Monthly Archives: September 2015

Terrascope Chrono Carbon

Jeanrichard

A case that dabbles in square and circular, an innovative and lightweight material, readable information, a technical strap and a self-winding movement: the limited edition Terrascope Chrono Carbon by JeanRichard is made for adventure! The 44mm black carbon fibre case is 13.10mm thick and has a bezel engraved with a tachymeter scale. It houses the JR66 calibre which provides a 42-hour power reserve and brings to life the time, date and chronograph functions. The black carbon fibre dial is framed by a minute track near the chapter ring and a luminescent rhodium-plated hour rim. Two silver phosphorescent spear-shape hands track the hours and minutes whilst the seconds appear in a counter at 3 o’ clock and the date at 4.30. The red-tipped central seconds hand in the centre tracks the chronograph seconds whose hours and minutes are displayed at 9 and 6 o’ clock. Price: 8,650 CHF

Pelagos

Tudor

This is a timepiece that exudes the ocean and was made for the ocean: after its last outing in black, the Pelagos has wrapped its sturdy case in electric blue. The 42mm satin-finished titanium case sealed by a screwdown steel back houses the self-winding COSC-certified MT5612 movement made by Tudor. This incredibly powerful movement provides a 70-hour power reserve. The unidirectional rotating bezel with a white 60-minute scale on its matt blue ceramic ring rims the matt blue dial. Indices alternate between squares, rectangles and triangles on the blue dial illuminated by a white minute track. The hour markers have a luminescent coating as do the hour, minute and second hands bursting from the centre. The date appears instantly in a display at 3 o’ clock. Price: 4,200 CHF

BREGUET’S EXCLUSIVE CELEBRATION OF THE LEGION OF HONOR’S EXHIBITION “BREGUET: ART AND INNOVATION IN WATCHMAKING”

Breguet

San Francisco—September 16, 2015. Renowned watch brand, Breguet and its President & CEO, Mr. Marc A. Hayek, honor its 240th anniversary this year with a milestone—the largest exhibition of Breguet timepieces ever to be shown in the American continent. “Breguet: Art and Innovation in Watchmaking” will open at the Legion of Honor in San Francisco on Saturday, September 19, 2015 and run through January 10, 2016. Part of the museum’s regular 2015-2016 programming, it is arguably the most expansive collection of timepieces by a single brand ever to be curated by a major art museum.

On the evening of Wednesday, September 16th, an estimated 300 guests of Breguet – members of the press as well as friends of the brand from across the U.S., Asia and Europe – were invited to the Legion of Honor to preview the exhibition “Breguet: Art and Innovation in Watchmaking” at an exclusive evening gala.
The evening began with guided tours of the exhibition by curator Martin Chapman, curator at the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco. The exhibition features fifteen sections, each dedicated to an innovation and representing a slice of the life of A.-L. Breguet. Items on display span from the beginnings of the firm in 1775 to the Art Deco period of the mid 1900s, with one watch standing apart from the rest, the 2008 reproduction of the “Marie-Antoinette” watch, which has made its mark on the watchmaking landscape and the minds of collectors for more than two centuries.
Highlights of the exhibition include a travel clock made for Emperor Napoléon Bonaparte, a touch watch made for his wife, Empress Josephine, chronometers made for the French Ministry of the Navy, and pocket watches made for the rulers of Europe and the Ottoman Empire. Some of the most important timepieces on display are early pocket watches with tourbillon movements made by the inventor himself, A.-L. Breguet. The exhibition represents not only the legacy of a brand, but the history of Europe for over two centuries.
Following the tour, guests were welcomed to a gala surrounding Rodin’s sculpture, The Thinker, in the famous courtyard of the Legion of Honor. “This is the first time that Abraham-Louis Breguet’s work is the subject of a retrospective in a major American art museum,” says Marc A. Hayek. “It is a natural fit for the Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco to host this exhibition. After all, what better place can one imagine than the Bay Area to highlight the work of a genius who’s creations were as revolutionary as the products devised today in Silicon Valley? Throughout his life, Breguet constantly tested new technological instruments, methods, and solutions.”
“Breguet: Art and Innovation in Watchmaking” allows the viewer to better appreciate mechanical timepieces in a digital world. It tells the timeline of watchmaking, measuring instruments, and technical complications that bring marvel to every tick tock of a Breguet watch that has been keeping time continuously throughout the last 240 years.

For more information on the exhibition: www.breguet.com/en/san-francisco

For tickets and more information on the Legion of Honor: www.legionofhonor.org/breguet

Royal Oak Ø33

Audemars Piguet

The iconic Royal Oak watch first launched in 1972 and set out to win over women’s wrists in 1976. At nearly 40, the star is approaching the prime of its life and wraps its famous octagonal bezel and eight hexagonal screws in rose gold and 40 diamonds (approx. 0.73 carat) to celebrate. The bezel tops an edgy steel 33mm case designed to fit a lady’s wrist perfectly. Its silver dial bears the famous “Grande Tapisserie” pattern designed by Audemars Piguet for this collection. Its luminescent rose gold indices are tracked by two gold and phosphorescent hour and minute hands in the centre fuelled by a quartz movement inside the case. The date display stands at 3 o’ clock and, like the crown, the central links on the steel strap are in rose gold. Price: 19’100 CHF

Cellini Time

Rolex

What makes a watch truly elegant is its pure simplicity paired with the refined details that only those who appreciate timeless beauty can recognise. The weight and finesse of its body, its curvy lugs, its confidently classic dial, the overall balance of the watch: it all matters to whoever wants to give themselves to a watch. Cellini