MARKUS & KOALA This international photography/directing duo creates a “unique visual universe” (Vogue) where glamorous, high fashion meets youth culture. Koala’s creative perspective, from the viewpoint of a young Chinese American multimedia artist, resonates throughout their work and adds a modern, cutting edge imprint to Markus’ glossy, 70s and 80s–inspired signature style.

PHOTOGR APHERS: MARKUS & KOAL A@ ANGEL A DE BONA AGENCY

TIME IN DEPTH

MODEL: BO DON @ NE XT AGENCY NYC

VACHERON CONSTANTIN

HARMONY CHRONOGR APH CALIBRE 3300

PETER BRAUN

SPORT’S ST YLIST: TER AH STONE

ST YLIST: MELISSA INFANTE

A MODERN REINCARNATION OF A VACHERON CONSTANTIN

MAKE UP: KIM WHITE

CHRONOGR APH FROM 1928, THIS NEW CHRONOGR APH

HAIR: DINA CAL ABRO

IN THE HARMONY COLLECTION CLEARLY DISPLAYS ITS CONNECTION WITH THE ORIGINAL MODEL. ITS PINK GOLD CASE HOUSES THE NEW MANUAL-WIND CALIBRE 3300 DEVELOPED BY VACHERON CONSTANTIN.

56 ASTRONOMICAL

THE COSMOLOGY OF TIME

VINCENT DAVEAU

61 FOCUS

PIAGET, PERFECTION IN EVERY DETAIL

62 FOCUS

TAG HEUER, SWISS SMART

64 FOCUS

THE BEST OF FRIENDS

66 COMPLICATIONS

THE COMPLEXITY OF TIME

JAMES GURNEY

70 FOCUS

AUDEMARS PIGUET, ONWARDS AND UPWARDS

MANICURE: NARINA CHAN ASSISTANT PA: SACHA DI BONA SPECIAL THANKS TO SPL ASHLIGHT STUDIOS SPECIAL THANKS TO LUMIERE LLC DIGITAL

Vacheron Constantin Boutique, 37 Old Bond Street, London, W1S 4AB, Tel: 020 7578 9500

CRAFTING ETERNITY SINCE 1755 Our continuous history reflects the transmission of our watchmaking savoir-faire.

PATR I M O N Y P ERPE TUA L CALEN DA R

Geneva official watchmaking certification

Big Pilot’s Watch. Ref. 5009: The world is like a book you understand better with the knowledge of the well-travelled cosmopolitan. Because the greater your experience, the more likely it is to reveal its complexity within the context of time. Seen from this perspective, it is soon obvious where the watchmaking roots of IWC’s new Big Pilot’s Watch lie: in the glorious early days of the Pilot’s Watch era at IWC. After all, it is the legitimate successor of a genuine original, of the first observer’s watch made by the Schaffhausen-based company: the Big Pilot’s Watch 52

T. S. C. For this was the timepiece that heralded the illustrious decade of the Big Pilot’s Watches at IWC and still stands as a milestone in pilot’s watch history. Following this tradition, the latest model has the same absolute precision and a starkly reduced dial design recalling the clarity of the cockpit instruments in legendary aircraft like the Junkers Ju 52 from the infancy of aviation. All in all, the current Big Pilot’s Watch is the latest original in the history of IWC’s Pilot’s Watches and at the same time a mirror reflecting its illustrious past.

IWC . E N G I N E E R E D FO R M E N .

JOIN TH E CONVE RSATION: #B _ORIG INAL London Boutique | 138 New Bond Street | W1S 2TJ | +44 (0) 203 618 3900 | www.iwc.com

ENGINEERED FOR MEN WHO SEE THE WORLD AS A REFLECTION OF TIME.

FOCUS WATCH YOUR TIME 13

a fine art

Hermès never fails to strike the perfect balance in all that it does, signing each of its creations with a unique elegance. The Slim d’Hermès collection is no exception, capturing time in its purest form.

Hermès ranks among those businesses we more readily associate with fashion, and which have longstanding ties with watchmaking nonetheless. The first timepieces to bear the Hermès name were put on display in Paris, at 24, Faubourg Saint-Honoré, in 1928. With help from prestigious partners, Hermès went on to propose more watches under its own name. With great foresightedness, and sensing the winds of change, the renowned

Parisian saddle-maker then set up a new entity, La Montre Hermès SA, in Biel, a small industrial town in Switzerland, thanks to which it was soon making giant strides in the watch segment. Fully aware of changes taking place within the market, Hermès further bolstered its position by fitting its watches with Vaucher movements as from 2003, while developing the human and industrial means to produce top-quality watches in its name. One way it did this, in 2006, was to take a stake in Vaucher Manufacture, a respected movement-maker based in Fleurier, Switzerland, the first step towards launching its first in-house calibres. As Hermès moves ever closer towards this purest form of time measurement, manufacturing expertise and graphic design align, perhaps nowhere more perfectly than in the Slim watch with its stunningly simple dial and extra-thin Manufacture movement.

a meeting of minds, between Hermès, designers and craftsmen. One could say it represents the very essence of Hermès.” This new collection is an exercise in style, aimed at capturing the essence of time in the purest of forms. It does so thanks in no small part to the dial, with numerals designed by illustrator Philippe Apeloig. “I built on fundamentals,” Apeloig says, “like a composer who succeeds in transforming just seven notes on a stave into a symphony.” The typography of the numerals, this font, is essential to the Slim’s identity. It respects the natural function of a watch by focusing on the essential and ensuring complete readability. The numerals impart a visual lightness, bringing a brisk yet sober rhythm to the dial; they are the very soul of the collection.

NEW BEAUTIES

As Philippe Delhotal, creative director at La Montre Hermès, reminds us, “Slim is a uniquely elegant collection that is both classic and contemporary. It stems from

Drawing on its graphic design culture, Hermès presented two versions of the Slim d’Hermès last year, both 39.5 mm in diameter. The first is a time-only model that is driven by the H1950 calibre, a self-winding, extra-thin Manufacture movement with a micro-rotor. The second, in pink gold, is fitted with the same in-house movement,

SLIM D’ H E R M È S GR AND FEU ENAMEL. TH E S L I M ’S D I A L O PEN I NG OFFERS

SLIM D’ HE R M È S MANUFACTURE. INTRODUCED IN 2015, THE SLI M D’HER M ÈS

A ­M AG N I F I C ENT B L AN K CANVAS FOR TH E M É T I ERS D’AR T, A HA LLM AR K OF

­M ANUFACTURE IS DR IVEN BY THE E X TR A-THIN H1950 MOVEM ENT. THE M EN’S

­H ERMÈS. THIS SLIM D’HERMÈS MANUFACTURE EMPLOYS GR AND FEU ENAMEL TO

39.50 - M M VERSION TAKES ON NE W SHADES, INCLUDING A SL ATE- GRE Y DIAL

­D ECOR ATE THE DIAL’S THREE LEVELS: A FIRST CIRCLE WITH THE HOUR MARKERS,

PAIRED WITH AN ELEPHANT-GREY ALLIGATOR STR AP, CR AF TED IN HERMÈS’ OWN

A SECOND CIRCLE IN THE CENTRE, AND A SMALL SECONDS MICRO-DIAL .

LE ATHER WORKSHOPS.

A MEETING OF MINDS

with the addition of a perpetual calendar module including moon phases and a second time zone, developed by Agenhor. Both these beautifully designed, discreetly aristocratic styles are water-resistant to 3 atm, as are the ladies’ versions with 32 mm and 35 mm diameters.

They are worn on alligator straps which are crafted by Hermès and which fasten with a pin buckle. Joining them this year is another version for women, ­measuring 39.5 mm and with or without diamonds on the bezel.

It houses the same H1950 Manufacture movement.

These delightful timepieces are mounted on alligator straps in a palette of vibrant colours. Men needn’t feel left out, as Hermès is also proposing a Slim with a magnificent slate-grey dial matched with a grey alligator strap. The version with midnight-blue dial, meanwhile, comes paired with a matt indigo strap. For those in search of a truly exceptional timepiece, and for admirers of watchmaking’s companion crafts, the “métiers d’art”, Hermès also proposes a Slim in pink gold, again driven by the wonderful H1950 calibre, and with a dial crafted in grand feu enamel in the most immaculate white. Who could want for more?

Vincent Daveau

JAEGER-LECOULTRE BOUTIQUE 13 Old Bond Street, London - +44 (0)20 3402 1960

Geophysic Universal Time watch Philippe Jordan, Chief Conductor and Music Director in Paris and Vienna

Open a whole new world

EDITORIAL WATCH YOUR TIME 15

the sound of life --o------- pierre maillard

FONDATION “LE PETIT CŒUR”

Each day, all over the world, hundreds of children are born with a heart defect. Half of them would benefit from an operation. Without this surgery, these children are unable to lead a full life. Many die young.

Each year René Prêtre operates on children in Cambodia and Mozambique for the Fondation “Le Petit Cœur”. The Foundation gives hope to these young people who were unfortunate to be born in a country that cannot provide them with adequate medical treatment.

“we work to the nearest millimetre, with the help of magnifying glasses and a forehead light. precision is all that counts. you need a steady hand, a good pair of eyes, and the ability to remain totally focused. you see the value of what you’ve done as soon as it springs into action. time, the fourth dimension, comes into play, and with it that mesmerising po-bom’ po-bom’. the ticking sound. that’s when you know it’s beating to time.”

It could be a watchmaker talking about his job.

In fact it’s a surgeon. A heart surgeon, René Prêtre, a specialist in child cardiac surgery who in 2010 was named “Swiss of the Year”. Professor Prêtre is widely seen as a star in his discipline, though he has none of the arrogance of certain other “stars”. Far from it. Born in 1957, this deeply endearing humanist still abides by the principles he grew up with as a farmer’s son in Switzerland’s Jura mountains: “You must use nature as your ally. If you try to dominate nature or, worse still, try and oppose it, rest assured you’ll fall flat on your face. Nature is generous… provided we show it respect.”

He knows nonetheless that nature, so much a part of his early life, has never been easily tamed, and was even viewed with a certain fatalism by a farming community.

“A storm could appear out of nowhere and swallow up an entire harvest. We dreaded lightning, knowing it could strike down a tree, a cow, set the whole farm ablaze even.

Now that we have accurate, scientific weather forecasts, we no longer have to rely on barometers or watch how the swallows are flying.” Once again, he draws a parallel with his own profession. “There was a time when surgery was completely unpredictable.

An operation was often one setback after another. The surgery we perform today is extremely reliable and foreseeable,” he assures us at the end of a day during which he operated on two children at the teaching hospital in Lausanne, where he is head of paediatric cardiac surgery. “I’ve never felt concerned,” he confides. “I know the heart well enough to anticipate most of its reactions.” He downplays the risks and the stress — “a heart operation is like skiing down a black run. If you know the difficult parts, the bumps, the twists, the tight turns, the icy spots, and as long as you control your speed, you’ll get to the bottom without taking a fall” — then seems more contemplative: “On some of the ­steepest

descents, it takes a tightrope-walker’s skill just to retain your balance. That’s when you need to stay calm and not be overcome by emotion that causes mind and body to seize up. Experience and confidence in your abilities make you immune to vertigo.”

Some operations can last an infinite amount of time: “once around the dial for the hour hand,” he says before adding, “for a surgeon, time is surprisingly elastic. Our internal clocks compress two hours of intense concentration into just a few minutes.

My clock is often the heart itself and its beating. I’m so used to hearing the monitors beeping in the background that if they ­suddenly stop I’m on it even before the alarms go off.”

“The heart is a charismatic organ because of the role it plays, which is to support life, because of its position in the centre of the body, and because it symbolises love.” The heart is strong as well as delicate. Its internal structure is as intricate and subtle as the mechanism of a watch. It also has the capacity to respond instantaneously, accelerating and beating twice as hard in a matter of seconds. “Despite our years of experience, we still see the heart as something magical, especially when it starts beating again. This can be a very powerful moment, all the more so after a transplant when the heart starts ticking again.”

The sound of life.

IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO HELP:

Fondation “ Le petit cœur ” Zürcher Kantonalbank Account: 80-151-4 IBAN: CH03 0070 0111 5002 8083 6

Midnight Plan茅tarium Poetic Complications watch automatic mechanical movement, pink gold case.

Mars, Mercury, Venus, Jupiter, Saturn and Earth revolve around the Sun in real time.

Haute Joaillerie, place Vend么me since 1906

www.vancleefarpels.com - +44 20 7108 6210

FOCUS WATCH YOUR TIME 17

In the space of a decade, Hublot has achieved the exploit of capturing multiple territories, and in particular the wrists of watch lovers who ­appreciate its distinctive approach to fine watchmaking. The brand that practices “the art of fusion” leaves no-one indifferent.

hero worship

Anyone who takes to winter like an Eskimo to ice knows how important it is to be properly equipped. Hence he or she would be well-advised to wrap up in the very latest KJUS Hublot ski jacket, complete with carbon membrane and carbon zipper. They can then slip on their All Black skis, built from carbon fibre, fibreglass, steel, rubber and Graubunden stone, which Hublot created alongside ski manufacturer Zai. Non-skiers

RICARDO GUADALUPE, CEO, HUBLOT.

can pick the Hublot competition sled, produced in collaboration with Lausanne University of Art and Design and Swiss company Graf, as an alternative means of transport down snow-covered slopes. On their wrist, expect to see the Grande Odyssée Savoie Mont-Blanc 2016, a special edition of the Classic Fusion Aerofusion Chronograph that Hublot developed for the race, which each January has teams of dogs and mushers competing through the French Alps. Just to confirm, we are talking about a watch, the core business of Hublot. The brand excels in going off-piste but knows exactly which direction to take, as CEO Ricardo Guadalupe explains: “Hublot’s strength resides in its clearly defined identity, the art of fusion, the unique capacity to create watches that combine tradition with innovation.”

Back to Hublot’s watches, then: the Big Bangs and the Classic Fusions which, in the space of a decade, have conquered minds and markets worldwide. “We came from nowhere,” says Ricardo Guadalupe. “We’ve gone from being a brand making 90% quartz watches to a brand that sells virtually nothing but mechani-

cal. The exploit that earned us a spot among the top Swiss watch brands is to have created the Unico, a 100% in-house chronograph movement. Very few brands can claim as much. That and the materials we use, particularly Magic Gold, a scratch-resistant gold that we invented. That’s also quite an achievement!”

Hublot is certainly no stranger to exploits. In 2015, the brand reported 13% growth when the market for its price segment recorded a 5% drop. To keep pace with its success, the brand has already doubled the size of its production facilities in Nyon, on the shores of Lake Leman, close to Geneva. This expansion comes barely six years after the first building went up, and just eleven years after the brand was turned around by a certain Jean-Claude Biver, now at the head of LVMH’s watch division, which takes in Hublot, Zenith and TAG Heuer. Speaking at the official inauguration of the new manufacturing facilities in summer 2015, he left no doubt about what the brand stands for:

“Hublot does much more than manufacture watches.

At Hublot, we have a religion, a mission, a philosophy.

Only Hublot can put soul on your wrist!”

Message received loud and clear, particularly as Hublot ventures into more new territory. “For the past decade, we’ve explored some very different worlds,” Ricardo Guadalupe observes. “Sport was an obvious choice as Hublot comes from sailing. We then extended this to football, which has become one of the brand’s pillars, followed by automobiles with Ferrari.

We’re now concentrating on art and lifestyle. Today’s consumers have many facets. Wherever they go, whether it’s a museum or a football match, they have to see that Hublot is part of their world.” This eclecticism is echoed in the brand’s products. So far this year, Hublot has presented a LaFerrari with sapphire case, a Big Bang Unico Retrograde Chronograph, designed with football in mind, a dressier Classic Fusion Racing Grey, and a Big Bang Broderie Sugar Skull for women.

As a religion, Hublot clearly believes in more than one god.

Eric Dumatin

HUBLOT BIG BANG UNICO BI-RETROGR ADE CHRONOGR APH. FOR ITS THIRD

HUBLOT MP- 05 L AFERR ARI SAPPHIRE. WHI LE THE OR IGINAL DESIGN OF THE

HUBLOT’S MANUFACTURING FACILITIES IN NYON, NE AR GENE VA . THE BR AND,

EURO PAR T I C I PAT I ON , H UB LOT PR ESENTS TH E OFF I C I A L UEFA EURO 2016™

MP-05 “L AFERR ARI” WAS CRE ATED TO SHOW OFF THE BE AUT Y OF ITS “ENGINE”,

WHICH IS PART OF THE FRENCH LVMH GROUP, OPENED E XTENDED PREMISES IN

WATCH IN THE COLOURS OF FR ANCE, THE HOST COUNTRY. A BI-RE TROGR ADE

ITS ALTER EGO — WITH A CASE CARVED OUT OF SAPPHIRE — APPE ARS TO BE

SEP TEMBER 2015. THIS NEW CAPACIT Y IS SE T ASIDE FOR R&D AND FOR MOVE-

MODULE WITH PATENTED AUTOMATIC WINDING IS FIT TED TO THE UNICO MANU-

­L ITER ALLY SUSPENDED IN MID-AIR. ALL THE DETAILS OF THIS RECORD-­B REAKING

MENT PRODUCTION.

FACTURE CALIBRE, DESIGNED TO TIME A FOOTBALL MATCH.

MOVEMENT CAN BE ADMIRED FROM ALL ANGLES.

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BIG BANG UNICO SAPPHIRE

BIG BANG UNICO SAPPHIRE ALL BLACK

22 WATCH YOUR TIME FOCUS

a dream come true K ARL-FRIEDRICH SCHEUFELE, CO-PRESIDENT, CHOPARD.

This year marks the twentieth anniversary of Chopard Manufacture. This far-sighted decision to bring mechanical movement production in-house has established Chopard within the select circle of fine watch brands.

A passion for fine mechanics convinced this classic-car enthusiast to forge a mechanical future for the brand, which has been under his family’s stewardship since 1963 and which he co-presides alongside his sister, Caroline. In 1993, the first measures were implemented that would make Chopard a movement manufacturer once again. “I believe that for a brand to legitimately belong to the fine watchmaking sphere, it must control every stage in the manufacture of its timepieces: concept, development, production and assembly. This implies movements as well as external parts, even if it does mean higher production costs in view of the handcrafting involved. These days, only a family-owned firm can take this type of decision and see it through, for the simple reason it doesn’t have to justify itself to shareholders who are totally detached from the realities of fine watchmaking.”

positioned itself in the complicated movement segment from the outset. Fortunately, Karl-Friedrich Scheufele lacked neither the patience nor the perseverance required.

After three years of development and ten months after opening a new production site in 1996, Chopard presented its first movement, the L.U.C 96.01-L, a self-­winding calibre measuring just 3.30 mm high and distinguished by the coveted Poinçon de Genève. Since then, the brand has continued its slow but steady progression, taking each stage in its stride and investing some 50 million Swiss francs along the way. Over these two decades, Chopard has developed and manufactured ten families of L.U.C movements which equip more than 70 different models of watch. Everything Chopard Manufacture has touched has turned to gold, from the tourbillon to the perpetual calendar, from the patented Quattro system with four barrels to the chronograph, from extra-thin calibres to high-­ frequency movements. Not forgetting the use of ethically

Believing is one thing; putting these convictions into ­practice is another. Particularly as Chopard Manufacture

and sustainably produced Fairmined gold for its cases.

These were impressive achievements, but Karl-Friedrich Scheufele had no intention of stopping there. Having mastered complication movements, Chopard now had to master production of base calibres, the famous “workhorses” that require an industrial environment. This was no small challenge given the difficulties entailed, particularly when starting such a project from scratch, as Chopard did in 2007. Once again though, Karl-Friedrich’s patience and perseverance paid off. The new entity, Fleurier Ebauches, last year produced in the region of 20,000 movements. “Fleurier Ebauches and Chopard Manufacture are two separate entities working towards the same objective, which is to remain independent,” he explains. “Granted, this may be the longer, more challenging and more costly route but it’s the strategy to which we’ve always adhered. Possibly we were fortunate enough to have made the move early on, meaning we were able to progress one step at a time.” Thanks also, it must be said, to a foresightedness that is reaping its reward in this anniversary year.

Eric Dumatin

CHOPARD L.U.C XPS 1860. THIS WATCH PAYS TRIBUTE TO THE VERY FIRST TIME-

CHOPARD L.U.C PERPETUAL CHRONO. TRULY A COLLECTOR’S WATCH, THE NEW

CALIBRE L.U.C 03.10-L — 1. THE L .U.C PERPE TUAL CHRONO HAS A DUAL SE AL

PIECE IN THE L.U.C COLLECTION, THE L.U.C 1860 THAT WAS L AUNCHED TWENTY

L.U.C PERPETUAL CHRONO FROM CHOPARD BRINGS TOGETHER A HAND-WOUND

OF APPROVAL . THE PRECISION OF ITS L .U.C 03.10-L MOVEMENT IS CERTIFIED BY

YEARS AGO, AT THE SAME TIME CHOPARD MANUFACTURE CAME INTO BEING. WITH

CHRONOGR APH AND A PERPETUAL CALENDAR IN THE SUPERL ATIVE L.U.C 03.10-L

THE CONTRÔLE OFFICIEL SUISSE DES CHRONOMÈ TRES (COSC). AT THE SAME

ITS HAND-GUILLOCHÉ DIAL AND ULTR A-THIN CASE, IT OFFERS A CONTEMPOR ARY

MOVEMENT. LIMITED EDITION OF T WENT Y PIECES IN 18K FAIRMINED WHITE GOLD.

TIME , E ACH OF THE T WENT Y WATCHES IN FAIRMINED WHITE GOLD HAS BEEN

In hindsight, some decisions prove wiser than ever imagined. Karl-Friedrich Scheufele’s move to set up Chopard Manufacture is clearly one. Twenty years ago, mechanical watchmaking had yet to acquire the aura it now enjoys, and which would propel a certain category of watchmaking into the realms of luxury. Digital was all the rage instead, leaving bleak prospects for traditional watchmaking. Pockets of resistance did exist, among the scattering of brands that remained convinced by the virtues of classical watchmaking, but their future hung in the balance as suppliers dwindled. For Karl-Friedrich, the second generation of the Scheufele family to take the helm at Chopard, there was only one way forward: Chopard must reprise a tradition that traced its origins back to 1860.

INTERPRETATION OF A TRUE CL ASSIC WHOSE ELEGANCE AND SOBRIET Y ARE UNDERSCORED BY THE FIRST CHOPARD MOVEMENT, CALIBRE 96.01-L. CHOPARD MANUFACTURE L .U.C IN FLEURIER IS 20 YE ARS OLD.

DECLARATION OF INDEPENDENCE

APPROVED IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE CRITERIA OF THE POINÇON DE GENÈ VE .

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•

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24 WATCH YOUR TIME FOCUS

“ monsieur ”

is served

PHILIPPE MOUGENOT, PRESIDENT, CHANEL WATCHES AND FINE JEWELLERY.

Five years in development, “Monsieur” is driven by the very first movement to be made entirely in-house by Chanel. While still as attentive as ever to what women want, Chanel takes its style and elegance into the traditionally masculine world of fine watches.

STYLE GROUNDED IN TECHNIQUE

As the brand explains, stylistically this new timepiece is the epitome of fine watchmaking at Chanel, seen as “an expression of style grounded in technical excellence.” The complications are integrated into the handwound movement, in contrast with the more common modular construction. This means questions such as energy consumption, vital for a jumping hour, can be taken into account from the earliest stages of development. The original layout of the components, the bridges and baseplate in particu-

Chanel is assuredly the type of brand that likes to keep us on our toes. Last autumn the brand released an entirely new range by the name of Boy·Friend, described as “a mysterious mix of assurance and delicateness, audacious and refined.” This octagonal watch, which bears more than a passing resemblance to the iconic Première, delights in shaking up masculine/feminine conventions, something Chanel does very well. And now that watchmaking is second nature to the firm, why stop there! President of Chanel Watches and Fine Jewellery, Philippe Mougenot, who after seventeen years will hand over to Frédéric Grangié in July 2016, takes a far-sighted view: “Throughout these years, we have launched a number of models. Each in its own way

captures the spirit of Chanel to perfection. Of course I’m thinking of the J12 and the Mademoiselle Privé collections. Not that we feel we have reached a conclusion.

Our objective is to keep moving ahead.”

True to its word, Chanel watchmaking has taken another leap forward with the presentation of Monsieur, a complicated watch for men with jumping hours, instantaneous retrograde minutes and small seconds. Two series-mounted barrels deliver a three-day power reserve. Chanel is no stranger to complications, having won considerable acclaim in 2010 for the J12 Rétrograde Mystérieuse whose retractable crown required some out-of-the-box thinking. But whereas this J12 was developed in collaboration with Audemars Piguet Renaud Papi, Chanel was sole in command for the Calibre 1 that drives the Monsieur watch. A project of this scale takes time: five years to be precise for the teams at the Chanel design studio and at the Fine Watch division of G&F Châtelain, a part of the group that makes, among other elements, all the ceramic components for Chanel watches.

lar, has been carefully thought through. Chanel has hallmarked its movement with a lion, the symbol it has chosen for all its fine watches.

With the new Boy·Friend collection followed by the Calibre 1 Manufacture movement, all in the space of a few months, Chanel is treating its fans well. Putting the cherry on an already well-iced cake, at Baselworld it also showed extensions to the J12 and Mademoiselle Privé ranges. “We developed the Mademoiselle Privé collection as a showcase for watchmaking’s artistic crafts,” says Philippe Mougenot. “We use it to reproduce aspects of Chanel’s heritage in what is a perfectly legitimate field for us. Then we have a rather unexpected rendition of the J12, the Collector Mirror, with numerals that appear to float above its mirror dial.

It symbolises our vision of watchmaking, the allure of time from a feminine perspective. One could almost say it’s not one J12 but two.” Chanel’s capacity to seduce women has its mirror image in the ranks of men who are already won over to the brand; a strength it brings to the fore in time measurement.

Eric Dumatin

CHAN E L MONSIEUR WATCH. I NTRODUC I NG THE M ONS I EUR WATCH , DR IVEN

CALIBRE 1. WHERE AS THE MA JORIT Y OF JUMPING-HOUR MOVEMENTS HAVE A

CHANEL BOY·FRIEND ART Y DIAMONDS. WITH 38 BAGUE T TE DIAMONDS ON ITS

BY THE FIRST MOVEM ENT TO BE ENTIRELY DE VELOPED AND MANUFACTURED

MODUL AR CONSTRUCTION, CHANEL’S CALIBRE 1 IS AN INTEGR ATED COMPLICA-

BE ZEL AND A FURTHER 96 D IAMONDS ON THE CASE , THE BOY· FR IEND ART Y

BY CHANEL . THIS CALIBRE 1 MOVEMENT WITH JUMPING HOURS AND INSTAN-

TIONS MOVEMENT THAT WAS FIVE YE ARS IN DE VELOPMENT. A PATENT HAS BEEN

­D IAMONDS SHAKES UP THE CL ASSIC CONVENTIONS OF WOMEN’S WATCHES.

TAN EOUS R E TROG R ADE M I N UTES CAP TU R ES C HAN EL’S C ONC EP T OF F I N E

FILED FOR THE MECHANISM THAT SIMULTANEOUSLY DRIVES THE JUMPING HOURS

ALLURE, EQUILIBRIUM, PROPORTION AND DETAIL ARE THE KEYS TO MAKING THIS

WATCHMAKING, NAMELY ST YLE GROUNDED IN TECHNICAL E XCELLENCE .

WITH THE RE TROGR ADE MINUTES.

WATCH A WOMAN’S IDE AL COMPANION.

Escale Time Zone.

26 WATCH YOUR TIME FOCUS

transatlantic odyssey JÉRÔME L AMBERT, CEO, MONTBL ANC.

For its 110 th anniversary, Montblanc has put new shine on its 4810 collection for a celebration of the golden age of transatlantic liners. An appropriate choice, as the story of Montblanc began mid-ocean, between Hamburg and New York, in 1906.

technology for writing instruments. Davide Cerrato, head of Montblanc’s watch division, takes up the story: “The beginning of the twentieth century was an exciting time for innovation. Thanks to groundbreaking new inventions, the rise of the marine steam engine and improved navigational methods, there was a quantum leap in sea travel.

Passenger liners competed against each other for the Blue Riband award, a prestigious prize for the fastest crossing of the Atlantic Ocean. The Blue Riband became a true symbol of distinction and high achievement and its spirit is part of the new Montblanc 4810 collection, embracing peak performance and horological excellence.”

TwinFly Chronograph with central hands and the addition of a second time zone. The third, the 4810 Orbis Terrarum, is a world-time watch of unique mechanical design. Several anniversary editions complete the range, including three series of the 4810 ExoTourbillon Slim 110 Years, each of which features a miniature painting of a continent on its dial.

There is, of course, more to Montblanc than this anniversary range. Two years ago, the brand sent a small shockwave through the watch community with the launch of its Heritage Chronométrie collection, which demonstrates an against-the-grain approach to the market. “We have here a very clear strategic direction which is to put a fresh face on fine watchmaking by reintroducing people to com-

Anniversaries are milestones in a watchmaker’s history that are rarely allowed to quietly slip by, and for a simple reason: they are a unique opportunity for a Manufacture to show off the full extent of the expertise it has amassed throughout these decades or even centuries, whether expressed in new iterations of iconic designs or by giving a fresh patina to collections. This year it’s Montblanc’s turn to put its horological science in the spotlight as it celebrates its 110-year existence. To do the honours, Montblanc has chosen the 4810 collection, already a jubilee edition as it made its first appearance to coincide with the brand’s centenary.

The seeds from which Montblanc would grow were sown in 1906 aboard an ocean liner which left Hamburg, bound for New York. Among the passengers were the three founders of a company that would forge its reputation on a new

This “historic” collection, whose name alludes to the altitude of Mont Blanc, Europe’s highest mountain, introduces five sophisticated mechanical movements. They include three in-house developments with Manufacture complications. The first equips the elegant 4810 ExoTourbillon Slim whose 4.5 mm height is an achievement for a mechanism of this complexity. The second drives the 4810

plications,” comments Montblanc CEO Jérôme Lambert.

“Once again this year, we’re pressing ahead with the same philosophy to present in-house manufactured watches at the right price. It’s what I call the “more-more” concept: watches with more substance that provide more satisfaction.” In terms of wrist-wear, this universalist approach gives us the Twincounter Date, with a hand that displays the date on a counter, and the well-crafted Chronograph Annual Calendar. At the other end of the spectrum, the brand is issuing a limited edition of eight Collection Villeret Tourbillon Cylindrique pocket watches with a triple timezone display: local time, home time, and world time shown on two three-dimensional globes. The amount of handcrafting lavished on this watch, particularly the engraving on the case and movement, combined with exceptional performance make this Tourbillon Cylindrique a foremost expression of Montblanc’s watchmaking art. Watches now account for a quarter of the brand’s sales, a proportion that is set to grow, given the innate appeal of the brand’s quest to make technical and innovative timepieces more readily accessible.

Eric Dumatin

MONTBL ANC 4810 ORBIS TERR ARUM. BUILDING ON THE SUCCESSFUL L AUNCH

MONTBL ANC 4810 T WINFLY CHRONOGR APH 110 YEARS EDITION. MONTBL ANC

THE MONTBL ANC MANUFACTURING FACILITIES IN LE LOCLE, NE AR NEUCHÂTEL .

OF THE MONTBL ANC HERITAGE SPIRIT ORBIS TERR ARUM IN 2015, MONTBL ANC

HAS M ADE THE FUNCTIONAL I NTEGR ATION OF COM PLICATIONS ONE OF ITS

THE BR AND HAS T WO PRODUCTION UNITS. THE ONE IN VILLERET HAS BEEN PART

HAS ADDED THE WORLDTIMER FUNCTION TO ITS 4810 COLLECTION. THIS NEW

­S PECIALITIES, AS IT AGAIN DEMONSTR ATES HERE WITH THIS COMBINATION OF

OF THE GROUP SINCE THE TAKEOVER OF MINERVA . IT JOINS THE FACILIT Y IN LE

WATCH SHOWS THE TIME IN 24 TIME ZONES IN AN INTELLIGENT AND INTUITIVE

A DOUBLE FLYBACK CHRONOGR APH AND A SECOND TIME ZONE WITH DAY/NIGHT

LOCLE, THE HOME OF MONTBL ANC WATCHES SINCE 1997.

MANNER , THANKS TO AN IN-HOUSE COMPLICATION, IMAGINED BY MONTBL ANC.

INDICATION.

A UNIVERSALIST APPROACH

www.dior.com - 020 7172 0172

DIOR VIII GRAND BAL “ENVOL” WHITE GOLD, DIAMONDS, MOTHER-OF-PEARL AND SCARAB BEETLE’S ELYTRA MARQUETRY 36MM, EXCLUSIVE “DIOR INVERSÉ 11 1/2” AUTOMATIC CALIBRE ONE-OF-A-KIND PIECE

CLASSIC WATCH YOUR TIME 29

“ w e always end up by having the appearance of our truths” albert camus ( 1913 — 1960 )

TRUTH IN TIME --o------- thierry brandt

s

of all the watches sold today, classic, round styles continue to hold sway because, as worthy successors to the first astronomical instruments, they allow us to tell the time intuitively. as for the technology inside, it follows principles that are several centuries old. and yet when it comes to contemporary calibres, there is more going on than meets the eye.

ince when has Man measured time? Since always, no doubt, but under different forms and for different reasons depending on civilisations and eras. Between the moment the first bipeds became aware of passing time and the nanoseconds that measure time for today’s physicists, our history unfolds. This fascinating adventure begins in the prehistoric age when time was perceived simply as a line extending into the distance and ends, temporarily, with Albert Einstein’s theory. Which reveals that everything is relative and, depending where in the universe we are and the speed at which we are travelling, time is not the same.

In his reference work, The Mastery of Time (Editions Flammarion, Paris/Fondation de la Haute Horlogerie, Geneva), Dominique Fléchon reminds us that the notion of time didn’t appear out of nowhere. Past and future “emerged with the development of the human brain.” The concept of the calendar “grew from the need to organise life in a community.” Thus Man became conscious of passing time, the basis of communal life. He had yet to grasp the notion that there could be a “time of day”, a concept that would be “both useless and unclear for another few thousand years; rather, it was a notion based on day and night, marked by the Sun, the phases of the Moon, and the cycle of the seasons.”

THE CIRCLE IS WHERE IT’S AT

Another fascinating aspect of our human timeline is how the notion of passing time is represented. It would be difficult for us to accurately date the first physical depiction of time with any real certainty, particularly as new discoveries are made and knowledge progresses. Dominique Fléchon, in the same book, pinpoints a watershed moment in our history in the “Neolithic ­revolution”, when populations progressed from hunting, fishing and gathering to a production economy. Archaeological digs on the shores of Lake Edward, on the border between Uganda and the Democratic Republic of Congo, have turned up inscribed bones whose markings are believed to be connected to the

phases of the moon. These Ishango Bones, as they are known, are thought to date from around 20000 BC. Obviously, we are still a long way from today’s classic round dials… and there is a reason why most watches today are round.

They are the direct descendants of the first astronomical observations, which had to be represented on a flat surface. A circle is also suited to the reproduction of cycles and for calculating angles with precision. The very first astronomical observatories of which we have trace are indeed circular, such as the Goseck Circle in Germany, which dates from circa 4800 BC. Stonehenge in England, another circular arrangement, predates Goseck by around a thousand years. The oldest known representation of the celestial dome is shown on a bronze disc measuring some 30 centimetres across: the famous Nebra Disc, discovered in Germany and dated 1600 BC. This, then, is how men began to transcribe time and continue to do so today.

And so the circle is where it’s at… Question: for a watch to be considered “classic”, must it be obligatorily round, simple and with only the most fundamental elements, including a dial stripped to the bare bones of just two, at most three, hands? The answer is yes; the rest is but whimsy! Granted, this is a slight

JAEGER-LECOULTRE REVERSO CLASSIC A GEOME TRIC CASE, GADROONS, STR AIGHT AR ABIC NUMER ALS AND A MINUTE TR ACK: THE RE VERSO CL ASSIC CONSERVES THE ART DECO FE ATURES AND IDE AL PROPORTIONS OF THE ORIGINAL RE VERSO, CRE ATED 85 YE ARS AGO. THE STEEL SIDE OF THE RE VERSIBLE CASE PROVIDES OPPORTUNIT Y TO PERSONALISE THE WATCH. WITH THIS IN MIND, JAEGER-LECOULTRE THIS YE AR L AUNCHES THE ATELIER RE VERSO, WHERE CUSTOMERS CAN SELECT THEIR DIAL AND AN ENGR AVING TO IMMORTALISE WHAT IS ONE OF THE MOST ICONIC TIMEPIECES

© M a r k u s & Ko a l a

IN THE HISTORY OF WATCHMAKING.

30 WATCH YOUR TIME CLASSIC

exaggeration; brands have their sales to consider and must therefore find ways to distinguish themselves. Similarly, it would be wrong to rule out certain form watches which, over the decades, have established themselves as true classics: the Santos

by Cartier, the Reverso by Jaeger-LeCoultre, the Nautilus by Patek Philippe and also the Monaco by TAG Heuer, to name just these four iconic examples.

MUCH ADO OVER MOVEMENTS

Deep down though, given that the primary function of a watch is to show the time, these elements suffice. Eric Giroud, one of the most sought-after watch designers around, has this to say: “You have to start somewhere, and those basic elements correspond to the lowest common denominator. These are the criteria which still today continue to define the original watch, the essential watch in the true sense of the word. Then it depends on what the brands have to tell us. When they succeed in extracting the best from their catalogue, and are able to reinterpret this identity in a modern way that isn’t simply cut-and-paste, magnificent things can be made.”

How, then, do watchmakers stand out, both from a technical and a stylistic point of view? Contemporary brands of course don’t all have the same answers, nor the same means. Comparing like with like, it’s interesting to observe the competition waged from a distance between Rolex and Omega. Both companies follow an industrial logic

I

and manufacture on a large scale, all the while defending the principle of high-end watches sold at “reasonable” prices. Rolex enjoys cast-iron prestige and an enduring image, and so one could easily imagine it might content itself with simply doing what it has always done best. Nothing could be further from the truth, as the Geneva firm has embarked on a complete overhaul of its movements. This process applies not just to the movements themselves, but also to the manufacturing process. The first child of this revolution is the automatic 3255 calibre, unveiled at last year’s Baselworld and which already powers the Oyster Perpetual Day-Date.

This is a case of classic horological mechanics. Which makes it an all the more interesting exercise. Rolex doesn’t claim to revolutionise the genre with its new calibre, yet it makes the most of modern technology to offer “fundamental gains in terms of precision, power reserve, resistance to shocks and magnetism, ease of use and reliability”, according to the brand. What are we looking at here? To begin with, a new geometry for the Swiss lever escapement for enhanced energy efficiency, and thinner walls for the barrel to increase the movement’s autonomy by more than ten hours. Rolex states that its Calibre 3255 meets with criteria that are twice as exacting as those of the COSC (Contrôle Officiel Suisse des Chronomètres), resulting in a tolerance of -2/+2 seconds per day for the assembled watch under actual wearing conditions.

II

III

V

IIII

VI

VII

I · ROLE X OYSTER PERPETUAL DAY-DATE 40. RO LE X

I T I S EQ U I P P ED W I T H T H E PAT E K P H I L I P P E CA L I B R E

SIBILITIES FOR THIS RETRO-CHIC R ANGE, INSPIRED BY

MOVEM ENT DELIVERS A 50 -HOUR P OWER RESERVE

R E V I S I TS TH E D ES I G N OF I TS EM B LEM AT I C OYSTER

315 , A S E L F -W I N D I N G M OV E M E N T W I T H S I L I C O N

TUDOR WATCHES FROM THE 1950S, 60S AND 70S.

AND FOCUSES ON GIVING PRECISE HOUR, MINUTE AND

PER PE TUA L DAY- DATE , AS WELL AS I NTRODUC I NG A

ESCAPE WHEEL .

V · MONTBLANC HERITAGE CHRONOMÉTRIE TWINCOUNTER

SECOND INDICATIONS, AS WELL AS THE DATE.

NE W MECHANICAL MOVEMENT, CALIBRE 3255 INSIDE

III · ZENITH HERITAGE PILOT CAFÉ R ACER. DRIVEN BY

DATE. THIS MODEL DEBUTS AN INNOVATIVE DATE COMPLI-

VII · OMEGA GLOBEMASTER. THE GLOBEMASTER IS THE

THE 40-MM CASE . THIS MODERNISED MODEL FE ATURES

THE EL PRIMERO 4069 SELF-WINDING CALIBRE , THIS

CATION, DRIVEN BY CALIBRE MB 24.23, A SELF-WINDING

L ATEST R ANGE FROM OMEGA AND THE FIRST WATCH

REFINED LUGS AND MIDDLE CASE, A BROAD DIAL , AND

CHRONOGR APH WITH ITS “LIVED-IN” STEEL DIAL TAKES

MOVEMENT WITH A 38-HOUR POWER RESERVE. THAT MOST

TO HAVE AT TAINED A NEW CERTIFICATION, APPROVED

AN E XCLUSIVE RE TURN TO THE PRESIDENT BR ACELE T.

ITS CUE FROM THE CAFÉ RACER SINGLE-SEATER MOTOR-

USEFUL OF COMPLICATIONS, HERE THE DATE IS DISPLAYED

I N SW I T Z E R L A N D BY T H E F E D E R A L I N S T I T U T E O F

I I · PAT E K P H I LI P P E ANNUAL CALENDAR R EF 5250 .

BIKE WITH LOW-MOUNTED HANDLEBARS, FIRST SEEN IN

ON A SUBDIAL R ATHER THAN THE MORE CONVENTIONAL

­M E TROLOGY. DRIVEN BY THE CO-A XIAL 8900 CALIBRE,

AS THE FI RST PATEK PH I LI PPE WATCH WITH S I LICON

THE 1950S. THIS HERITAGE PILOT BRINGS AN ENTIRE ERA

APERTURE.

THE GLOBEMASTER WITHSTANDS MAGNETIC FIELDS OF

TEC H N O LOGY, TH E A N N UA L CA LEN DA R R EF ER EN C E

BACK TO LIFE WITH ITS PROUDLY VINTAGE STYLING.

VI · BVLGARI OCTO ULTRANERO SOLOTEMPO. THE OCTO

15,000 GAUSS.

5250 I S T H E I D E A L C H O I C E; T H E PAT EN T ED CA L EN -

IIII · TUDOR ST YLE. TUDOR INTRODUCES NEW DESIGN

ULTRANERO RANGE INCLUDES A 41-MM VERSION, DRIVEN

DAR M ECHAN IS M IS AN ELOQUENT E X AM PLE OF THE

FEATURES TO ITS STYLE RANGE OF CLASSIC TIMEPIECES.

BY THE SOLOTEMPO BVL 193 CALIBRE. DESIGNED FOR

GENE VAN MANUFACTURE’S CULTURE OF INNOVATION.

A FLUTED BEZEL AND COLOURED DIALS EXTEND THE POS-

ME ASURING AND RE ADING TIME , THIS T WIN-BARREL

32 WATCH YOUR TIME CLASSIC

FATAL ATTRACTION

Different brand, same concerns. In recent years, Omega has communicated extensively on the development of its co-axial movement and on the use of silicon to manufacture its escapements, a point shared with Patek Philippe and Breguet.

Pressing ahead with its research into amagnetic materials, and two years after the introduction of the first mechanical movement to withstand magnetic fields up to 15,000 gauss, it recently announced the creation of a novel certific ation process.

It is based on a completely new benchmark for magnetic resistance that has been defined in conjunction with the Swiss federal institute of metrology (METAS). As abstruse as this may sound, the subject is not without interest. But first let us consider the source of the problem, namely the danger magnetic fields represent to watches. Depending how strong they are, these fields can slightly, significantly and sometimes even permanently upset the running of a mechanical calibre. What’s more, magnetic fields come at us from all sides, from the magnets in children’s toys to electronic devices with loudspeakers such as smartphones, from the magnetic clasp on a handbag to induction cookers, airbags, medical equipment, etc., etc.

In its battle against this magnetic interference, Omega began by completely rethinking the manufacturing of its co-axial movement. Working with the different research labs and partner-companies in the Swatch Group (Asulab, Nivarox, ETA), the brand

I

reconsidered the composition of key elements such as the balance spring, arbours, pivots, springs and shock-absorbers. All of which appears to function perfectly well.

These materials even withstand magnetic fields greater than 15,000 gauss. But what exactly does 15,000 gauss mean? Basically, it corresponds to the highest strength to which an individual might be exposed, i.e. that produced by a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanner. This measure defined the new standard.

This new certification aside, very few of the more modestly sized, independent firms have jumped on the industrial roller-coaster that is movement production. Breitling took the plunge a good ten years ago. Chopard has also risen to the challenge, which requires a certain amount of courage and investments worth tens of millions. Efforts to develop its industrial infrastructure have extended beyond the L.U.C manufacture in Fleurier (Neuchâtel), where Chopard designs and manufactures its fine watch movements, to include Fleurier Ebauches, which produces larger quantities of base calibres. The idea is, of course, that the brand should limit its reliance on outside suppliers as much as it can. Within the next two years, it should be in a position to equip half its watches with in-house movements. Conclusion: while the so-called classic watch might continue to put on a traditional face, behind the scenes it benefits from the very latest technologies. Ask any fan.

ˇ

II

III

V

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VI

VII

I · DRIVE DE CARTIE R WATCH . IN THE GR AND TR ADI -

III · IWC PILOT’S WATCH MARK XVIII. THE PILOT’S WATCH

V · TISSOT LE LOCLE REGULATOR. TISSOT NAMED ITS

DIAL LIKE A VEIL , SUBTLY RE VE ALING THE INNER WORK-

TION OF FOR M WATCHES, CAR TI ER ’S L ATEST M EN ’S

MARK XVIII COMES AS THREE NEW MODELS IN STEEL, WITH

LE LOCLE REGUL ATOR IN HONOUR OF ITS ORIGINS, THE

INGS OF THE WATCH.

WATCH MAKES A NEW ST YLE STATEMENT ON THE WRIST.

EITHER A BLACK OR SILVERED DIAL, AND EACH WITH THE

SWISS TOWN OF LE LOCLE IN THE JUR A MOUNTAINS.

VI I · SE IKO PREMIER . THE PREM IER HAS LONG BEEN

NEITHER ROUND NOR SQUARE, THE DRIVE DE CARTIER

SAME OBJECTIVE TO DELIVER NOTHING BUT THE ESSEN-

T H E L A RG E M I N U T E H A N D R ECA L L S T H E O R I G I N A L

CONSIDERED SEI KO’S DRESS WATCH . ITS GROWING

I N V E N T S I T S OW N G EO M E T RY. T H I S N E W R A N G E

TIAL. THE CONTRASTING DIAL WITH INDICATIONS INSPIRED

R EGU L ATOR C LOC KS THAT EIGHTEENTH - AND N I NE-

R ANKS OF ADMIRERS HAVE PROMP TED THE BR AND TO

INCLUDES A THREE-HAND VERSION WITH DATE IN STEEL.

BY THE COCKPIT INSTRUMENTS IN A 1930S JUNKERS JU

TEENTH-CENTURY

L AUNCH A NEW SERIES, DEFINED BY FLOWING LINES,

II · HUBLOT CLASSIC FUSION R ACING GREY. FOLLOW-

52 COULDN’T BE CLOSER TO THE IDEAL PILOT’S WATCH.

CHECKING POCKE T WATCHES FOR PRECISION.

A SLIMMER CASE, ROUNDED ANGLES AND A WIDE DIAL .

I N G O N F RO M TH E “ B LU E” C O L LECT I O N , H U B LOT ’S

IIII · CHANEL BOY·FRIEND WATCH. CHANEL TAKES ITS VERY

VI · R ADO TRUE OPEN HEART. THE TRUE OPEN HE ART

A WATCH THAT WILL NE VER GO OUT OF ST YLE .

C L AS S I C F US I O N A DO P TS A R AC I N G G R E Y L I V ERY.

FIRST WOMEN’S WATCH, THE PREMIÈRE, INTO MASCULINE

IN HIGH-TECH CER AMIC BOASTS THE PURE, FLOWING

SOF TER THAN B L AC K , M OR E T I M ELESS THAN B LUE ,

TERRITORY. LIKE GABRIELLE CHANEL, THE ENIGMATICALLY

LINES OF THE R ADO TRUE FAM ILY. THE MAGNIFICENT,

UNIVERSAL BY NATURE, THIS NEUTR AL GREY COLOUR

NAMED BOY·FRIEND KNOWS HOW TO BORROW FROM A

DEC OR ATED SWI SS M OVEM ENT APPE ARS THROUGH

AC CENTUATES THE WATCH ’S VERSATI LE ELEG ANCE .

MAN’S WARDROBE, AND ISN’T AFRAID TO SHAKE UP THE

T H E ST Y L I S ED C U T- O U T I N T H E D I A L . WA F ER-T H I N

AN ANDROGYNOUS SHADE WITH MULTIPLE FACE TS.

CONVENTIONAL CODES OF WOMEN’S WATCHMAKING.

MOTHER-OF-PE ARL , 0.6 MM “THICK”, FLOATS OVER THE

WAT C H M A K E R S

USED

WHEN

Montblanc Heritage Chronométrie and Hugh Jackman Crafted for New Heights In homage to the European explorer and his need for utmost precision, Montblanc pays special tribute with the Montblanc Heritage Chronométrie Quantième Complet Vasco da Gama Special Edition featuring a full calendar and a blue lacquered constellation around the moon phase, which shows the exact same night sky above the Cape of Good Hope as Vasco da Gama observed it in 1497 on his first journey to India. Visit and shop at Montblanc.com

34 WATCH YOUR TIME FOCUS

two of a kind ANGELO BONATI, CEO, OFFICINE PANER AI.

Panerai has built its success around two models, made for the military and seen by many as the quintessential dive watch. The brand’s genius lies in its ability to keep the legend alive.

NO LIMIT TO CREATIVITY

This construction can be found in the Lo Scienziato Luminor 1950 Tourbillon GMT Titanio 47mm, one of the year’s new releases. The exception to the rule, the dial has been openworked to show off the skeleton movement with bridges and plates in ultra-lightweight, hypoallergenic and non-corrosive titanium. For this, Panerai has used a pioneering manufacturing technique: “To reduce the weight further, the case is made using an innovative technology which enables it to be hollowed out internally. The technology used is called Direct Metal Laser Sintering: this process builds up a

The Panerai story is a boy’s own adventure, a tale of derring-do by Italian combat divers of the 1930s, told through watches with a powerful design. It’s also one of the biggest commercial success stories of the past two decades.

Since the Richemont group trained its sights on what was, eighteen years ago, an almost unknown name, operating out of a shop on Piazza San Giovanni in Florence, Panerai has grown into a global brand, backed by some 70 own-name boutiques and, since 2014, its own production facilities in Neuchâtel, Switzerland. During this lapse of time, it has acquired a cult following among collectors, the self-styled Paneristi who would willingly walk on water if the Panerai of their dreams were waiting on the opposite shore. The man at the head of this horological comet since 1997 is Angelo Bonati, for whom “the distinctive design of Panerai watches is the very essence of its success.”

“Panerai didn’t start out as a brand,” he recalls. “It was a watch that everyone referred to as the Luminor.”

The hallmark of this timepiece, developed in 1950 for the Italian Navy, is its imposing 44-mm case with, on the side, an equally impressive crown-guard bridge. It was never going to be plain sailing for the Luminor, nor for sister-watch the Radiomir (both names refer to the luminescent coatings that were used on dive watches of that era). “Little by little though, Panerai became a benchmark and brands began to adapt the size of their watches accordingly. Attitudes changed too. Panerai watches were no longer seen as eccentric sport watches but as the height of chic. That’s when we knew we were on the road to success.” It is this combination of Italian design and Swiss watchmaking expertise that sets Panerai apart: a brand that allows itself the luxury of a tourbillon that is visible only through the caseback, when most others use it as a signature. Not only is it hidden, it also turns industry conventions around with its horizontal axis, the only construction which can still justify fitting a tourbillon in a wristwatch.

3D object layer by layer by means of a fibre optic laser using powdered titanium. The successive layers — each one only 0.02 mm thick — merge together and become completely solid, creating forms which would be impossible to achieve using traditional working methods.”

This determination to master production is evidenced

by Panerai’s vertical integration. Since 2005 and the presentation of the P2002, a GMT calibre with an eight-day power reserve, inspired by the Angelus movement of the 1940s, Panerai has produced five movement families that cover the entire spectrum of useful functions, from the chronograph to the regatta countdown. This year the brand also presents two new iterations of the P4000, inside a Radiomir 1940 3 Days GMT Automatic Acciaio 45 mm, with or without a power-reserve display. Staying with the Radiomir 1940, we have the first ever white dial from Panerai, in a “scaled-down” 42-mm size. And there is more, for as Angelo Bonati says, when it comes to the Radiomir and the Luminor, “there are no limits to what we can create.”

Eric Dumatin

PA N E R A I LUMINOR 1950 3 DAYS ACCIAIO. P ER H A P S T H E M OST D I ST I N C -

PANER AI R ADIOMIR 1940 3 DAYS GMT POWER RESERVE AUTOMATIC ACCIAIO.

PANERAI RADIOMIR 1940 3 DAYS AUTOMATIC ACCIAIO — 42MM. PANER AI SHAVES

TIVE ­E LEMENT OF THIS NEW LUMINOR 1950 IS THE BROWN DIAL , INSPIRED BY

PANER AI’S R ADIOMIR 1940 COLLECTION THIS YE AR WELCOMES A GMT ­V ERSION

MILLIME TRES FROM THE R ADIOMIR WITH A 42 MM DIAME TER AND A HEIGHT OF

­V INTAGE WATCHES WHOSE DIAL BECAME DISCOLOURED BY THE LUMINESCENT

W I TH P OWER- R ES ERVE I N D I CATOR AN D S I M P LE CA LEN DAR ON A PAN ER A I

BARELY 11 MM, A FEAT MADE POSSIBLE BY THE P.4000 IN-HOUSE MOVEMENT WITH

SUBSTANCE . PANER AI’S SIGNATURE LUME IS NOW GR ADE A SUPER-LUMINOVA®

P.4002 MOVEMENT. ITS CURVES ARE IN E VERY WAY CONFORM TO THE ORIGINAL

AN OFF-CENTRE ROTOR JUST 3.95 MM THICK. ANOTHER NEW FEATURE: THE WHITE

THAT ENSURES COMPLE TE LEGIBILIT Y, INCLUDING AT NIGHT.

­R ADIOMIR , GIVING THIS NEW WATCH ITS DELICIOUSLY VINTAGE ST YLE .

DIAL WITH L ARGE BL ACK NUMER ALS.

Piaget Altiplano 1205P

E-boutique on piaget.com 0800 279 51 10

Piaget Bond Street 169 New Bond Street, London

Piaget Harrods Knightsbridge, London

The L.U.C Collection Each part is a masterpiece The mysteriously shaped date lever springs into action, commanding the date wheel to perform an instant 11.6129-degree jump corresponding to one day. Once its task is accomplished, it takes a 24-hour break. Like every component in the L.U.C Calibre 96.13-L, each date lever is hand-decorated and finished by the artisans at Chopard Manufacture. The L.U.C Lunar One watch bears the prestigious “Poinçon de Genève” quality hallmark and houses a movement that is chronometer-certified by the Swiss Official Chronometer Testing Institute (COSC).

L.U.C LUNAR ONE

JEWELLERY WATCH YOUR TIME 39

“ a beautiful face is the loveliest of all sights” jean de la bruyère ( 1645 — 1696 )

BEAUTY IN TIME --o------- paloma recio

Director, R&E

f

the quintessence of the traditional decorative arts, women’s timepieces are watchmaking’s most beautiful form of expression. beyond hours and minutes, a story is told on dials embellished with diamonds, enamel, engraving…

rom their earliest existence, timepieces for women symbolised wealth and social distinction. Their elaborate decoration allowed watchmakers to express the finesse of their art.

Originally reserved for the “fairer sex”, wristwatches were intended to do more than simply count the passing hours; they displayed their owner’s status by draping her wrist with diamonds and other precious stones. For a long period, this ornamentation was the raison d’être of a feminine watch, and just as modern women have developed an interest in the simple and complicated mechanics inside the case, they continue to appreciate this outer beauty, served by a revival in the métiers d’art: the crafts which watchmakers have traditionally used to embellish their creations. Elaborate forms, coloured enamels, elegant lacquers, miniature paintings executed in vibrant shades, sophisticated gem-setting… these complex decorative techniques are often a means of conveying the watch’s functions. Cicero observed that “the face is the image of the soul”. In watchmaking, a watch’s face is its exterior ­— case, dial and hands — while the mechanism is the heart and soul that brings it to life.

This exterior is the image the watch projects, the face it shows the world. Each year, the most prestigious fine watch manufacturers imagine exclusive creations, authentic works of art that represent a rarely achieved mastery of techniques.

FROM NATURE TO THE UNIVERSE

Nature has never ceased to inspire art in all its forms, and watchmaking is no exception. Enamellers, engravers, miniature painters and gem-setters turn repeatedly to Mother Nature for ways to express their creativity. Piaget and roses, Chanel and camellias, Chaumet and hydrangeas, Rolex and the lotus blossom, Christophe Claret and the daisy, Richard Mille and magnolias, Jaeger-LeCoultre and ivy, Cartier and orchids, Vacheron Constantin and exotic blooms, Patek Philippe with its lilies and dragonflies… Nature brings originality as well as beauty to the

watch’s dial. At Zenith and at Frederique Constant, among others, it takes on a romantic air while revealing glimpses of the mechanism. Elsewhere, natural beauty is suggested by elegant lattices or traditional embroidery, crafted from threads of silver, gold or silk, that recall the art of filigree. Not forgetting the sparkle of diamonds and precious stones that swathe dials in an air of mystery and magic, even lending sparkle to a fascinating tourbillon.

And what of the Moon? Countless dials remind us of its enigmatic influence by representing its phases in a multitude of forms and techniques. All the major brands include at least one moonphase watch in their collections. Constellations, stars, astronomical complications, annual and perpetual calendars, signs of the zodiac, leap years, day and night indications… Moon and Sun play out their courtship in complex and sophisticated timepieces made possible by a rare degree of expertise, and tens of hours of work by highly skilled craftsmen and women. Patek Philippe, Breguet, Blancpain, Jaeger-LeCoultre and Cartier have brilliantly depicted the eternal workings of the universe, as has Van Cleef & Arpels. Its extraordinary Midnight Planetarium reproduces in miniature the movements of the solar system by precisely indicating the positions of six planets, carved from semi-precious stones. The actual time each planet needs to complete its orbit is respected, from Saturn which takes more than 29 years to make a rotation of the dial to Mercury and its 88 days.

They each rotate around a rose gold sun, surrounded by a starry universe of deep blue aventurine.

SLIM D’HERMÈS FLEURS DU MEXIQUE. HERMÈS TAKES A MOTHER-OF-PEARL DIAL, SET INSIDE A WHITE GOLD CASE, AS ITS CANVAS FOR A UNIQUE COMPOSITION THAT IS ENTIRELY HANDCR AF TED INSIDE THE HERMÈS ATELIER USING MINIATURE PAINTING TECHNIQUES. THE ARTIST BEGINS BY TR ANSFERRING THE DESIGN, INSPIRED BY A HERMÈS SILK SCARF BY L AETITIA BIANCHI, ONTO THE MOTHER-OF-PEARL. EACH LINE IS THEN DR AWN BY HAND. ONCE THE OUTLINES ARE CLEARLY IN PL ACE, SHE THEN PREPARES THE PALET TE OF COLOURS. USING ONLY THE TIP OF THE BRUSH, WITH INFINITE DELICACY SHE APPLIES A FIRST L AYER THAT WILL BE FOLLOWED BY SOME TWENTY OTHERS. EACH L AYER MUST BE

© M a r k u s & Ko a l a

FIRED AT 90°C TO DRY THE PAINT BEFORE FURTHER COLOURS CAN BE ADDED.

40 WATCH YOUR TIME

CREATURES GREAT AND SMALL

BEYOND THE SEAS

Down on the ground, animals wild and tame have taken over dials, brought to life by the most sophisticated ornamental techniques. One of the most famous is perhaps Cartier’s iconic panther, rendered in a multitude of guises and colours using a vast array of artistic techniques. For the Rêves de Panthères watch, three panthers patiently observe the transition from day to night and back again. Patek Philippe has assembled its own collection of enchanting creatures, with birds of paradise, a phoenix, peacocks and a tiger in cloisonné enamel. The Geneva manufacture is particularly outstanding for its command of marquetry techniques in its Rare Handcrafts collection, which each year welcomes new and exceptional creations.

Animals are also at the heart of Vacheron Constantin’s Métiers d’Art Savoirs Enluminés. Inspired by the Aberdeen Bestiary, a twelfth-century manuscript, the watches in these three 20-piece limited editions are

Vacheron Constantin casts its gaze beyond landlocked Switzerland in 2016 as it revisits its Overseas collection, which unveiled its new face at the Salon International de la Haute Horlogerie. As Chief Executive Juan-Carlos Torres remarked, the time is ripe for meditation, for leaving the everyday behind, and Vacheron Constantin has the ideal companion.

A worthy heir to the 222, designed in 1977 by Gérald Genta and the Manufacture’s first incursion into sport watches, the Overseas is the epitome of the watchmaker’s casual elegance, a “legacy for travellers” that is clearly identified by its six-sided bezel. Says the brand: “Flowing, ergonomic lines, subtle light effects and delicate finishes place the new Overseas models firmly within a timeless yet distinctly contemporary aesthetic ­universe.”

It’s now two decades since this icon made its debut, a milestone Vacheron Constantin is marking with a collection that will appeal to both men and women, and above all those who appreciate its inimitable mechanical touch. Of the five new models that make up the collection, three are fitted with original Manufacture movements for a total of twelve references, each of which bears the coveted Poinçon de Genève. The three new movements equip a chronograph (Calibre 5200) and two self-winding, hours, minutes and seconds models, one with a 37-mm diameter and a diamond-set bezel for women. All three have a screw-down caseback and crown, as well as screw-lock pushers for the chronograph, to ensure water-resistance to 150 metres. The collection also extends to two extra-thin styles, including a perpetual calendar that is driven by the famous Calibre 1120. A non-negligible detail: the watches are delivered with two or three straps which can be switched in just seconds, pin buckle included, without any special tools. Ideal when adjusting to new climates… C.R.

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a tribute to the medieval art of illumination. Depicted against a gold background which has been handtextured to resemble parchment, an animal from this “book of beasts” is finely reproduced in the resplendent colours of grand feu enamel.

More fabulous creatures take up residence on women’s watches by Richard Mille, including an impressive diamond-studded spider, designed by Natalie Portman, and a panda, imagined by Michelle Yeoh. Meanwhile, Boucheron’s beetle unfolds its graceful wings to reveal the watch beneath. The dial of the Dior VIII Grand Bal “Envol” also shimmers with the wings of scarab beetles in a fascinating marquetry. The latest piece in this collection comes dressed in a skirt of colourful feathers from a Tuscan rooster, a nod to the French firm’s haute couture origins.

Elsewhere, Chopard sends a shoal of colourful fish across its Happy Fish watch. Harry Winston dusts the

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VACHERON CONSTANTIN OVERSEAS. VACHERON CONSTANTIN HAS REINVENTED THE

I · ROLEX OYSTER PERPETUAL DATEJUST PEARLMAS-

FOR A TOTAL CAR AT WEIGHT OF 4.75 CAR ATS, AND

WATCH THAT ONLY REQUIRED CORRECTION ONCE

OVERSE AS, ONE OF ITS MOST ICONIC COLLECTIONS. DESIGNED FOR ELEGANCE AND

TER 39. ROLEX PROPOSES THREE VERSIONS OF THIS

A D VVS2 PEAR-SHAPED DIAMOND FOR 0.61 CAR AT.

A YEAR, AT END FEBRUARY. THE MANUFACTURE IS

FUNCTIONALIT Y, FIVE NEW MODELS WITH IN-HOUSE MOVEMENTS — INCLUDING THREE

PEARLMASTER WITH A NEW 39-MM CASE SIZE. FITTED

III · LOUIS VUITTON LV FIFTY FIVE SERTI BAGUETTE.

NOW PROPOSING IT IN AN EXCLUSIVELY FEMININE

NE W CALIBRES — EM BODY THE NE W GENER ATION OF SELF-WINDING TI MEPIECES

WITH THE NEW CALIBRE 3235, ITS BEZEL IS SET WITH

TAKING ITS CUE FROM ALUMINIUM TRAVEL TRUNKS,

ITER ATION, WITH A MOTHER-OF-PEARL DIAL AND

FOR TR AVELLERS. ALL THE WATCHES, FROM THE SIMPLEST TO THE MOST COMPLE X,

48 BAGUET TE-CUT SAPPHIRES IN A PALET TE OF

LOUIS VUITTON RECENTLY UNVEILED THE LV FIFTY

PURE TOP WESSELTON DIAMONDS.

IN STEEL OR IN GOLD, ARE HALLMARKED POINÇON DE GENÈ VE AND DELIVERED WITH

COLOURS FROM BLUE TO FUCHSIA, FROM BLUE TO

FIVE, A MULTI-TALENTED, CONTEMPOR ARY TIME-

V · VAN CLEEF & ARPELS MONTRE LADY JOUR DES

E ASY-FIT, INTERCHANGE ABLE STR APS FOR COMFORT IN E VERY CLIMATE .

GREEN, OR FROM ORANGE TO YELLOW.

PIECE WHOSE SLIMNESS ADDS A NEW DIMENSION

FLEURS. AN IMPORTANT INSPIRATION FOR VAN CLEEF

II · CHAUMET JOSÉPHINE ECLAT FLORAL. THIS YEAR,

TO LOUIS VUITTON’S WATCHMAKING. ITS FLOWING,

& ARPELS, NATURE BRINGS POETRY TO THIS LADY

CHAUMET CALLS AGAIN ON EMPRESS JOSÉPHINE

MEASURED CONTOURS ARE BROUGHT TO THE FORE

JOUR DES FLEURS, WHICH INTRODUCES TWO NEW

FOR DELICATELY GEM-SET WATCHES THAT REFLECT

IN THIS VERSION, SET WITH BAGUETTE-CUT STONES.

FEATURES: A 33-MM DIAMETER, AND AN HOURS-MIN-

HER EXQUISITE AND FEMININE STYLE. THIS JEWEL-

IIII · PATEK PHILIPPE ANNUAL CALENDAR REF 4936G.

UTES DISPLAY WITH A JEWELLED DISC THAT ROTATES

LERY WATCH IN PLATINUM WITH A WHITE GOLD DIAL

INTRODUCED IN 1996, PATEK PHILIPPE’S ANNUAL

IN TWELVE HOURS UNDER AN OVER-DIAL COVERED

IS ADORNED WITH 318 ­B RILLIANT-CUT DIAMONDS

CALENDAR WAS THE FIRST CALENDAR WRIST-

WITH GLITTERING DIAMONDS IN A SNOW SETTING.

LEGENDS LIVE FOREVER

www.zenith-watches.com

EL PRIMERO I Chronomaster 1969

42 WATCH YOUR TIME JEWELLERY

dial of the Premier Butterfly with delicate pigments from butterfly wings, while Bulgari has made the serpent one of its icons since the 1940s. At Van Cleef & Arpels we discover ladybirds and butterflies, as well as an impressive carp, a traditional resident of Japanese gardens. This unique piece required 3,450 hours to complete and is swimming with more than 8,000 coloured gemstones.

Hermès represents the Koma Kurabe horse race, held each year at the Kamigamo shrine in Kyoto, on 12 unique Slim d’Hermès watches. The Sèvres porcelain dials are painted by master artist Buzan Fukushima in a palette of reds, according to the ancestral Japanese technique of Aka-e.

PATIENCE AND PASSION

Producing an aesthetically flawless dial is no easy task, as the artists at Cadrans Fluckiger well know. Considered the most highly reputed dialmaker in the world, it was bought by Patek Philippe a little over ten years ago. Patience, expertise and passion reign over the workshops, whose production of some 100,000 dials a year calls on many different métiers d’art. “A finished dial requires some 50 to 200 interventions. This corresponds to three to six months of meticulous work,” explains the firm’s director. Whereas a modern CNC machine will complete a guilloché or engine-turned pattern in three minutes flat, the same piece takes more than 30 minutes and requires intense concentration when hand-produced

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by an experienced craftsman. Marquetry is an even more complex affair. The feathers of the parrot gracing the Ballon Bleu de Cartier watch are shaped from rose petals; each dial takes three weeks to complete. An enamelled dial can also be the result of several weeks’ work. To obtain the range of colour and brilliance that brings the design to life, each of the many layers must be fired multiple times at 180°C. Gem-setting warrants a chapter of its own, with so many women’s watches owing so much to these techniques. Since the bracelet-watch which Abraham-Louis Breguet made in 1812 for Caroline Murat, Queen of Naples, one of the first of its kind, diamonds and precious stones have enjoyed a special place on feminine watches, whether set in the case or carpeting the dial. The choice of cut, clarity, colour and carat is decisive, but no less so than the skill and dexterity of the gem-setter. Whether on a case or dial, each stone must be perfectly aligned with its neighbours. This takes patience and expertise, as well as time: as much as several weeks for a single watch.

One of the most sought-after techniques — invisible setting — is also one of the most challenging. Dating from the 1930s, it positions stones so closely together as to conceal the metal mount entirely. In watchmaking, this creates the impression of stones suspended above the dial. Another method, known as random setting or snow setting for its resemblance with a glittering blanket of snow, allows the craftsman great freedom in juxtaposing stones of different shapes and sizes.

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I · HUBLOT BIG BANG BRODERIE SUGAR SKULL. SYMBOL-

III · BALLON BLEU DE CARTIER ENAMEL GR ANULATION

FLEURIER PEONY MARRIES BE AUT Y WITH PRECISION,

WITH MORE DIAMONDS ACCENTUATING THE LUGS ON

ISING THE ART OF FUSION AND UNBRIDLED CREATIVITY,

WATCH. CARTIER HAS CHOSEN THE FORMAL ­S IMPLICITY

IN A LIMITED EDITION OF EIGHT PIECES.

THE 36-MM CASE. THE MOTHER-OF-PEARL DIAL IS THE

THE BIG BANG IS SHOT THROUGH WITH HUBLOT DNA .

OF THE BALLON B LEU AS THE SE T TI NG FOR A R ARE

V · F R É D É R IQ U E CON S TANT SLIMLINE MOONPHASE

BACKDROP FOR A FLOR AL SCULP TURE IN GOLD AND

THE BIG BANG 41MM BRODERIE SUGAR SKULL IS NO

CR AF T, WHICH CALLS ON THE COMBINED MASTERY OF

MANUFACTURE. FR ÉDÉR I QUE CONSTANT ’S FASC I NA-

ENAMEL. THE BARREL SHAPE IN THE CENTRE OF THE DIAL

EXCEPTION, FUSING FEMININITY AND INNOVATION IN ITS

E TRUSCAN GR ANUL ATION AND ENAM ELLI NG . AT THE

TION WITH THE MOON CONTINUES WITH THE SLIMLINE

IS ALSO HIGHLIGHTED WITH DIAMONDS.

USE OF SAINT-GALL EMBROIDERY ON SILK ORGANZA.

HE ART OF THE DIAL , BROUGHT TO LIFE BY A STUNNING

MOONPHASE MANUFACTURE, WHICH IS DRIVEN BY THE

V I I · D IOR K ALÉIDIORSCOPE. EIGHT ONE- OF -A- K I ND

II · JAEGER- LECOULTRE RENDEZ-VOUS MOON 39MM.

PALE T TE OF COLOURS, CARTIER’S BELOVED PANTHER

FC -705 CALI BRE WITH A 42-HOUR P OWER RESERVE .

C R E AT I O N S JO I N T H E D I O R G R A N D SO I R C O L L EC -

FIRE MEE TS LIGHT IN THE PURPLE-RED AVENTURINE

ONCE AGAIN STE ALS THE LIMELIGHT.

THIS CL ASSIC TIMEPIECE IS OUTSTANDINGLY SIMPLE TO

TION, INSPIRED BY THE EMBROIDERY ON DIOR GOWNS,

DIAL, DOTTED WITH CONSTELLATIONS IN THE NORTHERN

IIII · CHOPARD L.U.C XP 35 MM ESPRIT DE FLEURIER PEONY.

USE, AS BOTH MOON PHASE AND DATE ARE SE T USING

OBSERVED THROUGH A K A LEI DOSC OPE . D I A LS AR E

HEMISPHERE, AND THE PINK GOLD CASE. BOTH ARE EMBEL-

I T S SO B E R E L EG A N C E A N D S T E L L A R M EC H A N I C S

THE SAME CROWN.

EM B EL L I S H ED W I TH M OTH ER- OF - PE AR L , OR NA M EN -

LISHED WITH THE SPARKLE OF DIAMONDS. MEANWHILE,

HAVE M ADE THE L .U.C XP AN OUTSTAND I NG MODEL

VI · ROGER DUBUIS BLOSSOM VELVET. BLOSSOM VELVET

TAL STONES, POLISHED GOLD PE TALS AND DIAMONDS,

A MAGNIFICENT MOTHER-OF-PE ARL MOON MAKES ITS

I N CHOPARD’S L .U.C COLLECTION , PRESENTED I N A

I S A H I G H LY EL ABOR ATE T I M EP I ECE FRO M ROG ER

WHICH REFLECT THE DESIGNS TO INFINIT Y.

GENTLE PROGRESSION ACROSS THE NIGHT SKY.

35-MM VERSION SINCE 2014. THIS YE AR’S ESPRIT DE

DUBUIS. TWO ROWS OF DIAMONDS CIRCLE THE BEZEL

Liens Collection

SPORT WATCH YOUR TIME 45

“the face is the image of the soul” cicero ( 106 — 43 bc )

EFFICIENCY IN TIME --o------- paolo de vecchi

w

e sometimes find ourselves observing the tiniest details of a person’s face in an attempt to read their innermost feelings. This is part of our need to give meaning to our interactions with fellow humans, and even with the objects around us, certain of which also have a visible side and a hidden side. Some even have a “heart” that beats inside a “body”, as with the engine and body of a car. An analogy that applies equally to watches.

nothing says more about a person than the face and its expressions. a firmly held gaze or a fleeting glance speak volumes about an individual’s character. our first impression of someone is rarely mistaken, and forms the basis of an opinion which closer acquaintance will in many cases confirm.

A NEW AGE

SOLIDITY AND PRECISION

Inside the case of a watch resides its soul: an “engine” which, not content to simply provide a “service”, is in constant liaison with time and its measurement, embracing science and technique, history and philosophy, practicality and sentimental value. The “body”, meanwhile, has much to say. A connoisseur is immediately au fait with a watch’s personality simply by observing the architecture of its case. The most telling feature, however, is the layout of the dial which serves to visualise the movement functions. The same is true of a human face which, as the Roman philosopher Cicero brilliantly observed, is the image of the soul.

But to return to the matter in hand, or rather on our wrist, aesthetic and function interact most closely in sport watches, whose role it is to materialise the divisions of time at a glance. These instruments wonderfully illustrate how the modern age entered watchmaking. Sport watches came about in response to specific requirements in terms of chronometry, yet also succeeded in becoming one of the most eloquent symbols of a lifestyle that took hold in the early twentieth century, at precisely the moment the watch began its migration from pocket to wrist. This was an age of travel, made possible by the expanding rail network, transatlantic liners and intercontinental flight, in a society where leisure, vacations and sporting pastimes were taking on growing importance: a context that was made to measure for the chronograph.

The chronograph’s principle function, which is to measure short intervals, is immediately evident thanks to the presence of pushers on the side of the case to activate the start and stop functions, but also a central hand that runs independently of the rest of the watch to measure seconds as it sweeps the dial. This hand works in sync with counters, another telltale feature of a chronograph dial. They record the elapsed minutes (usually 30) and hours (up to a maximum of 12). When the timing is stopped, the various information displayed gives the exact duration of the measured event. Movement precision is, of course, of paramount importance, particularly as we are concerned here with mechanical systems as opposed to simpler and less fascinating electronic devices. For this reason, criteria have been established by a Swiss body whose remit is to officially test and certify watches’ chronometric precision.

PIAGET ALTIPLANO CHRONOGR APH. PIAGE T IS RENOWNED AS A MANUFACTURER OF ULTR A-THIN TIMEPIECES. ITS ALTIPL ANO 900P IS E VEN THE THINNEST WRIST WATCH IN THE WORLD. AS IF THIS WEREN’T ENOUGH, THE BR AND HAS INTRODUCED A MA JOR COMPLICATION TO THE R ANGE, A HAND-WOUND FLYBACK CHRONOGR APH, CL AIMING A NEW DOUBLE RECORD IN THE PROCESS FOR THE E XTR A-THIN CALIBRE

© M a r k u s & Ko a l a

883P, JUST 4.65 MM HIGH, INSIDE A CASE A MERE 8.24 MM HIGH.

46 WATCH YOUR TIME SPORT

It follows that a movement conforming to such standards of precision must be housed inside a structure which is designed to show information on the dial in a clear and easily legible fashion, as well as adequately protect such complex mechanics. In addition to calculating short times in hours, minutes and seconds, dials can be subdivided into tenths of a second and in certain instances hundredths of a second. Various scales can also be added to the outer perimeter for measuring speed or heart rate, for example. As such, we have become accustomed to a precise visualisation of the movement functions and, to paraphrase Cicero, a perfect harmony between the face and the soul of the watch. With such a plethora of chronographs to choose from today, it’s worth remembering how it all began.

SPORT GALORE

French horologist Nicolas Rieussec can take credit for one of the first chronographs. Invented in the early nineteenth century, it combined a rotating dial with an ink-filled stylus that marked the end of an elapsed time and therefore the duration of the measured event. Rieussec’s device, reprised in a stylised version for wristwatches by Montblanc, is at the origin of the word “chronograph”, from the Greek

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chronos (time) and graphein (write). Closer to us in time, and prior to its merger with TAG Techniques d’Avant-Garde in 1985 to become TAG Heuer, now part of LVMH, Heuer was behind further developments which highlighted the crucial role of the dial in displaying movement functions. During the 1960s and 70s, Heuer made incursions into motor racing as the sponsor and official timekeeper of Team Ferrari, the first initiative of its kind. The brand went on to sponsor racing driver Jo Siffert, pole position at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 1968. These sponsorship deals implied extensive timing sessions, which helped spur the technical then aesthetic development of Heuer’s chronographs. They include the Monaco, a style distinguished by its square, water-resistant case. It wasn’t long before brand and watch were front and centre as the Monaco’s fame spread beyond watchmaking circles and into the spotlight, including appearances in several films set on the motor racing circuit, such as Rush, directed by Ron Howard, and Le Mans starring Steve McQueen.

There can be no doubting the specificities of a high-performance chronograph movement; other sport watches nonetheless have their own equally demanding skill set, not least those designed for underwater use. Rolex is a particularly iconic example as the creator of the very first watertight watch, which it developed in the 1930s. By sealing its watch against water and humidity, as well as dust, the brand with the coronet put its timepieces at the heart of a modern and

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I · ROLE X OYSTER PERPETUAL YACHT-MASTER 40. THIS

RECORDS SHORT TIMES THANKS TO TITANIUM PUSHERS.

EDOUARD HEUER, AND 01 BECAUSE IT REPRESENTS THE

ARCEAU CHRONO BRIDON. ALL MODELS FEATURE A NEW

YACHT-MASTER, THE LATEST ADDITION TO ROLEX’S SEA-

I I I · LOUIS VUIT TON TAMBOUR ÉVOLUTION CHRONO -

MARKEDLY HOROLOGICAL DE VELOPMENT OF CALIBRE

BR ADOON STR AP, ALONG WITH THE SAME ROUNDED

FARING R ANGE , MATCHES BL ACK WITH 18K E VEROSE

G R AP H G M T I N B L AC K . L AU N C H E D I N 2013 , T H E

1887, THE BACKBONE OF THE NEW COLLECTION.

CASE DESIGN, STIRRUP-SHAPED ­A SYMME TRICAL LUGS

GOLD. THE ROTATING BE ZEL INCOR P OR ATES A NE W

TA M BOUR É VO LUT I ON C O L LECT I ON R EI NVENTS TH E

V · LONG INE S COLUMN-WHEEL SINGLE PUSH-PIECE

AND S LOP I NG AR AB IC NU M ER ALS AS THE OR IG I NAL

DISC IN BL ACK CER ACHROM CER AMIC. THE PATENTED

ICONIC LOUIS VUIT TON TAMBOUR WATCH IN AN ULTR A-

CHRO­N O­G RAPH. INSPIRED BY LONGINES’ FIRST WRIST-

LINE, DESIGNED BY HENRI D’ORIGNY IN 1978.

ROLE X BR ACELE T HAS THE AESTHE TIC AND SUPPLE-

MASCULINE VERSION, WITH TAUT LINES ACCENTUATING

CHRONOGRAPHS IN 1913, THIS 40-MM MODEL IS DRIVEN BY

V I I · A L P I N A ALP I N ER 4 MAN U FACT U R E F LY BAC K

NESS OF A RUBBER STR AP, BUT WITH THE ROBUSTNESS

A HI-TECH SILHOUE T TE . THIS YE AR’S MODELS INCLUDE

CALIBRE L788, A MONOPUSHER COLUMN-WHEEL CHRON-

CHRONOGRAPH. ALPINA NOT ONLY PRESENTS ITS FIRST

OF A ME TAL BR ACELE T.

AN ALL-BL ACK CHRONOGR APH GMT.

OGRAPH MOVEMENT WHICH ETA HAS DEVELOPED EXCLU-

IN-HOUSE AUTOMATIC CHRONOGR APH, IT ALSO INNO-

II · IWC PILOT’S WATCH CHRONOGRAPH TOP GUN. IWC HAS

IIII · TAG HEUER CARRERA HEUER 01. NEW CASE, NEW

SIVELY FOR LONGINES. IT HAS A FREQUENCY OF 28,800

VATES WITH INGENIOUS RE THINKING OF THE FLYBACK

REDUCED THE DIAMETER OF THE PILOT’S WATCH CHRONO-

C ONSTRUCT I ON , N E W D ES I G N AN D N E W CA L I B R E .

VIB/HOUR AND DELIVERS A 54-HOUR POWER RESERVE.

AND ZERO RESET MECHANISM. THIS MODEL COMES ALL

GRAPH TOP GUN CERAMIC CASE FROM 46 MM TO 44 MM. A

INTRODUCING THE TAG HEUER CARRER A HEUER 01.

VI · HE RMÈ S ARCE AU CHRONO BRIDON. THE ICONIC

IN BL ACK FOR ADDED ST YLE .

SIMPLIFIED DATE DISPLAY REPLACES THE TRIPLE DATE TO

A M A N U FAC T U R E C H R O N O G R A P H , SY M B O L I CA L LY

A R C E AU C O L L EC T I O N S A D D L E S U P F O R A N E W

MAKE THE DIAL EASIER TO READ. THE CHRONO FUNCTION

CHRISTENED THE HEUER 01 IN HONOUR OF THE FOUNDER,

­E X P R E S S I O N O F EQ U E S T R I A N S P O R T S W I T H T H E

astron. the world’s first gps solar watch.

In 2012 we made history with Astron, the world’s first GPS solar watch. Using just the power of light, Astron adjusts to every time zone on earth at the touch of a button.

In 2014 we took Astron even further, introducing a full-function GPS solar chronograph. Now with dual time display, Astron is simply the world’s finest GPS solar watch.

*If there are changes in the region / time zone, manual time zone selection may be required.

48 WATCH YOUR TIME SPORT

active lifestyle, which included sports. The invention of the screw-down crown and caseback were instrumental to these technical advances, and contributed in no small part to the Oyster’s success, alongside the cyclops date magnifier, the unidirectional rotating bezel for calculating dive times, and the deep engraved luminescent markers, all major innovations in dive watches.

UNDERWATER EXPLOITS

Design is another noteworthy aspect of a sport watch, and one in which Italy excels. Rationalism, an architectural current whereby function dictates form, took root in the country during the turbulent early 1940s. From it emerged a new form of elegance that gravitated around simplicity, sobriety and rigour. Among watch brands, Panerai was one of the most attentive to these new modern dogmas: the 1936 prototype for the Radiomir could have been lifted straight from a rationalist architect’s notebook. Commissioned by the Italian Navy for its frogman commandos, its stainless steel case measures an imposing 47 millimetres in diameter and

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boasts the solidity and water-resistance required by its function. Its physiognomy is unusual in that it is neither round nor square but cushion-shaped, with protective reinforcements that fit snugly around a circular dial, the one form that guarantees numerals and markers can be read at a glance. These same numerals and markers are filled with a luminescent substance, first Radiomir and later Luminor. This was initially painted directly on the surface, then later applied between two overlapping plates using the “sandwich” technique which Panerai invented for its dials.

As for the case, its successive developments were dictated by the need to conform ever more closely to the demands placed on the naval special forces.

The lugs, originally wires welded to the case, proved too fragile and were replaced by reinforced elements made from the same block of steel as the case itself.

The screw-down crown gave way to a patented lever bridge that would protect the crown and in doing so ensure complete water-resistance. These technical improvements, all of which date from the 1940s, represent the essence of Italian style and rigour in watchmaking. They also remind us, once again, how unquestionably cohesion between form and function, the face and soul of a watch, ­contributes precious added value to each timepiece.

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I · C H O PA R D MILLE MIGLIA GT S P OWER CONTR OL .

I N G , M ASC U L I N E WATC H TH AT H AS P ER F O R M A N C E

HAS BEEN CRE ATING JEWELS AS ESSENTIAL ACCES-

R ATION WITH AIRBUS CORPOR ATE JETS WAS A LOGICAL

C H O PA R D R E T U R N S TO I T S C L AS S I C M I L L E M I G L I A

WRIT TEN ALL OVER .

SORIES FOR THE ELEGANT MAN. THE CHAUMET DANDY

NE X T STEP. TOGE THER , THE T WO FIRMS HAVE HAR-

R ANG E W I TH A GTS (G R AN D TU R I S M O S P OR T ) C O L-

I I I · Z E NITH EL PRIMERO TOURBILLON. THE NE W EL

CHRONO SHARES THIS LEGACY, WITH ITS SELF-WINDING

NESSED THE VERY L ATEST TECHNOLOGY TO DEVELOP

L EC T I O N . I T I N C LU D E S T H I S WATC H W I T H P OW E R

PR I M ERO TOUR B I LLON WATCHES OFFER THE R AR E

MOVEMENT INSIDE A STAINLESS STEEL CASE.

THE

RESERVE , FIT TED WITH A CHOPARD MOVEM ENT M ADE

COMBINATION OF A PRESTIGIOUS, HIGH-FREQUENCY

V · SEIKO PROSPEX SSG001. PROSPEX IS SEIKO’S FLAG-

­C HRONOGR APH.

INSIDE ITS FLEUR IER EBAUCHES WOR KSHOP; A FIRST

TOURB I LLON (36,000 VIB/HOUR) AND THE WOR LD’S

SHIP SPORT WATCH R ANGE, WITH MODELS DESIGNED

V I I · PAR M IG IAN I TONDA CHRONOR ANNIVERSAIRE .

FOR THE COLLECTION .

MOST PRECISE SERIES-PRODUCED CHRONOGR APH, AS

SPECIFICALLY FOR SE A , SK Y AND E ARTH. THIS YE AR’S

PARMIGIANI FLEURIER MARKS ITS T WO-DECADE E XIST-

I I · BVLG ARI DIAGONO MAGNESIUM CHRONOGR APH.

WELL AS A PATENTED DATE DISPL AY. THE NEW LINE-UP

SKY WATCH IS FITTED WITH A NEW R ADIO-WAVE CALIBRE

ENCE WITH AN ANNIVERSARY VERSION OF THE TONDA

ST YLISH, URBAN AND CONTEMPOR ARY, THE DIAGONO

INCLUDES A CONTEMPOR ARY VERSION IN BRUSHED

THAT RECEIVES TIME SIGNALS FROM ACROSS A VAST GEO-

C H RO N O R , I TS F I RST I N T EG R AT ED C H RO N OG R A P H

M AGNES I UM HAS M ADE A NAM E FOR ITSELF AMONG

TITANIUM WITH A SL ATE-GREY DIAL.

GR APHIC AREA, FOR COVER AGE THROUGHOUT EUROPE,

W I TH A H IGH - FR EQUENCY (5 HZ) GO LD M OVEM ENT,

TODAY’S SPORT WATCHES. IT NOW INCORPOR ATES A

IIII · CHAUMET DANDY ACIER CHRONO XL-40 AUTO. DANDY

THE UNITED STATES AND JAPAN.

INTEGR ATED L ARGE DATE, VERTICAL CLUTCH AND T WO

SELF-WI ND I NG CHRONOGR APH MOVEM ENT, ONE OF

TAKES ITS ORIGINS QUITE NATURALLY IN THE HISTORY OF

VI · RICHARD MILLE RM50-02. AVIATION HAS ALWAYS

COLUMN WHEELS: ONE FOR THE CHRONO AND ONE FOR

TODAY’S MOST POPUL AR COMPLICATIONS. A SPORT-

CHAUMET. FOR MORE THAN TWO CENTURIES, CHAUMET

INSPIRED RICHARD MILLE, AND THE BR AND’S COLL ABO-

THE SPLIT-SECONDS HAND.

R M 5 0 - 02

AC J

TO U R B I L LO N

S P L I T- ­S EC O N D S

FOCUS WATCH YOUR TIME 49

Renowned for its use of colour, Van Cleef & Arpels’ jewelled timepieces are an invitation to experience a world of enchantment and imagination, where watches tell stories and technique makes way for magic.

Ask to be shown some “watches” at Van Cleef & Arpels, and you may find yourself facing a polite refusal. And for good reason, as the brand prefers to underplay the “keeping” of time to instead emphasise the representation of time in magical and poetic ways that reflect its history as a jeweller renowned for its use of colour. In its own well-chosen words, its creations “capture the hours in their most precious finery. Time confides itself like a secret or glitters flamboyantly, magnified by precious stones.”

Watchmaking by Van Cleef & Arpels clearly inhabits a world of its own, where conveying an emotion is of more concern than tackling the latest mechanical complexities. Van Cleef & Arpels doesn’t make just “watches”; it imagines jewels that give the time, rendered all the more beautiful by the decorative arts that are the watchmaker’s companion crafts.

the poetry of time

ON A BUTTERFLY WING

“This year we have placed greater emphasis on the brand’s jewellery identity,” comments Denis Giguet, who is at the head of Van Cleef & Arpels’ watchmaking workshop. “This is particularly evidenced by the presence of setting techniques which until now we reserved for our jewellery.” He gives the example of the Lady Jour des Fleurs and Lady Nuit des Papillons watches. Both belong to the Poetic Complications collection, and are distinguished by an openworked over-dial, beneath which the principal dial rotates once in twelve hours to respectively portray the changing of the seasons or a graceful ballet of butterflies.

On the Lady Jour des Fleurs model, diamonds, yellow ­s apphires, pink sapphires, spinels, spessartite and tsavorite garnets form a delicate foliage interspersed with berries, in shades that move from spring green to autumnal red. The over-dial is embellished with ­diamonds in a snow setting. This original technique can also be admired on the fully paved dial of the Sweet Charms Pavée, which highlights diamonds in a succession of cuts and sizes.

The same concept of a rotating dial, this time over 24 hours, returns with the Lady Arpels Jour Nuit Fée Ondine, which offers a magnificent demonstration of artistic crafts from gem-setting, naturally, to engraving, champlevé and plique-à-jour enamel, and miniature painting. Each detail has been thoughtfully studied and executed by mastercraftsmen to form a narrative in which sun and moon are contemplated by a nymph who sits on a water lily, cooling herself in the crystal water. “Its intensity varying from hour to hour, the water reveals its secrets thanks to pliqueà-jour enamel. Produced using translucent enamel, this technique is used to create a remarkable play of transparency: the fairy’s leg — dipped in the cool water — remains visible, just like the heavenly orb that continues its course beneath the surface. The sun in yellow sapphires and the diamond moon thus echo one another on either side of the horizon, within a sky of subtly painted mother-of-pearl or as a reflection in the mirrored waters.”

“As you can see,” says Denis Giguet, “we have never taken a classic approach to watchmaking, which doesn’t mean

we choose the easy option in terms of mechanisms.

Far from it, in fact. This is something we have demonstrated with creations such as Pont des Amoureux, Poetic Wish and Midnight Planetarium. The difference being that at Van Cleef & Arpels, we use technique for the sole purpose of bringing a story to life.” Further proof, were it needed, came in January when the brand revealed its Lady Arpels Ronde des Papillons watch in Geneva. Retrograde hours are shown by the tip of a swallow’s wing while minutes are indicated by a trio of butterflies which appear in turn and move at different speeds.

At the push of a button, they flutter around the dial not in one hour but in ten seconds before resuming their usual flight at exactly the right time. This means that after each of these animations, the mechanical movement must catch up the ten seconds of the butterflies’ swooping, swirling dance. Needless to say, Van Cleef & Arpels has again used the decorative arts to stunning effect to make this Ronde des Papillons a moment of pure fantasy.

Christophe Roulet

VAN CLEEF & ARPELS BUT TERFLIES. SYMBOLIC OF THE LIGHTNESS AND POETRY

VAN CLEEF & ARPELS LADY ARPELS RONDE DES PAPILLONS. E VERY VAN CLEEF

VAN CLEEF & ARPELS LADY ARPELS JOUR NUIT FÉE ONDINE. WITH A DIAL THAT

TO BE FOUND IN NATURE, BUT TERFLIES HAVE BEEN A RICH SOURCE OF INSPI-

& ARPELS WATCH HAS A STORY TO TELL , AND THIS RONDE DES ­P APILLONS IS NO

ROTATES ONCE IN T WENT Y-FOUR HOURS, TH IS L ADY ARPELS WATCH G IVES

R ATION FOR VAN CLEEF & ARPELS FROM THE E ARLY 1920S. THROUGHOUT THE

­E XCEP TION. RE TROGR ADE HOURS ARE SHOWN BY THE TIP OF A ­S WALLOW ’S

PR I DE OF P L ACE TO WATCH M A K I NG’S AR TI STIC CR AF TS: GEM -SE T TI NG , OF

ER AS, IT HAS CAP TURED THEIR FLUT TERING FLIGHT AND INFINITE NUANCES IN

W I NG WH I LE M I N UTES AR E I N D I CATED BY A TR I O OF BUT TER F L I ES WH I C H

COURSE, BUT ALSO ENGR AVING, CHAMPLEVÉ AND PLIQUE-À-JOUR ENAMEL, AND

MANY DIFFERENT MATERIALS, WHE THER WOOD, L ACQUER , ENAMEL , MOTHER-

APPE AR I N TUR N AN D M OVE AT D I FFER ENT SPEEDS . THE AR T I ST I C CR AF TS

MINIATURE PAINTING. E ACH DETAIL HAS BEEN CAREFULLY STUDIED AND METICU-

OF-PE ARL OR PRECIOUS STONES.

MAKE THEIR CONTRIBUTION, WITH ENGR AVING AND M INIATURE PAINTING ON

LOUSLY E XECUTED TO BRING THE FAIRY’S DAY TO LIFE .

­M OTHER-OF-PE ARL .

THE VAN CLEEF & ARPELS BOUTIQUE AT PL ACE VENDÔME IN PARIS.

DIVING WATCH YOUR TIME 51

TIME IN DEPTH

“ t he most beautiful face is always the face of the peaceful mind” mehmet murat ildan ( 1965 — )

--o------- peter braun

u

a dive watch is the only timepiece to be recognised as a professional-grade instrument and, unlike other wristwatches, must therefore conform to precise criteria in terms of concept, construction and functions. whoever straps a dive watch to their wrist must do so in complete confidence: their life depends on it. in this segment of the market, reliability is not just a nice-to-have; it’s a necessity.

nderwater, time is of the essence. Cylinders provide a certain amount of air time, following which the diver must resurface in calculated stages. Because the human body cannot withstand sudden changes of pressure — increased pressure causes nitrogen bubbles to form in the blood and can cause permanent damage — a diver needs to know the elapsed time so that he or she can monitor these decompression stages. How much air time is left? How long does decompression take at a ten-metre depth? Is my watch still working? What time is it really?

In wartime, navy commandos had to execute orders exactly on schedule and thus needed a reliable timekeeping instrument. The dive watches made by Guido Panerai and his son Giuseppe had the all-important advantage of their luminous dials. The imposing, water-resistant wristwatches they supplied to the Italian and German naval forces were painted with Radiomir, a luminescent material that Panerai patented in 1914, composed primarily of zinc sulphate and radium.

This radioactive substance covered not just the numerals and markers, but the entire dial. A second thin dial was placed on top, with cutouts for the numerals and markers.

Newly reprised, this sandwich construction now makes use of non-toxic substances. Credit where credit is due, no new luminescent material provides the same intensity or persistence as Radiomir.

ROLE X OYSTER PERPETUAL SUBMARINER DATE. L AUNCHED IN 1953, THE SUBMARINER WAS THE FIRST WATCH TO BE WATER-RESISTANT TO 100 ME TRES. SINCE THEN, THIS DIVE WATCH HAS E XPANDED ITS HORIZONS FAR BEYOND THE ELEMENT OF ITS BIRTH. AT HOME IN THE DEP THS OF THE OCE ANS, IT HAS LONG CONQUERED TERR A FIRMA AS THE WATCH OF ACTION. THE SUBMARINER’S OYSTER CASE, NOW GUAR ANTEED WATER-RESISTANT TO A DEP TH OF 300 ME TRES, IS A STUDY IN ROBUSTNESS. THE CHAR ACTERISTIC MIDDLE CASE IS CUT FROM A SOLID BLOCK OF 904L STAINLESS STEEL FOR MA XIMUM RESISTANCE TO CORROSION, OR 18K GOLD. THE CASE BACK , WITH ITS DISTINCTIVE FLUTING, IS HERME TICALLY

© M a r k u s & Ko a l a

SCREWED USING A SPECIAL TOOL THAT IS E XCLUSIVE TO ROLE X WATCHMAKERS.

INTO THE ABYSS

In the early 1950s, the French Ministry of Defence commissioned Captain Robert “Bob” Maloubier to test equipment for a new unit of combat divers. Standard material was unsuited to active service at great depths, hence the watch that would be issued to this elite unit had to be robust and easily readable, including in low light conditions. Most importantly, it had to be water-resistant to “at least fifty fathoms” or roughly 90 metres. Very few cases and casebacks matched these specifications; sourcing a crystal that would not deform under pressure was even harder.

Maloubier came up against numerous dead-ends before trying his luck with a certain Blancpain, a small watch manufacturer in the Swiss Jura mountains.

Maloubier and his team had produced a number of sketches, based on different models, to test various size/weight ratios.

The watch couldn’t be too large or it would hamper divers’ movements during their top-secret missions. Nor could it be too small, to ensure the easy reading of the hands and twelve hour-markers in murky water. However, the main innovation in Maloubier’s brief was the rotating bezel, which duplicated the five-minute graduations on the dial. During this same period, Rolex in Geneva developed water-resistant “tool watches”. These featured a ­rotating bezel, calibrated for 0 to 60 minutes and

52 WATCH YOUR TIME

FROM MILITARY SPECS TO INDUSTRIAL STANDARDS

NOW AND FOR EVER

with a triangular marker. Designed specifically for underwater use, this Oyster Submariner showed at a glance remaining air time, provided the 0 on the bezel had been aligned with the minutes hand at the start of the dive.

Both the Fifty Fathoms (thus named in the order placed with Blancpain) and the Rolex Submariner were, from the outset, fitted with an additional safety device that prevents the bezel from being turned clockwise. Should the setting be inadvertently altered, by knocking the edge of the watch for example, the remaining time indication could only ever be shorter — never longer — than the original calculation, thus bringing the diver to the surface earlier and preventing a possibly fatal accident.

The Japanese call them Living National Treasures (人間国宝, Ningen Kokuhô). They are the individuals who master a craft or an artistic discipline that is deemed essential to safeguarding the country’s historic and cultural memory. A model of its kind, Japan succeeds in embracing tradition and technology to ensure peaceful cohabitation between past, present and future. The Seiko watch company, which Kintaro Hattori founded in Tokyo in 1881, perpetuates this philosophy in its own way. Its latest Presage collection is characteristic of this desire to move with the times while taking pride in the past. Unveiled to the public at Baselworld, it mixes today’s trends with earlier influences, thereby demonstrating the capacity of the Japanese firm, which is still governed by a member of the founding family, to incorporate twentyfirst-century values into its products.

While anything but a pure reinterpretation of a watch plucked straight from the Seiko museum in downtown Tokyo, this retro-futurist collection will nonetheless strike a chord among watch enthusiasts with a penchant for vintage-influenced designs. Although to call the Presage a “vintage” range would not do it justice, given its multiple inspirations. The case calls on references that date back to the Golden Fifties. The numerals on the dials are a contemporary extrapolation of those that graced the Laurel, the first ever Seiko wristwatch, introduced in 1913. As both a tribute to it and a celebration of the craftsmen who keep the traditional arts alive, this year Seiko is releasing two limited editions of 1,000 pieces each. Both are chronographs, driven by a magnificent and modern, selfwinding Manufacture calibre. They are distinguished by their dial, with one in white enamel like that of the original Laurel, and the other in genuine black lacquer that uses the same technique as for the scabbards of Samurai swords. All in all a well-balanced collection with many treasures of its own!

V.D.

A few years after their release in 1953, these two watches would set the benchmark for all dive watches with the publication of German standard DIN 8306 and ISO 6425 international standard. Besides the all-important water-resistance to at least 100 metres, another major requirement for a dive watch is that it should have a legible dial. Readability becomes more of a challenge in swirling, dark water, which is why the hands and markers of a dive watch should be coated in lume. Both the German and international standards also require a means of checking the watch is still running, such as a seconds hand. However, because dive time needn’t be measured to the nearest second, many dive watches prefer to use a non-calibrated disc (black and white for example) that is made to rotate by the movement of the watch. Visible through a window in the dial, its flickering catches the eye and indicates that the watch is running.

I

II

V

VI

SEIKO PRESAGE. SEIKO IS L AUNCHING A COMPLE TELY NEW COLLECTION THIS YE AR ,

I · CHAUMET CLASS ONE. CHAUME T HAS CHOSEN

I I · JA EG E R - LECOU LTR E MASTER COMPR ESSOR

E AC H WATC H I S SU B J ECTED TO A BAT TERY O F

BY THE NAME OF PRESAGE. IT WILL EMBR ACE THE FULL R ANGE OF SEIKO MECHANICAL,

THE CL ASS ONE FOR A LIMITED EDITION BY CON-

CH R ONO GR AP H CER AM IC . T H I S WATC H C O M -

TESTS THAT GUAR ANTEES COMPLIANCE WITH ISO

AND ONLY MECHANICAL , MOVEMENTS AS A TRIBUTE TO THE BR AND’S 100 YE ARS OF

T E M P O R A RY A R T I S T LO R I S C EC C H I N I , A N E W

BINES A CHRONOGR APH , A SECOND TI ME ZONE ,

6425 STANDARD, THE OFFICIAL REQUIREMENT FOR

E XPERIENCE IN THE FIELD. THE COLLECTION TAKES ITS DESIGN CUE FROM THE FIRST

I NTER PR E TATION OF THE F I RST D I VE WATCH ON

AND A DAY/N IGHT INDICATION , PRESENTED ON A

“DIVE WATCH” DENOMINATION.

SEIKO WRISTWATCH, L AUREL, L AUNCHED IN 1913. MODELS INCLUDE A CHRONOGR APH

PRESTIGIOUS PL ACE VENDÔME IN PARIS. CECCHINI

HIGHLY LEGIBLE DIAL . A PATENTED COMPRESSION

IIII · PANERAI LUMINOR BLACK SEAL LEFT-HANDED

WITH ENAMEL DIAL , AND AN HOURS-MINUTES-SECONDS WITH RE TROGR ADE POWER

H AS R E T U R N ED TO H I S WA L LWAV E V I B R AT I O N ,

KEY PROVIDES ADDITIONAL SECURIT Y IN TERMS OF

8 DAYS ACCIAIO DLC — 44MM. POSSIBLY THE MOST

RESERVE . PRESAGE IS ALRE ADY A CL ASSIC.

WHICH REPRESENTS THE VIBR ATIONS OF WATER

WATER-RESISTANCE . THE IMPOSING CASE IS MADE

D I ST I NCT I VE FE ATUR E ON TH I S M ODEL I S TH E

I N M OVEM ENT, TO I M AG I NE A M ONOCHRO M ATI C

FRO M C ER A M I C, AN E XC EP T I ON A L LY SC R ATC H -

WIND ING CROWN WITH ITS PROTECTIVE LE VER

CL ASS ONE WATCH WITH A UNIQUE DESIGN.

RESISTANT MATERIAL .

ON THE LEF T SIDE OF THE CASE. PANER AI’S FIRST

I I I · CALIBR E D E C A R T I E R DIVER BLUE. I N T RO -

LEF T-HANDED WATCHES DATE BACK TO THE 1940S,

DUCED IN 2010, THE CALIBRE DE CARTIER IS ALSO

A P R ACT I CA L SO LU T I O N F O R F ROG M EN W H O

PROPOSED AS A DIVE WATCH, INCLUDING THIS ALL-

WORE THEIR WATCH ON THEIR RIGHT WRIST, AND A

BLUE VERSION. WATER-RESISTANT TO 300 METRES,

COMPASS AND DEPTH GAUGE ON THEIR LEFT WRIST.

RUBRIQUE WATCH YOUR TIME 53

These standards also impose strict requirements in terms of shock-resistance for the movement and, for the case and strap, resistance to salt water and corrosion. A further condition is that the bezel must only rotate one way, counter-clockwise. Lastly, they prescribe that the first fifteen minutes on the bezel be ­signalled by individual minute markers. A watch that fails to meet all these criteria cannot be called a dive watch.

THE IDEAL COMPANION

These military watches were renowned for their robustness, reliability, precision, construction and ease of use. Following in the wake of Bob Maloubier and his combat divers, other French naval units, the US Navy SEALs, as well as both the German and the Israeli naval forces adopted the Fifty Fathoms during the 1950s.

Initially reserved for military use, very few pieces

were made available for sale to the general public.

The Rolex Submariner, in contrast, was sold at all good watch shops, and this widescale distribution helped boost its popularity in the 1960s. Having seduced professional and amateur divers alike, it soon won the hearts of athletes in all disciplines who appreciated its ruggedness, reliability and easy maintenance. Stars of the big and small screen, the likes of Sean Connery, Roger Moore and Paul Newman, added further to its appeal. In collectors’ circles, the early models without crown guards are known as the James Bond Submariner.

III

Classicism is a cardinal virtue of this year’s watch collections, and while a simple watch may seem rather an insignificant accomplishment alongside more flamboyant creations, this is in reality an extremely complex exercise, whether from a technical perspective, when dealing with extra-thin movements, or in terms of design. Harmonious forms and well-balanced proportions are just some of the “details” that can transform a classic watch into a symbol. The recently released Slimline Auto Heart Beat by Frederique Constant ticks all these boxes, and more. In terms of sheer elegance, its eloquently pure lines make it one of the slimmest timepieces in the brand’s portfolio, while the 40-mm case ensures an undeniably masculine temperament. Inside, an opening in the dial allows a plunging view of the FC-312 mechanical calibre, a self-winding movement that is also one of the thinnest in its category. This Slimline Auto Heart Beat is, says Frederique Constant, “a return to the essence of watchmaking and an exercise in style that focuses on minimalism.”

There is, however, more to Frederique Constant than this traditional approach to time measurement. The brand was one of the very first to have paved the way for Swiss connected watches, when it unveiled its Horological Smartwatch in 2015. The enthusiasm this new piece generated was enough to convince the brand to build further on the idea. Borrowing the same design codes of a traditional watch, with a blue analogue dial circled by a minute track and Roman numerals, its panel of activity-tracking and sleep-monitoring functions is now joined by a worldtime function for tireless travellers. One final detail that shouldn’t be overlooked: the Horological Smartwatch, which is powered by MotionX® technology, runs on an MMT-285 quartz calibre which provides a full two years of autonomy without needing to be charged. Now that’s true luxury!

C.R.

IIII

VII

HEART AND SMART

VIII

V · BVLGARI DIAGONO SCUBA. BVLGARI RISES TO

VERY L ATEST TECHNOLOGY, SUCH AS A SI LICON

VIII · SEIKO PROSPE X AUTOMATIC MARINEMASTER

F R É D É R IQ U E CONS TANT SLIMLINE AUTOMATIC HE ART BE AT AND HOROLOGICAL

THE SURFACE WITH THE DIAGONO SCUBA WATCH.

BA L ANCE SPR I NG AND LI QU I D M E TA L , AN A M OR-

PROFESSIONAL. E VER MORE I M PR ESS IVE , SEI KO

SMART WATCH. PART OF THE SLIMLINE COLLECTION OF E XTREMELY THIN WATCHES,

H A N DSO M E , P OW ER F U L , SU R P R I S I N G , SO P H I S -

P H OUS M E TA L A L LOY, F O R TH E SCA LE O N TH E

HAS BROUGHT OUT A PROFESSIONAL DIVING

TH I S S LI M LI NE HE AR T BE AT C ONTA I NS THE FC -312 CA LI B R E , A 25 -JE WEL M OVE-

TICATED, LUXUR IOUS AND MODERN , THESE NE W

CER AMIC BE ZEL .

WAT C H

A U T O M AT I C

MENT THAT BE ATS AT A FREQUENCY OF 28,800 VIB/HOUR AND DELIVERS A 42-HOUR

ITER ATIONS STAND OUT AS A REFERENCE IN SPORT

V I I · TAG H E U E R AQUAR ACER 30 0M CALIBR E 5.

M OV E M EN T, WAT ER R ES I STA N T TO D EP T H S O F

POWER RESERVE. THE HOROLOGICAL SMART WATCH, ME ANWHILE, DISPL AYS HOURS,

WATCHES. WATER-RESISTANT TO 300 METRES, THEY

T H E AQ UA R AC ER 3 0 0 M CA L I B R E 5 AU TO M AT I C

1,000 ME TRES — ENOUGH TO RE ASSURE E XTREME

M INUTES AND DATE , AS WELL AS MONITOR ING ACTIVIT Y AND SLEEP PAT TERNS. IT

ARE NOW POWERED BY AN IN-HOUSE CALIBRE, THE

STANDS OUT FOR ITS RELIAB I LIT Y, ROBUSTNESS

DIVERS IN E VERY SITUATION.

ALSO ­P ROVIDES USEFUL FUNCTIONS FOR TR AVELLERS, INCLUDING A WORLDTIMER .

BVL 191 SOLOTEMPO.

AN D DES IG N . I T HAS A LL THE FE ATUR ES A D I VE

V I · B L A N C PA I N FIF T Y FATHOMS BATHYSCAPH.

WATCH SHOULD HAVE: UNIDIRECTIONAL ROTATING

THIS ANNIVERSARY FIF T Y FATHOMS BATHYSCAPH

BE ZEL , SCR ATCH-RESISTANT SAPPHIRE CRYSTAL ,

HAS ALL THE AT TR IBUTES OF A DIVE WATCH IN A

LU M I N E S C E N T M A R K E R S A N D H A N D S , WAT E R-

DISTINCTLY VINTAGE ST YLE . WHICH HASN’T PRE-

RESISTANCE TO 300 ME TRES, SCREW-IN CROWN,

VENTED BL ANCPAIN FROM EQUIPPING IT WITH THE

AND E XTENDABLE STEEL CL ASP.

WITH

H I G H - F R E Q U E N CY

54 WATCH YOUR TIME RUBRIQUE

IN SYNC WITH PILOTS

No other watch captured the mood of the 1960s and 70s better than the Submariner. It went on to inspire numerous other Rolex models, including the Yacht-Master, GMT-Master and Sea-Dweller.

Rolex positioned these highly specialised products with clever slogans such as “A Rolex may be costly, but that’s the price of its robustness and reliability.” Even when adjusted to the cost of living in the 1960s — we know, it hurts to think about it!

— a Rolex professional watch remained prohibitively expensive for most and was therefore guaranteed to be exclusive. More than a sport watch, a Rolex was a symbol, the sign that its wearer was at home with luxury. Still today, “luxury sport watches” continue to thrive on this image, and are considered a sound investment among the multitude of sport watches available across the price spec-

2016 could well fly by for IWC, which is training the spotlight on its Pilot’s Watches, a speciality of the brand since 1940.

This was the year it introduced its 52 T.C.S calibre, which marked the launch of the first large-diameter observation watches to be made by IWC in Schaffhausen. True to form, and in keeping with its technical approach to fine watchmaking, the brand has done more than revive its historic models, and is launching the Timezoner Chronograph. This is the first watch ever to set the time zone, date and 24-hour hand with a single rotation of the bezel. As IWC explains, all the user need do is to “push the bezel down, turn it to the desired time zone and release. This movement is conveyed synchronously to the hour hand and a smaller 24-hour hand that always shows whether it is day or night in the selected time zone. The date display is also synchronized correctly, regardless of whether the watch is advanced or turned back, and whether the 24-hour hand passes midnight. The watch movement and the advance of the minute hand, however, are not affected, which has the advantage that the watch always shows the correct time.”

IWC is right: setting world time on a mechanical wristwatch has never been simpler; a simplicity that goes hand-in-hand with legibility as just one time zone is displayed. Should you need to travel through time and space and know what local time is — maybe a long-distance phone call to make —, a single turn of the bezel suffices. The names of 24 cities corresponding to the 24 time zones are inscribed on the city ring, with a small letter “S” showing those that recognise summer time. Needless to say, the bezel has been secured and will only rotate when pressure is exerted on two opposite sides. Again with legibility in mind, the chronograph hours and minutes are displayed in a subdial at 12 o’clock, as easy as reading the time on an analogue watch. Seconds are given by a central hand.

C.R.

trum. The Submariner’s reliability and the incomparable legibility of its dial set it apart among dive watches. This unique status has spurred a long list of copycat products by other leading Swiss brands, not to mention a roster of pale imitations.

The dive watch has made the transition from an essential professional-grade instrument to the ideal accessory for every day, universally admired for its qualities: water-resistance, resistance to knocks and corrosion, excellent readability and a rotating bezel for measuring elapsed times in all kinds of situation. And while its all-round ruggedness is rarely put to the test, it will never let you down — ask James Bond! Those uncompromising DIN and ISO standards see to that.

ˇ

I

II

III

IIII

IWC PILOT’S WATCH TIMEZONER CHRONOGR APH. IWC HAS R AISED THE BAR IN USING

I · PATEK PHILIPPE NAUTILUS CHRONOGR APH

THE OVERSEAS CHRONOGR APH —CALIBRE 5200,

I I I I · SE IKO GR AND SEIKO. THE GR AND SEI KO

TECHNIQUE TO PROMOTE FUNCTIONALIT Y BY CRE ATING THE VERY FIRST MECHANICAL

REF 5980. TH I S CH RONOG R APH FE ATUR ES A

WHICH LIKE EVERY OTHER MODEL IN THE RANGE IS

SHOWS OFF A BR AND-NEW DESIGN AND SPRING

WATCH WHOSE SECOND TIME ZONE, DATE AND 24-HOUR HAND ARE SET BY THE BE ZEL .

44-M M TRI-PART CASE WITH THE CHAR ACTER-

HALLMARKED POINÇON DE GENÈVE, IS DRIVEN BY

DRIVE MOVEMENTS WITH CHRONOGR APH AND

S I M PLY PR ESS THE BE ZEL , TUR N IT TO THE R EQU I R ED TI M E ZONE , AND R ELE ASE .

ISTIC “E ARS” ON THE SIDES, AND THE EQUALLY

AN ALL-NEW, IN-HOUSE CHRONOGR APH CALIBRE

GMT FUNCTIONS. THE CASE, WHICH IS WATER-

A MECHANICAL PROWESS THAT IWC HAS TAKEN CARE TO ACCENTUATE WITH MA XIMUM

DISTINCTIVE HINGE MECHANISM THAT CL AMPS

THAT TOOK FIVE YEARS TO DEVELOP.

RESISTANT TO 100 ME TRES, USES CER AMIC FOR

LEGIBILIT Y FOR THE FLYBACK CHRONOGR APH, WHICH IS DRIVEN BY A SELF-WINDING

THE PORTHOLE-SHAPED BEZEL TO THE SAID CASE.

III · TUDOR HERITAGE BLACK BAY. FIRST PRE-

THE BEZEL AND OUTER SHELL, AND TITANIUM FOR

MOVEMENT.

THIS SYSTEM, TOGETHER WITH THE CROWN AND

SENTED IN 2012 AND A WINNER AT THE GR AND

THE INNER CASE AND BACK; A WINNING COMBI-

PUSHER GASKETS, GUAR ANTEES WATER-RESIST-

PRIX D’HORLOGERIE DE GENÈVE, THE ­H ERITAGE

NATION FOR THIS SPORT WATCH.

ANCE OF 12 BAR (120 METRES).

B L AC K BAY FOR 2016 I NTRODUCES AN I N -

II · VACHERON CONSTANTIN OVERSEAS CHRONO-

HOUSE MECHANICAL MOVEMENT, DEVELOPED,

GRAPH — CALIBRE 5200. VACHERON CONSTANTIN

­P RODUCED AND ASSEMBLED BY TUDOR. THIS ICON

HAS COMPLE TELY REDESIGNED ITS OVERSE AS

OF THE BR AND CELEBR ATES 60 YEARS OF DIVE

COLLECTION FOR ITS TWENTIETH ANNIVERSARY.

WATCHES THAT WERE DESTINED FOR GREATNESS.

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ASTRONOMICAL WATCH YOUR TIME 57

“ t ime is what we are. it is inscribed on our face” tahar ben jelloun ( 1944 — )

THE COSMOLOGY OF TIME --o------- vincent daveau

f

since time immemorial, horologists have seduced us with timepieces that look to the stars. beyond their beauty, they are the stuff of dreams as well as a reminder of an era when power was in the hands of whoever could decipher the future.

rom the time they were invented, astronomical watches have enthralled us with what is, to the layman’s eye, a prodigious capacity to reproduce the movement of the stars and planets with unerring precision, as though the spirit of the Great Watchmaker invoked by Descartes and Voltaire resided inside these fascinating machines. We marvel at their ability to conjure up the infinitely vast from within such a confined space.

An instrument for scientists, capable for example of indicating the equation of time, sunrise and sunset; an instrument for dreamers with its star-studded azure discs, an astronomical watch casts new light on passing time. It also stirs values which centuries of urban life had, or so we believed, erased from memory and renders them suddenly indispensable.

THE MYTH OF THE CAVE

All of which invites the question of why an admirer of finely crafted mechanics will pay a fortune to be given, in addition to the time, information which no longer has any relevance to the everyman. To understand why astronomical timepieces continue to hold such appeal, we must travel far back in time, even ask ourselves how the descendents of Lucy apprehended the world around them. Because the hominids who preceded us on Earth sought ways to master their environment. In those dark days, whoever was able to calculate recurring events such as the reappearance of the moon, the rising of the sun, even the cycle of the seasons, inspired awe, which in turn brought power. Each language, each culture had its shamans, druids, guides or priests who knew how to read and predict the future. They deciphered the heavens to interpret the divine.

Archaeologists have uncovered a bone with moon cycles carved on its surface. This ephemeris, which prefigures the astronomical watch by thousands of years, in all probabil-

ity belonged to a soothsayer or a chief. Closer to home, and thanks among others to Hublot, we now know that the mechanism found in 1901, in the wreck of a Greek ship off the island of Antikythera in the Aegean Sea, would have been used by priests to calculate solar cycles, planetary cycles (cosmograph) and lunar cycles (selenograph). It would also have indicated the dates of important events such as the games in Corinth, Delphi or Olympia. Magnificently complex and, why not, combined with a clepsydra, it precisely displayed different astronomical cycles, including the Metonic cycle of 19 years (235 lunations) and the Callippic cycle of 76 years (940 lunations or four Metonic cycles). This intricate mechanism opens our eyes to the extraordinary conceptual capabilities of Ancient scholars and mathematicians, and was brilliantly reinterpreted by Hublot as the Antikythera watch and the Antikythera SunMoon. Both allow ­collectors of rare timepieces to reconsider our ancestors’ vision of the sky above.

THE SKY AS AN INSTRUMENT OF POWER

Long the preserve of academics and scientists who used it to proclaim when crops should be sown or battles waged, as well as to predict events taking place within the cosmos, astronomy reached a ­turning-point with the appearance, in the early

ROTONDE DE CARTIER EARTH AND MOON. THIS ROTONDE DE CARTIER E ARTH AND MOON CARRIES ON CARTIER’S GR AND TR ADITION OF FINE WATCHES WITH ITS OPENWORKED DIAL AND UNIQUE COMPLICATION. IT TAKES ITS NAME FROM THE T WO DIALS REPRESENTING THE E ARTH AND THE MOON, E ACH FASHIONED FROM POLISHED ME TEORITE STONE . T WO TIME INDICATIONS ARE SHOWN USING A UNIQUELY INNOVATIVE DISPL AY: ON THE ONE HAND, TERRESTRIAL TIME WITH LOCAL TIME AND A SECOND TIME ZONE OVER 24 HOURS, AND ON THE OTHER LUNAR TIME WITH A TOURBILLON THAT

© M a r k u s & Ko a l a

DOUBLES AS A MOONPHASE DISPL AY.

58 WATCH YOUR TIME RUBRIQUE

BRONZE AGE

s­ ixteenth century in Italy, Germany and France, of another powerful symbol of prestige: the portable timepiece.

Authors of the day referred to them as monstrances, signifying mechanical instruments worthy of exhibition. These ancestors to the watch, in fact miniaturised and transportable extrapolations of Western monumental clocks, quickly accommodated astronomical indications, as on each face of the Astrarium, the fascinating clock which Giovanni de’ Dondi completed in Padua, circa 1354. This almost immediate union of temporal and astronomical indications conferred irresistible charm on the mechanical watch, which became an instrument of power.

A high performance copper-aluminium alloy, in other words bronze, is Tudor’s solution for the latest addition to its Heritage Black Bay line. Using bronze for a watch may surprise at first, given the metal’s tendency to oxidise on contact with outside elements such as air, humidity or heat.

Yet beyond this initial “surely not?” reaction, it’s easy to see why bronze is such a relevant choice. Since ancient times, bronze has been intimately associated with the sea, an environment where Tudor feels very much at home, having presented its first dive watch back in 1954. Since then, it has made consistent improvements to its watches, which are recognised as excellent professional “tools”, including by some of the world’s top naval forces. Secondly, over the course of time and depending how and where it is worn, a bronze watch will develop its very own patina, and in doing so become totally unique, while its water-resistance remains perfectly intact.

This Tudor Heritage Black Bay is a case in point: its waterresistance is guaranteed to 200 metres, and it has a 43 mm bronze case with a steel back. It of course complies with dive-watch standards, having a unidirectional rotating bezel, also in bronze with an anodized aluminium disc, luminescent markers and “snowflake” hands, and an oversized, bronze, screw-lock crown. Inside beats the Tudor Calibre MT5601, an in-house movement. This is an hours-minutes-seconds variation, slightly larger in diameter, on the first mechanical calibre to have been developed and produced entirely

by Tudor, in 2015. Singled out for its robustness and precision, this was the first Tudor movement to be chronometercertified by the COSC. It is regulated by a variable inertia oscillator, has a silicon balance spring and a 70-hour power reserve. A movement that has found its ideal “vessel” in the Heritage Black Bay. C.R.

An ornament of considerable value, intended to be worn for all to see, its ethnic signification was that of the bear’s teeth which a Neolithic hunter-gatherer would have strung around his neck. A visible symbol of wealth and authority, its power and that of its wearer increased as more astronomical information was added to it. The Renaissance and the early “modern” era witnessed the creation of astrological timepieces whose calendars depicted the signs of the zodiac, and an astonishing number of astronomical timepieces. In addition to the hour shown by a single hand, many of these elaborately decorated instruments gave the age of the Moon which, in a still rural society, was of particular interest. The great and the powerful, for whom the obligations of the farmer were of little concern, instead found poetic inspiration, if Ronsard’s verses can be believed… Come see, my lovely, if the rose…

I

II

V

VI

TUDOR HERITAGE BL ACK BAY BRONZE. A VAR IATION ON TUDOR ’S MANUFACTURE

I · PAN E R AI LO SCIENZIATO LUMINOR 1950 GMT

I I · IWC BIG PILOT’S WATCH PERPETUAL CALEN-

IT HOUSES THE EM BLEMATIC 1120 Q P MANUFAC -

M OV EM EN T D R I V ES TH I S B RO NZE B L AC K BAY. S L I G H T LY L A RG ER I N D I A M E TER ,

TOU R B I LLO N T ITAN IO. A T R I B U T E TO G A L I L EO

DAR SAINT E XUPÉRY EDITION. TH I S B IG P I LOT ’S

TURE MOVEMENT, AN ULTR A-THIN, SELF-WINDING

THIS MT5601 CALIBRE INDICATES HOURS, MINUTES AND SECONDS. IN 2015, TUDOR

G A L I L E I , T H I S N E W E X EC U T I O N O F T H E LO

WATCH IS A FE AT OF TECHNIQUE . ITS PERPE TUAL

M OVEM ENT W I TH A PER PE TUA L CA LEN DAR AN D

ANNOUNCED THE FIRST E VER IN-HOUSE MECHANICAL MOVEMENT IN ITS HISTORY.

SC I EN ZI ATO WATC H I S C R A F T ED F RO M U LT R A-

CALENDAR NOT ONLY DISPL AYS THE LUNAR CYCLE,

MOONPHASE DISPL AY.

REPUTED FOR ITS PERFORMANCE, E XCELLENT PRECISION AND ALL-ROUND SOLIDIT Y,

L I G H T W E I G H T T I TA N I U M . I T R ES P ECTS A L L T H E

IT ALSO ME ASURES SECONDS, M INUTES, HOURS,

I I I I · PIAG ET LIMELIGHT STELL A . TH IS LI M ELIGHT

IT ENSURES A 70-HOUR POWER RESERVE . IT IS ALSO CHRONOME TER-CERTIFIED BY

FUNCTIONS OF HOURS, MINUTES, SMALL SECONDS,

DATE, DAY OF THE WEEK , MONTH, AND SHOWS THE

S T E L L A I S T H E F I R S T L A D I E S ’ C O M P L I CAT I O N

THE CONTRÔLE OFFICIEL SUISSE DES CHRONOMÈ TRES (COSC).

SECOND TI M E ZONE OVER 24 HOURS, A SIX-DAY

YE AR IN FOUR DIGITS.

WATCH TO HAVE BEEN ENTIRELY DE VELOPED AND

P OW E R R E S E R V E W I T H T H E C O R R E S P O N D I N G

I I I · VACH E RON CONS TANTIN OVERSE AS ULTR A-

PRODUCED BY PIAGET. THE SELF-WINDING CALIBRE

I ND I CATION ON THE BAC K OF THE CASE , AND A

THIN PERPETUAL CALENDAR . COM PLE XIT Y ALSO

584P PROVIDES A 42-HOUR P OWER RESERVE , IN

TOURBILLON ESCAPEMENT.

M E ANS SOBR IE T Y FOR VACHERON CONSTANTI N ,

ADD I T I ON TO AN ASTRONO M I CA L M OON PHASE

AS THIS PERPE TUAL CALENDAR ONCE AGAIN DEM-

THAT R EQU I R ES ADJUSTM ENT BY JUST ONE DAY

ONSTR ATES. HALLMARKED POINÇON DE GENÈ VE ,

AF TER 122 YE ARS.

WATCH YOUR TIME 59

BENEATH THE MOON

Still today, any watch brand worth its salt will propose one or more styles with a moonphase display. Naturally, they refrain from mentioning the possible uses of this information, and only a rare few specialists dare allude to what truly motivates a city-dweller to acquire such a timepiece. To exonerate themselves from these guilty thoughts, brands offer ultra-precise moon phases, out by just one day after 150 years or more… a relative advantage only, considering a watch should be serviced every five years on average. Such a degree of precision never fails to impress nonetheless, and lends a scientific aura to the brands in question.

This often highly realistic display benefits those whose lives are in some way governed by the lunar or lunisolar calendar. A moonphase watch can, for example, be a friend to hairdressers who prefer to cut our locks during the waxing moon, as well as to hunters, hirsute

and otherwise. Note too that even today, “old demons” die hard. For example, Manufacture Girard-Perregaux has in its catalogue a Cat’s Eye Annual and Zodiac Calendar, a women’s model which, like the magnificent pocket watches of the late Renaissance, shows the phases of the Moon alongside the signs of the zodiac. Sailors can also appreciate the presence of our natural satellite on a dial when navigating the tides.

Hence the Moon deserved to be given its starring role at Corum, as well as at Oris, and also Montblanc which has devoted an entire collection to the explorer and navigator Vasco da Gama.

III

The Flying Tourbillon “Poinçon de Genève” is, to quote the brand, a major advancement for Louis Vuitton watchmaking.

The French multinational has had the prestigious hallmark in its sights ever since its takeover of La Fabrique du Temps in 2011, comfortably settled in new premises in Geneva for the past year and a half. The Poinçon is, after all, “the most prestigious certification that a watch can carry. It guarantees the highest degree of craftsmanship and compliance with fine watchmaking standards, which have been established since 1886.” This light-as-air skeleton watch with ­tourbillon regulator, stamped with the coveted Geneva hallmark, is proof in Louis Vuitton’s eyes that it has reached maturity as a watchmaker.

And what a coming of age this is! The LV 104 calibre inside this Flying Tourbillon was designed and produced entirely inhouse and from the ground up. It is the most aerial movement ever imagined by Louis Vuitton, as it is not only ­skeletonised but appears to float inside the 950 platinum case. Its construction eschews all form of excess, comprising just 168 components. Empty space and transparency dominate.

The flying tourbillon, which makes one rotation a minute, is supported only from below. Its V-shaped cage is echoed by the hour and minutes dial. The sapphire crystal, whose smoked finish is obtained by metallisation, allows a glimpse of the barrel which delivers an 80-hour power reserve to the hand-wound movement. One final but equally important detail is the shape of the case: a combination of circle and square, it forms a category of its own. The Flying Tourbillon “Poinçon de Genève” takes Louis Vuitton into the inner circle of Manufactures which can lay claim to excellence, and have the certification to prove it.

C.R.

IIII

VII

WITH FLYING COLOURS…

VIII

V · F R É D É R I Q U E CO N S TA N T CL ASSIC S INDE X

COGNAC. THE CASE IS IN TITANIUM FOR OP TIMAL

VIII · BVLG ARI GIARDINO NOT TURNO. THIS “NOC-

LOUIS VUIT TON FLYING TOURBILLON POINÇON DE GENÈVE. THE FLYING TOURBILLON

AUTOMATIC GMT. THIS CL ASSICS INDE X GMT WILL

SOUND QUALIT Y, AND MOVES UP FROM THE ORIGI-

TUR NAL GAR DEN ” IS EQU I PPED WITH BVLGAR I ’S

“POINÇON DE GENÈVE” MAKES DR AMATIC USE OF EMPT Y SPACE AND TR ANSPARENCY,

PARTICUL ARLY APPE AL TO TR AVELLERS AND PRO-

NAL 34-MM DIAMETER TO A CONTEMPOR ARY 42 MM.

OW N SO LOTEM P O BV L 210 M OV EM EN T WH OS E

USING TECHNICAL PROWESS TO ACHIE VE AN AESTHE TIC AMBITION. AT 6 O’CLOCK , A

FESSIONALS WHO NEED TO KNOW THE TIME IN T WO

VII · DIOR CHIFFRE ROUGE C05 AUTOMATIC GMT.

ASTRONOMICAL MOON PHASE REQUIRES ADJUST-

COMPLE TELY NEW TOURBILLON MAKES ONE ROTATION PER MINUTE, AT A FREQUENCY

PARTS OF THE WORLD AT A GL ANCE . THE SECOND

THE CHIFFRE ROUGE C05 HOUSES THE ELITE

MENT BY A SINGLE DAY E VERY 122 YE ARS. THE T WO

O F 21,60 0 V I B/ H OU R . F I T T I N G LY F O R SUC H A P U R E D ES I G N , TH I S I S A F LY I N G

HOUR HAND MAKES A COMPLETE ROTATION OF THE

6 82 AU TO M AT I C M OV E M E N T BY ZE N I T H , W I T H

MOONS ON THE LUNAR DISC ARE CR AF TED FROM

TOURBILLON AND THEREFORE DOES NOT HAVE AN UPPER BRIDGE . SECURED ONLY AT

DIAL IN 24 HOURS. THE CASE IS WATER-RESISTANT

A S EC O N D T I M E ZO N E , S M A L L S EC O N D S A N D

D IAMOND - P OLISHED GOLD, WITH AN ENGR AVED

THE BASE, IT IS FREE TO GR A ZE THE FRONT SAPPHIRE CRYSTAL .

TO 50 ME TRES.

DAT E . T H E B R U S H E D S TA I N L E S S S T E E L CA S E

REPRODUCTION OF THE SURFACE OF THE MOON.

V I · T U D O R HER ITAGE ADVISOR . TH E H ER I TAG E

I NC OR P OR ATES AN ANT I - R EF LECT I VE SAPPH I R E

ADVISOR , WITH ITS MECHANICAL AL ARM, RE TURNS

C RYSTA L AS W EL L AS A T R A N S LUC EN T B L AC K

TO A C L ASS I C TUDOR WATCH FRO M 1957, NOW

SAPPH I RE BAC K , I NSCR I BED WITH THE LI M ITED -

W I TH A NE W D I A L AND STR AP C O M B I NAT I ON I N

EDITION NUMBER .

60 WATCH YOUR TIME RUBRIQUE

THE ALCHEMY OF THE PRECIPICE

ABSOLUTE OCTO

Not content with simply evoking the heavens in their creations, watchmakers are known to make use of materials that originate in space such as meteorite — Rolex, Jaeger-LeCoultre and Cartier spring to mind — for watches whose dials replicate entire portions of the night sky. And so the heavenly vault which long served watchmakers as a reference in their quest for perfection finds itself at the very heart of miniaturised mechanisms. Some of the first timepieces to depict a starry sky on their dial now rank among the most complicated ever made. The Leroy 01, as well as the watches Patek Philippe devised for James Ward Packard and Henry Graves respectively, all look to the heavens. The idea is, and always has been, to offer the rich and powerful the keys to infinity, as recently demonstrated when Vacheron Constantin unveiled Reference 57260, the most complicated pocket watch in the world…

“For souls that are nobly born, valour need not wait the passing of years.” This famous line from Corneille’s Le Cid has no shortage of analogies in domains other than human souls. Watchmaking would be one, excellent example, and why not Bulgari and its incomparable Octo. Launched in 2012, the Octo quickly became a central element of the Italian firm’s collections, while “earning a special place among the surrounding watch creations,” dixit Bulgari. Its singular, atypical personality has won this nobly born timepiece signature status. Octo is, after all, as much a precision timekeeper as horological architecture with overt references to Italian Functionalism, a principle Bulgari frequently applies to its timepieces. Through rigour and geometry, it exudes a charm that leaves no-one indifferent.

Stage left, we have a shaped case composed of 110 individual facets; in terms of machining, this is an exploit in itself. Stage right, we have an equally fascinating approach as Octo has become Bulgari’s favourite playground for developing extra-thin timepieces, thus earning the brand admission into one of watchmaking’s preserves. In doing so, Bulgari has very probably pushed the limits of extra-thin to what is technically feasible. Last year’s Octo Finissimo Tourbillon is a case in point. Hand-wound, it is the thinnest tourbillon ever made, standing a mere 1.95 mm high inside a 5-mm high case. An exploit such as this is always worth repeating, and so the Octo Ultranero houses this fabulous mechanical heart, the BVL 268 Finissimo, inside a titanium case whose black DLC coating is echoed by the black lacquered dial. A stunning combination of form and function.

E.D.

For thousands of years, the channels of power have remained unchanged. Why, then, imagine that the symbols of power should part ways with the past? The height of luxury, as far as watchmaking complications are concerned, undoubtedly remains the capacity to incorporate astronomical information into an assembly of classical mechanical subtleties. On this note, in 2011 Manufacture IWC presented its Portuguese Scafusia; Jaeger-LeCoultre, which knows all about the workings of the heavens, gave the moon and stars feminine appeal with the Rendez-Vous Celestial; Van Cleef & Arpels experimented in a similar vein before turning its attention to a three-dimensional representation of our solar system in the Midnight Planetarium watch. Who knows, perhaps this unique approach to the tridimensional nature of space is something we should consider, in a not too distant future, as an interpretation of absolute luxury?

I

ˇ

II

III

IIII

BVLGARI OCTO ULTR ANERO FINISSIMO TOURBILLON WITH BVL 268 FINISSIMO MOVE-

I · M O N T B L A N C CO LLECT IO N VI LLER E T TO U R-

RO M A N C E O F A M OO N P H AS E D I S P L AY T H AT I S

DENTLY OF THE HOUR AND DATE SO THAT THE MOON

MENT. THE HIGHLY STRUCTURED CASE OF THE OCTO WATCH IS A PRIME E X AMPLE OF

B I L LO N CY L I N D R I Q U E . T H I S P O C K E T WATC H

ADJUSTED BY THE CROWN. THE CASE IN 18K PINK

PHASE COINCIDES WITH THE REFERENCE LOCATION.

ITALIAN DESIGN AND ITS CRE ATIVE FORCE . REINVENTED AS A CONTEMPOR ARY BL ACK

F E AT U R E S A O N E- M I N U T E TO U R B I L LO N W I T H

GO LD I S TO P P ED W I TH A D I A M O N D -S E T B E ZEL

IIII · VAN CLEEF & ARPELS MIDNIGHT PLANETARIUM.

VERSION, IT TAKES THE UNE XPECTED DIRECTION OF A TITANIUM CASE WITH BL ACK

A CY L I N D R I C A L B A L A N C E S P R I N G , A N D D I S -

A R O U N D T H E M OT H E R- O F - P E A R L D I A L . S M A L L

TH E UN I VERSE HAS N E VER B EEN C LOSER: TH I S

DLC COATING. THE FLYING TOURBILLON IS VISIBLE AT 6 O’CLOCK ON A BL ACK DIAL

P L AYS T H R EE T I M E ZO N ES: LO CA L T I M E I N T H E

SEC ONDS AR E SHOWN AT 9 O’C LOC K . A 36 - M M

POE TIC COMPLICATION REPRODUCES THE MOVE-

THAT ELEGANTLY UNDERSCORES THE COMPLEXIT Y OF THIS MECHANICAL MOVEMENT.

CENTRE , HOM E TI M E BY A FLEUR-DE- LYS HAND AT

D IAM E TER IS CHAR ACTER ISTIC OF THE C L ASS IC

M ENT OF SIX PL ANE TS AROUND THE SUN IN THE

PINK GOLD ACCENTS ON THE FLYING TOURBILLON CAGE (1.95 MM THICK) LEND THE

12 O’C LOC K , AND WOR LD TI M E BY D ISC S ROTAT-

R EF I N EM ENT THAT I S A HA LLM AR K OF A ZEN I TH

ACTUAL TIME TAKEN, AND SHOWS THEIR POSITION

FINAL TOUCH OF REFINEMENT.

I NG AROUND T WO THREE-D I M ENS IONAL G LOBES

WATCH.

AT ANY GIVEN MOMENT. E ARTH, MERCURY, VENUS,

THAT I ND ICATE THE 24 TI M E ZONES .

III · PARMIGIANI TONDA METROPOLITAINE SELENE.

M ARS, JUP I TER AND SATUR N AR E R EPR ESENTED

I I · Z E N ITH ELITE L ADY MOONPHASE. DR IVEN BY

THE MOON IS THE L ATEST STAR OF PARMIGIANI’S

IN HAND - CUT HARD STONES. AN E XCEP TIONALLY

THE ELITE 692 M OVEM ENT, M E ASUR I NG 3 .97 M M

MÉTRO COLLECTION, WITH THIS LADIES’ WATCH. THE

COMPLE X MECHANISM BRINGS THEM TO LIFE .

HIGH , THIS L ADY MOONPHASE BR INGS SLENDER

MOONPHASE MODULE ON THE NEW MOVEMENT IS

ELEGANCE TO THE WR IST, TOGE THER WITH THE

ADJUSTED BY THE PUSHER AT 9 O’CLOCK, INDEPEN-

FOCUS WATCH YOUR TIME 61

perfection in every detail Piaget is marking the 40 th anniversary of the 7P calibre, its first in-house quartz movement, with the Emperador Coussin XL 700P, a highly structured watch that dares to introduce an electronic regulator in an extra-thin mechanical movement.

Gone are the days when the mere mention of quartz would have Swiss watchmakers breaking out in a rash.

Quartz technology has instead become a source of creativity, as Piaget brilliantly demonstrates. But

first a reminder: the quartz movement was invented in 1967 at the Centre Electronique Horloger in Neuchâtel, but failed to convince the Alpine nation’s watchmakers that this was where the future of time measurement lay. And so it was a Japanese brand, Seiko, that brought the first quartz watch to market, in 1969. A quartz movement uses the mineral’s piezoelectric properties to divide time into fractions.

When a wafer of quartz is placed under tension, it vibrates at a constant rate. A battery-powered integrated circuit maintains these vibrations and sends electrical impulses that drive the seconds hand. A quartz movement is exceptionally precise, deviating by no more than a minute a year, which is less than one second a day.

While the Swiss may not have been the first to turn quartz to commercial advantage, they didn’t stay on the sidelines for long. Piaget made its first incursion into electronics as early as 1976, when it introduced the extra-thin 7P calibre, as the brand recalls: “Amid the quartz revolution and in the wake of the first Swiss achievements, Piaget once again demonstrated its

There is no battery in Piaget’s new watch. Its 700P calibre is first and foremost a traditional mechanical movement, with a barrel, an off-centre oscillating weight and a conventional gear train. The trick is how the movement is regulated. Rather than the traditional balance and spring assembly, a miniature electronic generator rotates at precisely 5.33 turns/ second to act as a high-frequency regulator. A quartz timing package controls the speed of this rotation. The reverse construction of the movement, which stands 5.50 mm high, shows off the main functional components on the dial side, signalling that this is no ordi-

nary watch. A dozen patents have been filed for this hybrid mechanism, which took two years to develop.

Developments such as the 700P are just part of the innovations taking place at Piaget. Alongside research into the mechanism, the brand is constantly exploring new designs and techniques for its watches’ exterior too.

Bracelets have particular artistic value. Last year’s Traditional Oval watch is a stunning example, with its handcrafted gold bracelet finished with shimmering “palace” engraving. This year, the Limelight Gala takes centre-stage. Imagined in the 1970s, it is the epitome of feminine elegance as seen by Piaget. First revisited in 2013 on a satin strap, it returns in an allgold version with a Milanese mesh bracelet to complement its generous curves. “Alternately sculpted or fashioned like a fabric so as to create infinitely fluid, supple bracelets, gold is the ultimate material for Piaget that has made it a signature characteristic,” says the brand. Inside and out, a Piaget watch stems from the same attention to detail, with nothing less than perfection in mind.

Christophe Roulet

PIAGET EMPER ADOR COUSSIN XL 700P. MARKING THE FORTIE TH ANNIVERSARY

PIAG ET LIMELIGHT GAL A MIL ANESE MESH. A CHI LD OF THE SE VENTIES, THE

700P MOVEMENT. P I AGE T ’S ENG I NEERS STAR TED OUT W I TH A TR AD I T I ONA L

OF ITS FIRST E VER QUARTZ MOVEMENT — THE E XTR A-THIN 7P L AUNCHED IN 1976

LIMELIGHT GAL A , TOGE THER WITH CUFF WATCHES AND SAUTOIRS, IS CHAR AC-

MECHANICAL MOVEMENT, WITH AN OFF-CENTRE MICRO-ROTOR TO WIND THE

— PIAGE T PRESENTS THE EMPER ADOR COUSSIN XL 700P, OF WHICH 118 WILL

TERISTIC OF PIAGE T’S UNIQUE ST YLE . UPDATED IN 2013, IT RE TURNS THIS YE AR

BARREL AND A CONVENTIONAL GE AR TR AIN. HOWE VER , THEY REPL ACED THE

BE MADE. THIS CONCEPT WATCH BRINGS A MECHANICAL MOVEMENT TOGETHER

WITH A GOLD MIL ANESE MESH BR ACELE T, THE PERFECT COMPLEMENT TO THE

USUAL BAL ANCE-AND -SPR I NG R EGU L ATOR WITH A M I N IATUR E GENER ATOR ,

WITH A GENER ATOR INSIDE A CUSH ION CASE THAT M E ASURES 46.50 M M IN

BE ZEL WITH ITS ASYMME TRICAL LUGS.

USING A QUARTZ TIMING PACK AGE TO CONTROL ITS ROTATIONAL SPEED.

­D IAME TER .

watchmaking know-how and its capacity for innovation by creating its own movement, at that time the thinnest in the world at just 3.1 mm thick.” Onwards and upwards: to celebrate forty years since this groundbreaking development, in 2016 Piaget is presenting the Emperador Coussin XL 700P, an astonishing concept watch whose mechanical calibre is regulated by a generator.

A HYBRID ENGINE

THE P IAGE T M OVEM ENT M ANUFACTUR E I N L A C OTE-AUX- FÉES (NEUCHÂTEL /­ SWITZERL AND).

62 WATCH YOUR TIME FOCUS

AUSTR ALIAN ACTOR CHRIS HEMSWORTH

swiss smart

IS TAG HEUER’S NEW GLOBAL AMBASSADOR

In partnership with Intel and Google, the TAG Heuer Connected was launched in November 2015, in New York. TAG Heuer aims to sell 100,000 units in 2016 and double that the following year. Proof that Swiss watchmaking is taking the smartwatch segment seriously.

of watch, he has to be able to buy it from us, a traditional Swiss watchmaker. This year we’re banking on sales in the region of 120,000 units, then around 200,000 in 2017.”

LIGHTWEIGHT, BIG ON FUNCTIONS

TAG Heuer certainly isn’t lacking the means to reach its ambitions, knowing that last year already, the global smartwatch market shipped some 20 million units. The choice of Intel and Google as partners to the project — both were involved in developing the product — says a lot about what TAG Heuer aims to achieve. The TAG Heuer Connected should satisfy even the most demanding consumers. Weighing in at a feather-light 52 grams for a titanium case that measures 46 mm across and 12.8 mm thick, this hightech watch puts a miniature computer on the wrist: 4 GB storage, 1.6 GHz dual-core processor, new-­ generation lithium battery with minimum 24-hour

Cohabitation between smartwatches and mechanical timepieces is now a reality. Do the former pose a threat to the latter? Jean-Claude Biver, head of LVMH’s watch division which takes in TAG Heuer, Zenith and Hublot, views the matter from a different angle. “When we launched the TAG Heuer Connected towards the end of 2015, we expected to take orders for around 20,000 units over the last two months of the year. We actually got four times that. What surprised us even more is to see that it’s new consumers who are showing an interest in the product. This watch has opened the door to a new clientele for TAG Heuer, proof that traditional watchmaking can live and thrive alongside smartwatches. There’s no

reason why the same customer shouldn’t buy both these types of watch, for the simple reason they don’t fulfil the same functions. Also, Swiss mechanical timepieces are part of luxury because they ­represent the watchmaker’s art. They are a piece of eternity.

In a hundred year’s time, I’m sure there will still be craftsmen with the skill to service and repair them.

The smartwatch, on the other hand, derives from a technology that is bound to become obsolete.”

Not that Jean-Claude Biver intends letting go of even an iota of this market, which clearly opens up new horizons for TAG Heuer (whose sales grew by 2.5% in 2015). “For the same price, a young person today has the choice between a quartz watch with basic functions and a connected watch that fits seamlessly into their environment, which revolves around interactivity. We chose the second option. TAG Heuer is present at this price point, so we couldn’t reasonably be expected to leave a completely wide-open playing field for the competition, particularly Apple, not to mention any names. If the customer wants this kind

battery life, gyroscope, tilt detection sensor and microphone. It delivers full Bluetooth and Wi-Fi connectivity via a scratch-resistant sapphire crystal touchscreen, and provides a host of native applications, with an alarm, stopwatch, timer, weather monitoring, as well as the OK Google voice search, plus Google Fit, Google Translate and Google Maps.

The digital dial of the TAG Heuer Connected, which is based on the Carrera, offers a choice of displays — three hands, GMT or chronograph — and comes in a range of colours. Early in the year, TAG Heuer even went a step further and invited ten of its “ambassadors” to design a dial. Wearers of the TAG Heuer Connected can now download a new face for their watch, imagined by the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo (football), David Guetta (music), Tom Brady (American football) or Kei Nishikori (tennis). Last but not least, at the end of the two-year warranty, the TAG Heuer Connected can be traded in, at a price, for an identical watch, this time with a mechanical movement. Who said the two were incompatible?

Eric Dumatin

TAG HEUER CONNECTED. ENGINEERED WITH INTEL AND POWERED BY ANDROID

TAG HEUER CONNECTED. WITH A 46-MM DIAMETER, THE TAG HEUER CONNECTED

TAG HEUER CONNECTED, PERSONALISED DIALS. EARLIER THIS YEAR, TAG HEUER

WE AR , TAG HEUER UNVEI LED THE TAG HEUER CONNECTED IN NE W YOR K , IN

IS DESIGNED LIKE A RE AL WATCH, WITH CASE AND LUGS IN GR ADE 2 TITANIUM,

UNVEILED THE L ATEST DE VELOPMENTS FOR ITS TAG HEUER CONNECTED WITH

NOVEMBER 2015. THE THREE DIGITAL DIALS — CHRONOGR APH, THREE HANDS OR

A C O N T E M P O R A RY, L I G H T- O N -T H E-W R I ST B U T H A R D -W E A R I N G M AT ER I A L .

A SERIES OF TEN PERSONALISED DIALS, IMAGINED WITH THE BR AND’S AMBAS-

GMT — REPLICATE THE LOOK AND FUNCTIONING OF A RE AL DIAL , WHILE TAKING

­F INISHED WITH A STRUCTURED RUBBER STR AP ON A TITANIUM FOLDING CL ASP,

SADORS. THEY INCLUDE CRISTIANO RONALDO, TOM BR ADY, DAVID GUE T TA AND

THEIR DESIGN CUE FROM THE TAG HEUER CARRER A .

IT MAKES A ST YLISH ADDITION TO THE WRIST.

G.E .M.

RUBRIQUE WATCH YOUR TIME 63

MANY HAPPY RETURNS! Eighty-five years ago exactly, Manufacture JaegerLeCoultre unveiled a watch designed specifically with British soldiers in mind. This wasn’t an observation watch of the kind that would become widespread throughout the armed forces, but a solid timepiece that could withstand even the most violent knocks sustained… during a polo match. What should have been a one-off, intended to satisfy some obscure colonel in a faraway corner of the world, became one of the greatest icons in the history of time measurement. The Reverso was born, and with it an ingenious system for a swivelling case that opened up exciting new prospects both for watchmaking techniques and decoration.

Jaeger-LeCoultre seized these new possibilities with both hands; its recent past is filled with creations each more extraordinary than the last. One such innovation is the remarkable Reverso à Triptyque, the first watch to display three dimensions of time on three faces; the Reverso Répétition Minutes à Rideau is another.

This minute repeater with sliding curtain came about in 2011 on the occasion of the Reverso’s 80th anni-

versary. Five years later, the Manufacture celebrates a new milestone by completely revisiting each of the Reverso ranges. In its own words, “To mark its 85th birthday, we wish to offer a new vision of the Reverso, so that each individual can immediately recognise the collection that matches their own character, and the model destined to become theirs.” This has led the Manufacture to instate three “stylistic expressions”: the Reverso Classic, which remains true to the Art Deco mood of the original, the Reverso Tribute, a showcase for the brand’s expertise, and the Reverso One, which is Jaeger-LeCoultre’s homage to women.

Sizes are clearly structured as three options, alongside the introduction of self-winding movements for complete comfort of use. The cherry on this birthday cake, the recently launched Atelier Reverso invites customers to personalise their treasured watch.

And especially for this anniversary year, Christian Louboutin has imagined a selection of straps which can be chosen as options. Many happy returns to the Reverso!

C.R.

A PRECIOUS VARIATION The festivities for Zenith’s 150 th anniversary in 2015 continue this year, as the Elite 6150 makes a welcome return centre-stage. Originally proposed in steel, this new iteration comes in pink gold for a precious variation on a watch whose restrained elegance adds to its refinement. Instantly acclaimed, the Elite 6150 is distinguished by the gentle curves of its pebble-shaped case, which measures 42 mm in diameter and 10 mm high. Such slim proportions rank it in the highly coveted category of extra-thin watches, something watchmakers ­recognise as a complication in its own right.

The case, which is water-resistant to 50 metres, reveals an oscillating weight with Côtes de Genève decoration through its transparent back, and opens on a domed, silvered dial swept by slender feuille-shaped hands in pink gold. Hour markers are engraved then coloured with pink gold.

Part of this watch’s appeal lies also in its Manufacture movement. This self-winding, extra-thin calibre is the modern version of the Elite which Zenith introduced in 1994, and which was named “movement of the year”. The Le Locle firm has upgraded the performance and versatility of its base calibre, still considered by many to be one of the most reliable on the market, to meet contemporary users’ needs. This super-charged version offers a generous power reserve of more than 100 hours, thanks to its twin barrels, a larger baseplate at 30 mm in diameter, and direct drive central seconds.

Moreover, Zenith has risen to the challenge of assembling the 195 components in a height of just 3.92 mm. Through its combination of classic style with a modern twist, the Elite 6150 carries on the legacy of a brand that has its sights firmly set on the future.

E.D.

JAEGER-LECOULTRE REVERSO TRIBUTE CALENDAR

ZENITH ELITE 6150. DRESSED IN PINK GOLD, THE ELITE 6150 FE ATURES AN EXTR A-THIN

THE RE VERSO TRIBUTE CALENDAR PROVIDES A PERFECTLY

CASE WITH A DISTINCTIVE PEBBLE SHAPE THAT ME ASURES 42 MM IN DIAME TER , AND

BAL ANCED REPRESENTATION OF THE MANUFACTURE’S E XPERTISE .

IS FINISHED WITH A FLUTED CROWN. THESE FLOWING CURVES ARE ACCENTUATED BY

ON ONE SIDE IT DISPL AYS A TR ADITIONAL FUNCTION, A COMPLE TE

ERGONOMIC LUGS THAT FOLLOW THE CURVE OF THE WRIST. THE SAPPHIRE CASEBACK

CALENDAR WITH A HAMMERED MOONPHASE DISPL AY. THIS IS ECHOED

RE VE ALS THE SUBTLE MECHANISM INSIDE , WHICH IS WOUND BY AN OSCILL ATING

IN PERFECT SYMME TRY ON THE BACK WITH AN OPULENTLY STAGED

WEIGHT WITH A CÔTES DE GENÈ VE DECOR ATION. WATER-RESISTANT TO 50 ME TRES,

DAY/NIGHT INDICATOR . ANTHR ACITE PREDOMINATES ON THE GUILLOCHÉ

THIS ELEGANTLY SOBER CASE OPENS ON A SILVER-TONED, DOMED DIAL , SWEP T BY

DIAL WITH ITS “CLOUS DE PARIS” HOBNAIL FINISH, MAKING A PERFECT MATCH WITH THE ELEGANT PINK GOLD OF THE CASE . CONNOISSEURS ARE CERTAIN TO SINGLE OUT THIS RE VERSO TRIBUTE CALENDAR WATCH, DRIVEN BY JAEGER-LECOULTRE CALIBRE 853.

SLENDER FEUILLE HANDS IN PINK GOLD.

64 WATCH YOUR TIME FOCUS

the best of friends AUSTR ALIAN ACTOR

Have you met my partner? If it’s a watch brand doing the asking, chances are they need no introduction, given the raft of partnerships between watchmakers and famous faces over the past few years. And partnerships are just one side of the coin: sponsorships, mentoring and other charitable actions are all part of the picture. Actors, sportsmen and women are the most sought-after personalities on watchmakers’ list, as they are the ones most often in the news. They also share similar values of performance, intelligence, even sensuality. Watchmaking has become one of the essential components of luxury because the guardians of time know how to transform a timepiece into an object of desire, in much the same way we aspire to resemble cinema stars or world-class athletes whose success we admire.

We should never forget, however, that these achievements took form away from the spotlight, out of sight of the cameras, through a combination of extraordinary talent, an iron will and cognitive ability. These qualities are also displayed by watch-

SIMON BAKER CAN CL AIM AN IMPRESSIVE LIST OF ACHIE VEMENTS IN FILM AND ON TELE VISION. A LONG-TIME PARTNER TO LONGINES, HE HAS RIVE TED THE AT TENTION OF AUDIENCES THE WORLD OVER , NOT LE AST AS PATRICK JANE IN THE HUGELY SUCCESSFUL SERIES, THE MENTALIST.

THE BIG BANG BRODERIE COLLECTION, WHOSE L ATEST INCARNATION IS THE SUGAR SKULL , CAN RELY ON THE CHARM AND TALENT OF BAR REFAELI, ONE OF THE WORLD’S TOP SUPERMODELS. ON HER WRIST, HUBLOT HAS DISCOVERED A NEW STRING TO ITS BOW IN WOMEN’S WATCHES.

“WE ASKED HUGH JACKMAN TO BECOME MONTBL ANC‘S AMBASSADOR BECAUSE OF HIS STATUS AS A WORLD-RENOWNED ACTOR , BUT MOST OF ALL BECAUSE HE HAS GRE AT PRESENCE AND REPRESENTS THE ULTIMATE IN REFINEMENT AND ST YLE .” — MONTBL ANC CHIEF E XECUTIVE JÉRÔME L AMBERT.

RIBBONS OF TIME

D DE DIOR SATIN. D DE DIOR CAME ABOUT IN 2003 FOR THE WOMAN WHO BORROWS HER MAN’S WATCH SO AS TO ALWAYS HAVE HIM CLOSE TO HER . INSPIRED BY 1970S TIMEPIECES, PRECIOUS MATERIALS SUCH AS GOLD, DIAMONDS AND ORNAMENTAL STONES WERE A PART OF ITS MAKEUP FROM THE VERY BEGINNING. THE D DE DIOR ALSO REFLECTS THE IMPORTANCE OF JEWELLERY FOR THE HOUSE OF DIOR , AND BRINGS THE E XPERTISE OF A GLISTENING SNOW SE T TING AND DIALS IN ORNAMENTAL STONES TOGE THER WITH STRIKING COMBINATIONS OF COLOURS AND MATERIALS, AND SWISS WATCHMAKING E XPERTISE .

When artistic director Victoire de Castellane set about creating the new D de Dior Satin, she imagined it as a ribbon that gives the time. Straps have been something of a playground for watch brands in recent years, and this outpouring of creativity has found numerous ways to express itself, beyond the more obvious gem-setting. Victoire de Castellane used satin ribbons as the starting point for this new line of watches whose bracelets, in yellow gold, pink gold or steel, use a Milanese mesh design to capture the flow and shine of “metal fabric.” The D de Dior, with its Seventies-inspired aesthetic, was introduced in 2003 for a woman who would borrow her man’s watch as a way to always keep him close to her. The new D de Dior Satin is also a nod at the world of couture, particularly its Milanese bracelet as this traditional mesh technique was a staple of 1950s design.

This new timepiece also delves into one of Dior’s favourite colour palettes, namely grey, pink and gold. Christian Dior himself described grey as “the most elegant of all neutral colours.

Everything goes with grey.” He saw pink as being “the softest shade, the colour of happiness and femininity.” These colours are naturally at the heart of this new range, which lends itself to seven iterations in gold or steel, fitted with quartz movements and proposed in 19 mm and 25 mm diameters. Dials are adorned with grey, black, pink or white mother-of-pearl. A gem of a watch, the D de Dior Satin, with its diamond-set bezel, complements outfits for every occasion, whether chic for the evening or on-trend for daytime wear. It is a reminder that time can be beautiful too.

C.R.

MICHAEL BUBLÉ HAS BEEN RIGHTLY DUBBED

makers, who are able to transform solid materials into objects rooted in art and science. That the former should become the “face” of the latter stands to reason. And so charismatic personalities carry the banner of some of the foremost names in watchmaking and jewellery. As the years go by, these stars become “friends” of the brand, even a member of its “family”.

Birds of a feather flock together, says the proverb, to the point that some prefer never to leave the nest. After all, celebrities wear watches too!

Christophe Roulet

THE “KING OF SWING”. THE CANADIAN SINGER

FOCUS WATCH YOUR TIME 65

IS ADMIRED FOR HIS INFECTIOUS ENTHUSIASM, WHILE HIS VOICE AND PERSONALIT Y COMMUNICATE WARMTH AND NOSTALGIA .

HIS PASSION FOR LIFE AND QUEST FOR E XCELLENCE ARE QUALITIES HE SHARES WITH E VERY ROLE X AMBASSADOR .

NOTHING CAN STAND IN THE WAY OF © Rolex /Sophie Ebrard

NOVAK DJOKOVIC. THE WORLD’S N °1 TENNIS PL AYER , WHO ONCE AGAIN DEMONSTR ATED HIS SUPREMACY ON THE COURT AT THIS YE AR’S AUSTR ALIAN OPEN, IS A PARTNER TO SEIKO. LIKE THE JAPANESE WATCHMAKER , HE IS ALWAYS “ONE STEP AHE AD OF THE REST”.

IN 2013, TAG HEUER WAS A PARTNER TO RUSH IN WHICH CHRIS HEMSWORTH PL AYED FORMUL A 1 DRIVER JAMES HUNT. PETR A NEMCOVA HAS BEEN THE FACE OF CHOPARD HIGH JEWELLERY SINCE WINTER

SINCE THEN, THE BR AND AND THE AUSTR ALIAN ACTOR HAVE FORGED CLOSER TIES, LE ADING TO A NEW ROLE AS TAG HEUER’S GLOBAL AMBASSADOR .

2015. THE L ATEST CAMPAIGN CAP TURES THE ESSENCE OF CHOPARD: FREEDOM, BOLDNESS AND JOYFUL ENERGY. THESE ARE VALUES SHARED BY THE CZECH

JUST TEN YE ARS AF TER HIS

SUPERMODEL , WHO IS

DEBUT, SÉBASTIEN OGIER

ALSO THE FOUNDER OF

ALRE ADY BOASTS ONE

THE HAPPY HE ARTS FUND.

OF THE FINEST CAREERS IN R ALLY DRIVING. SINCE JOINING THE RICHARD MILLE FAMILY, THE TRIPLE WORLD

LIMELIGHT STELL A , THE FIRST COMPLICATION WATCH FOR WOMEN TO HAVE BEEN ENTIRELY DESIGNED,

CHAMPION HAS WORN WHAT MORE PERFECT MATCH THAN BVLGARI AND LUKE EVANS.

DE VELOPED AND MANUFACTURED BY PIAGET, IS

THE WELSH ACTOR E XUDES ELEGANCE AND HAS THE CHAR ACTER THAT

PERFECT ON THE WRIST OF JESSICA CHASTAIN.

GOES WITH THE STEEL STR APPED TO HIS WRIST. FROM THE BVLGARI

THE AMERICAN ACTRESS HAS BEEN THE FACE OF PIAGE T SINCE E ARLY 2015.

No matter how sophisticated the techniques that underlie a Van Cleef & Arpels watch, their role is always to comply with a higher, poetic imperative. The Midnight Planetarium is a dazzling example, as it recreates the cosmos on the scale of the wrist. Returning to these astral inspirations, this year the brand has imagined the Midnight Nuit Lumineuse watch whose aventurine glass dial is scattered with heavenly constellations, where scintillating diamonds take the place of the stars.

Prominent among them is the constellation of the Unicorn, a mythical creature that already inspired Van Cleef & Arpels in the 1970s. Also known as Monoceros, it lights up as if by magic thanks to six of the diamonds scattered across its silhouette.

The passing hours are read on a scale from 0 to 12 by means of a retrograde hand in white gold.

Characteristically, Van Cleef & Arpels has abstained from using the battery in an electronic movement to light up this night sky. Rather, “the sense of surprise and wonder instilled by the Midnight Nuit Lumineuse watch has its origin in the phenomenon of piezoelectricity, studied since the eighteenth century and now used for the first time in the Poetic Complications collection. The term refers to the ability of certain materials to accumulate an electric charge when they are subjected to mechanical stress. The Midnight Nuit Lumineuse watch contains a strip of ceramic which, when caused to vibrate by the movement, mechanically generates electrical energy. This is used to power six electro-luminescent diodes which, on demand, backlight six of the diamonds that are visible on the dial.”

Shown as a first version at the Salon International de la Haute Horlogerie in Geneva, the Midnight Nuit Lumineuse is a captivating rendition of the wonders played out above our heads.

Once again, Van Cleef & Arpels has captured fleeting time in an eminently poetic form.

C.R.

ROMA TO THE OCTO FINISSIMO, THE ITALIAN FIRM HAS FOUND THE PERFECT HOME FOR ITS MASCULINE TIMEPIECES.

THE BR AND’S MOST ICONIC PILOT’S WATCH, THE RM 011 FLYBACK CHRONOGR APH IN TITANIUM.

LET THERE BE LIGHT !

VAN CLEEF & ARPELS MIDNIGHT NUIT LUMINEUSE. VAN CLEEF & ARPELS WRITES A NEW CHAP TER IN ITS POE TIC ASTRONOMY ™ THANKS TO AN INNOVATION IN WATCHMAKING THAT BRINGS NEW EMOTIONS TO THE DIAL . INSPIRED BY THE GLIT TERING HE AVENS, THE BR AND DRE AMED OF LITER ALLY ILLUMINATING THE DIAL OF A POE TIC COMPLICATIONS™ WATCH USING NOTHING BUT MECHANICAL ME ANS. A DRE AM NOW COME TRUE: THE SCENE IS PL AYED OUT AGAINST A BACKDROP OF AVENTURINE GL ASS, SPRINKLED WITH DIAMOND STARS. AMONG THE DIFFERENT CONSTELL ATIONS, THAT OF THE UNICORN LIGHTS UP, AS IF BY MAGIC.

COMPLICATIONS WATCH YOUR TIME 67

“ l et your heart speak, question faces, do not listen to tongues” umberto eco ( 1932 — 2016 )

THE COMPLEXITY OF TIME --o------- james gurney

t

he dial can, and should, reflect what goes on is the dial the window to a watch’s soul? below, but to what extent? Umberto Eco’s i imagine most people would say that it is the day job, when not constructing labyrinthine plots watch’s soul, but for those who love watches for novels such as The Name Of The Rose and for the complexity of what lies within, Foucoult’s Pendulum, was as a traveller in the exotic the answer has to be more nuanced. field of Semiotics, the study of the way in which signs and symbols convey meaning. The fascination of the subject date watch (closer inspection reveals the stubby month hand on lies in the way those meanings shift through time and space the central arbor, while leap-cycle is shown on the reverse). Here and across cultures, and it doesn’t take a great leap of imagiis reduction to the point of discomfort — the watch is so plain that nation to see that Semiotics might teach us something unexthe hidden depths are almost a relief to discover. But again, the pected about watch design. At a basic level anyone can decode design treats function as a challenge rather than as a priority. the difference between the signals displayed by the choice to It is not only design intent, however, that gets between the idea of use Cathedral hands and something more utilitarian. From this the dial being a guide to complexity within. The celebrated English we can guess that there’s more to learn, but surely the movement watchmaker George Daniels insisted that the watchmaker’s work within has to be the prime influence on a watch’s overall design? should be invisible: that meant there should be no visible marks At first glance, there does seem to be a convergence between of the maker’s work, but also that the refinements below the dial what you see on the dial of a watch and what is below. After telling should not intrude on the dial — he did not, for example, approve the time, the job of a dial is to show the results of whatever comof tourbillons visible through the dial. One of the star attractions at plication lies beneath and from that, it is easy to assume that dials SalonQP’s Inside A Second exhibition was Daniels’ Four-Minute reveal something of the watchmaker’s intention — the number and Tourbillon with Chronograph. It’s a masterpiece of controlled type of sub-dials being a sure-fire guide to the mechanism within, design, as elegant a watch as you could ever want, yet the genius you might think. Except that isn’t the case, not by a long way. of the watch is in the movement beneath, with its revolutionary Dials reveal a great deal about the maker and designer, just not co-axial escapement — the dial being, in effect, a compliment to what the casual observer, or indeed the maker/designer, might the watch below. imagine. Some watch dials exaggerate the complexity within, Perhaps the easiest way to understand the complexsome go to great lengths to conceal matters, while others use the ity of the relationship between dial and horologidial as source of enchantment and others still use the dial as statecal complication is to focus on the development of ment of intent. Take, by way of example the recent Anniversary chronographs, as the tensions between form, funcchronographs produced by Patek Philippe, the 5975. These are tion, heritage, fashion and style (to name just some relatively simple affairs that are presented with a riot of scales of the competing influences) are played out most and graphs in homage to mid-twentieth century exemplars that clearly within this arena. sold themselves as essential equipment for those charged with ushering in the new atomic age (as were the slide-rule equipped Navitimers from Breitling). In that analysis, the 5975 says far more about the history of Patek Philippe and the aspirations of its clients then and now than any straightforward delivery of timing data.

DESIGN TREATS FUNCTION AS A CHALLENGE

© M a r k u s & Ko a l a

Such confluence of implied function and form with client aspiration being nothing new at all — witness the seventeenth-century English watch by Guliemus Godbed, (Lot 15 from Sotheby’s 15th December sale, The Celebration of the English Watch, Part I). It’s a gilt-metal, silver and rock crystal octagonal watch with astrolabic dial and a hinged crystal that can be used for observations; an astronomical watch that is, of course, far too exquisite to have been acquired by any mere, working astronomer.

And at the other end of the scale is H. Moser & Cie’s latest, ultraminimalist version of their Endeavour Perpetual Calendar, a QP that’s so self-effacing you might easily mistake it for a plain large

VACHERON CONSTANTIN REFERENCE 57260 THIS REFERENCE 57260 BY VACHERON CONSTANTIN IS NOTHING LESS THAN THE WORLD’S MOST COMPLICATED WATCH. IT TAKES ITS NAME FROM ITS 57 COMPLICATIONS, AND THE 260 TH ANNIVERSARY, IN 2015, OF THE OLDEST WATCH MANUFACTURER IN UNINTERRUP TED ACTIVIT Y. THIS POCKE T WATCH ASSEMBLES 2,826 COMPONENTS AND WEIGHS CLOSE TO ONE KILOGR AM. A FULL EIGHT YE ARS OF DE VELOPMENT ARE BEHIND THIS TRULY E XCEP TIONAL TIMEPIECE, WHICH IS PROTECTED

BY TEN PATENTS.

68 WATCH YOUR TIME COMPLICATIONS

PLENTY OF CONTRADICTORY SIGNALS EXTRA REQUIREMENTS FOR CHRONOGRAPHS

At the word chronograph, most people’s imagination settles on the sort of schematic representation used in catalogues from movement suppliers such as ETA and Dubois-Depraz. But chronographs come in a wild variety of designs and styles, a variation that can’t simply be accounted for by differing purposes or functions. On the face of it, chronographs apparently have the extra requirement to be legible above all other considerations of brand DNA and fashion. It’s that tension, however, that makes chronographs so particular a challenge for watch designers and so interesting for collectors.

Even at its most simple, the chronograph designer faces the question of how to reconcile the two very different functions that a chronograph performs: that of recording elapsed time and indicating passing time. Alongside normal time functions, chronographs have independent hands that can be started, stopped and reset independently of the

I

running time. More sophisticated chronographs have additional complications such as seconds hands that can split or reset and start again instantaneously, but even with the minimum, there is a considerable extra information load on what is already a small and crowded canvas.

It should be said that the first restriction is the movement underneath the dial, which sets out the size, functions, basic proportions and positions. With minor exceptions these are effectively absolute, particularly the distance between counter and central pinions and the consequent proportions. There’s quite a variety of chronograph movements out there but the vast majority are variants of a few base movements, principally ETA’s 7750 and 2894. Just how restrictive the architecture element is can be illustrated by the vanishingly small number of chronographs where all the hands are mounted on the central pinion — de Bethune and Peter Roberts form quite a select club in this respect.

II

But even with the same basic layout, there is a vast range of designs for chronographs — take Breitling’s Navitimer and the Heuer Carrera for example. The former has its origins in Breitling’s 1942 introduction of the Chronomat with its patented slide rule bezel — despite the later success of the Navitimer as a pilot’s watch, the Chronomat was conceived for and promoted to the scientists, engineers and businessmen that would be creating the new post-war world. In a similar vein, the 1952 Patek Philippe 2512 was an oversize split-second chronograph. Although nominally aimed at aviators, it’s real target is given away by the gold case (and by being made by Patek).

The Heuer Carrera, by contrast, was a product of a totally different impulse. Its genesis lies in the modernism of the late 50s and early 60s and it is simplicity personified.

This is a watch that reflected the shifting of tastes and cultures. 1963, the year of its launch was the year that Jaguar launched the E-Type, that the Space Race became real and that future became serious. But it’s easy to get

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I · ROLEX OYSTER GMT-MASTER II. THIS STEEL VERSION

TRIBUTE TO ZENITH’S FOUNDER , IT IS CHRONOME-

I S D R I V EN BY T H E S E L F -W I N D I N G R 27 P S Q A

T H I S WATC H ’S ST Y L I S H I D EN T I T Y A N D T Y P I CA L

IS FITTED WITH A ROTATING BEZEL WHOSE CERACHROM

TER-CERTIFIED BY THE CONTRÔLE OFFICIEL SUISSE

M ECHANICAL MOVEM ENT. THE M INUTE REPE ATER

CARTIER ELEGANCE .

DISC IN RED AND BLUE REPRESENTS DAY AND NIGHT

DES CHRONOMÈ TRES (COSC).

S O U N D S O N T WO G O N G S W H I C H A R E AC T I -

VI · CHAU M ET TOURBILLON BEE. TH IS CHAU M E T

HOURS. ROLEX DEVELOPED A PATENTED PROCESS

III · JAEGER-LECOULTRE REVERSO TRIBUTE GYRO­

VATED BY A SLIDE PIECE IN THE CASE . THE ANNUAL

WATC H W I T H TO U R B I L LO N ESCA P E M EN T I S A N

THANKS TO WHICH A SINGLE PIECE OF CERAMIC CAN

TOURBILLON. THIS EXCEPTIONAL TIMEPIECE MARKS

CA LEN DAR D I S P L AYS DAY, DATE AN D M ONTH I N

INGENIOUS AND NO LESS DELICATE E X AM PLE OF

BE GIVEN TWO CLEARLY DISTINCT COLOURS.

THE RE VERSO’S EIGHT Y-FIF TH ANNIVERSARY. THE

APERTURES. IT IS HALLMARKED WITH THE POINÇON

COMPLE X MICROMECHANICS. OVER A THOUSAND

II · ZENITH ACADEMY GEORGES FAVRE-JACOT TITA-

FAMOUS REVERSIBLE CASE, CRAFTED FROM 950 PLAT-

DE GENÈ VE .

GEMSTONES — SAPPHIRES, MANDARIN GARNE TS,

NIUM. SPECTACUL AR IN TERMS OF PRECISION AND

INUM, HOUSES A NEW GYROTOURBILLON WHICH

V · D R I V E D E C A R T I E R F LY I N G T O U R B I LLO N .

TOUR M ALI NES AND BR I LLIANT- CUT D IAMONDS —

M EC H A N I CA L C O M P LE X I T Y; C O N T E M P O R A RY I N

APPEARS TO FLOAT ABOVE THE TR ADITIONAL DIAL,

NE W TH I S YE AR , THE DR I VE DE CAR T I ER LEN DS

C O M B I N E I N A WO N D ER F U L N AT U R A L TA B LE AU

TERMS OF DESIGN AND MATERIALS, THE ACADEMY

COMPLETE WITH AN ELEGANT DAY/NIGHT INDICATOR

ITSELF TO A HAUTE HOR LOGER IE VERSION WITH

INSPIRED BY THE BEE AND ITS HONEY.

GEORGES FAVRE-JACOT TITANIUM IS A 150 -PIECE

AND A SECONDS DISPLAY.

P O I N Ç O N D E G E N È V E C E R T I F I CAT I O N T H AT I S

VII · A . L ANGE & SÖHNE DATOGR APH PERPETUAL

LIMITED EDITION WITH A FUSEE-AND-CHAIN CON-

I I I I · PATE K PHILIPPE MINUTE REPE ATER ANNUAL

DRIVEN BY THE 9452 MC FLYING TOURBILLON MOVE-

TOURBILLON. HOW TO COMBINE A FLYBACK CHRON-

STANT FORC E TR ANS M I SS I ON . PRODUC ED AS A

CALENDAR REF 5033P. THIS COMPLICATION WATCH

MENT. TAUT CURVES AND REFINED LINES UNDERPIN

OGR APH , A PERPE TUAL CALENDAR WITH MOON

WATCH YOUR TIME 69

carried away — the Carrera was also the product of the particular methods and restrictions of the time —cases and dials would be produced by external suppliers who would push for designs to use existing tooling (making new ones being vastly more expensive than today) and used an existing Valjoux ébauche. The stripped down aesthetic that emphasised clear delivery of the basic information — Heuer moved the railtrack to an interior flange at the edge of the dial and did away with the tachymeter — was still, however, an expression of Jack Heuer’s fascination with technology and the work of architects like Oscar Niemeyer.

There is, however, a level at which the dial can be relied on to tell something of the soul within and that is in terms of detail and finish; the deployment of shadow and texture that you barely notice, save when it’s mis-handled. This is a hard art to define, as it seems to emerge from the culture of watchmaking, a bi-product of the accumulated experience more than a technique that can be taught — just look what happens when that culture is absent. The

rash of “design” brands that have appeared in the last year seem united in their failure to see that dial design is not a 2-D process and that reflections, depth, contrast and shadows are tools that you can’t opt to ignore. In contrast, complicated watches, whose makers have lavished time and labour on the movements within tend to have dials that reflect the same care and attention as is natural — those makers need to sell the watches to equally demanding connoisseurs. It’s difficult to point out what this means in practice as the dials depend on the total effect of all the design decisions and craft expertise that go into their making, but, by way of example, look at the crisp detail of Jaeger-LeCoultre’s Duomètre chronograph and the balance of the impossibly fine hands or simply enjoy the sheer beauty of a de Bethune DB25.

The conclusion, then, is that you can read a dial as a signifier of the soul within a watch, but you have to be prepared to filter out plenty of contradictory signals, quite apart from the filters you bring to the question yourself.

ˇ

V

VI

X

XI

PHASES, AND A TOURBILLON IN A 41.5-MM DIAME-

EMPHASISED BY THE RED OF THE INNER BEZEL RING.

HAND -WOUND CALIBRE , CRE ATED E XC LUSIVELY

TER WITHOUT SACRIFICING LEGIBILITY? A. L ANGE &

IX · LOUIS VUIT TON ESCALE TIME ZONE GOLD AND

FOR CHANEL BY AUDEMARS PIGUE T RENAUD E T

SÖHNE ANSWERS THE QUESTION WITH THIS PL ATI-

STEEL. LOUIS VUIT TON PRESENTS AN E VEN MORE

PAPI. IT IS BUILT ON AN OBLONG PL ATE, WHILE THE

NUM WATCH, DRIVEN BY THE HAND-WOUND, L952.2

SO P H I ST I CAT ED V ER S I O N O F I TS ESCA L E T I M E

TOURBILLON ROTATES UNDER A STYLISED ­C AMELLIA

MANUFACTURE MOVEMENT.

ZONE, UNVEILED IN 2015. A CONTEMPOR ARY INTER-

BLOSSOM.

VIII · ROGER DUBUIS E XCALIBUR SPIDER FLYING

PRE TATION OF THE GLOBE TROT TER ’S WATCH , IN

XI · DIOR VIII GRAND BAL ONDINE. THE T WELVE NEW

TOURBILLON. THE E XCALIBUR SPIDER SKELE TON

PINK GOLD AND STEEL, IT DISPL AYS THE TIME IN ALL

GR AND BAL ONDINE WATCHES, PART OF THE DIOR

FLYING TOURBILLON IS INGR AINED WITH THE IDEN-

24 TI ME ZONES IN A COM PLE TELY OR IG INAL AND

VIII GR AND BAL COLLECTION, ARE DRIVEN BY THE

TITY OF ROGER DUBUIS SKELETON WATCHES: THE

TOTALLY INTUITIVE WAY.

DIOR INVERSÉ SELF-WINDING MOVEMENT. INSPIRED

STAR SHAPE, THE CELTIC CROSS TOURBILLON CAR-

X · CHANEL PREMIÈRE FLYING TOURBILLON OPEN-

BY THE BE AUT Y OF MOLTEN GOLD, THE OSCILL AT-

RIAGE, AND HIGH-END FINISHING, INCLUDING THE

WORK. WITH ITS OCTAGONAL CASE ECHOING THE

ING WEIGHTS BORROW PLEATS AND RUFFLES FROM

CIRCUL AR-GR AINED PL ATE OF THE HAND-WOUND

CONTOURS OF PL ACE VENDÔME IN PARIS, THIS

HAUTE C OUTUR E W I TH FOR M S THAT EC HO TH E

CALIBRE RD505SQ. TECHNICAL QUALITIES THAT ARE

WATC H R E VE A LS I TS S K ELE TON M OVEM ENT, A

SWIRLING OF A BALL GOWN.

THE ONLINE SWISS WATCH AUTHORITY Established by a group of Swiss watch brands at the turn of the millennium to offer an online showcase for their products, WorldTempus has, over the past 15 years, grown into one of the leading bilingual sources of news and reference on fine watchmaking.

Based in the centre of Geneva, at the very heart of the Swiss watch industry, WorldTempus publishes all the latest industry news seven days a week in English and French. An experienced in-house team of journalists and a global network of 15 expert contributors cover all aspects of the industry. From interviews with CEOs to the latest launch events, product reviews, photo galleries and videos, as well as coverage of all major international and regional exhibitions, WorldTempus caters to a large international readership of watch lovers. It is also the longest-serving media partner to the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève, for which it offers a full analysis of all categories and broadcasts the awards ceremony live.

WorldTempus was one of the first websites dedicated to watches, before many brands even had their own online ­presence. It was set up in 2001 and thus celebrates its 15th anniversary in 2016. Over this period we have built up an unrivalled news archive and a watch database containing over 12,000 individual references, which can be filtered by brand, type, material and price among other criteria.

Furthermore, a large community of avid watch fans is kept up-to-date with the latest news first thing every Monday morning with our weekly newsletter. Attractive monthly competitions, which offer the chance to win a quality Swiss Made watch, complement our content, as do regular themed competitions in the summer and in the run-up to Christmas.

70 WATCH YOUR TIME FOCUS

onwards and upwards FR ANÇOIS BENNAHMIAS, CEO, AUDEMARS PIGUE T.

Wherever it turns, Audemars Piguet continues its forward march on the wings of the Royal Oak. For 2016, the brand has put together a highly desirable collection of fine watches.

EXCLUSIVE APPEAL

Beyond these new dispositions, another factor has contributed to this success and that is the strategy which François Bennahmias has put in place to gradually move the brand upwards, into the most exclusive segments. Unlike the many other brands which are seeking to bolster their position on high-volume markets, Audemars Piguet intends increasing its offering of high-end watches while production remains stable. The average price of an Audemars Piguet watch, currently around CHF 35,000, is therefore set to increase, a hypothesis borne out by the timepieces on display at the last Salon International de la Haute Horlogerie. Outstanding among them were the Royal Oak Concept Supersonnerie, a minute repeater with exceptional sound quality that was first shown as a prototype in 2015, and Diamond Fury, a secret watch set with almost

over grew by 14% when the Swiss watch industry as a whole was ­s truggling across all its major markets.

François Bennahmias puts this success down to a number of factors, beginning with “reasonable” exposure to the Asian markets which account for no more than a third of the brand’s sales. Other explanations are the “simplification” ordered by the incoming CEO, which slashed the number of references from over 300 to around a hundred, and reduced delivery times for flagship products in the process. The brand has also skimmed off its distribution network, and now works with some 300 points of sale worldwide, compared with 450 two years ago. “We had to pick the very best and make it clear to them that by choosing Audemars Piguet, they were partners to a winning brand. This was the right thing to do. Without them, I have to say, we would never have progressed by so much.” Meanwhile, the brand continues to expand its network of own-name boutiques. A dozen new Audemars Piguet stores are scheduled to open, ­b ringing the total number to 50 by end 2016.

five thousand diamonds weighing more than 26 carats, and which follows on from Diamond Punk, distinguished at last year’s Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève. These two pieces, worth more than half a million Swiss francs, set the tone. “We’ve been criticised in the past for not innovating enough,” comments François Bennahmias. “Our concept watches, all of which we will bring to market, show what Audemars Piguet has under the bonnet. The same is true of the Diamond Punk and Diamond Fury. These two high jewellery watches fit perfectly with our contemporary centres of expertise.”

Themes developed in the 2016 collections are of a similar ilk, with the emphasis on the tourbillon complication and the art of skeletonising movements, magnificently illustrated by the Royal Oak Double Balance Wheel Openworked with its patented geometry. The brand has also dared to include a collection in yellow gold, not least a beautifully made Royal Oak Perpetual Calendar. A reminder that some of the icons in watchmaking history were forged from yellow gold, and that Audemars Piguet’s timepieces are the worthy descendants.

Eric Dumatin

AU D E M A R S P I G U E T R OYAL OAK P ER P E T UAL CALEN DAR Y ELLOW GO LD.

AU D E M AR S PIG U E T ROYAL OAK DOUBLE BAL ANCE WHEEL OPENWORKED.

AUDEMARS PIGUET DIAMOND FURY. A TALISMAN-WATCH, THE DIAMOND FURY IS

­A U D EM ARS P I GU E T C ELEB R ATES TH E ROYA L OA K ’S EN D U R I NG A P PE A L BY

­A UDEMARS PIGUE T HAS CRE ATED THIS MAGNIFICENTLY CR AF TED AND HIGHLY

ARMOUR-PLATED WITH PRECIOUS STONES. A GENTLE PRESS UNLOCKS THE CON-

H O U S I N G T H I S C L AS S I C C O M P L I CAT I O N I N S I D E A Y E L LOW G O L D CAS E ,

LEG I B LE SKELE TON WATCH . THE SELF-WIND ING 3132 MOVEM ENT INCORP O -

CE ALED COVER TO PENETR ATE ITS MYSTERY AND REVE AL THE DIAL . ENCRUSTED

A ­H ISTORIC METAL IN TR ADITIONAL WATCHMAKING. THIS ROYAL OAK P ­ ERPETUAL

R ATES THE PATENTED DUALBAL ANCE CONSTRUCTION, WITH A SECOND BAL ANCE

WITH 4,635 BRILLIANT-CUT DIAMONDS, THIS WATCH IS THE RESULT OF MORE

CALENDAR IS FIT TED WITH THE NEW, SELF-WINDING CALIBRE 5134.

WHEEL AND BAL ANCE SPRING ASSEMBLY ON THE SAME A XIS. THIS INNOVATION

THAN 1,500 HOURS OF WORK .

As a former high-ranking golfer, François Bennahmias, CEO at Audemars Piguet since 2012, knows you should never change a winning team any more than the foundations on which an exploit has been built.

“Audemars Piguet isn’t changing direction,” he explains.

“On the contrary, the brand knows exactly where it is going, based on a powerful DNA that we intend to showcase thanks to the competencies we have assembled within our walls.” The figures certainly confirm this thinking. In 2014, sales amounted to 700 million Swiss francs. Last year — the same year Switzerland unpegged its currency against the euro and Hong Kong showed serious signs of fatigue — sales climbed to 800 million Swiss francs with production in the region of 40,000 units. A quick calculation reveals that for the twelve months of 2015, the brand’s turn-

ALLOWS FOR GRE ATLY IMPROVED STABILIT Y AND PRECISION.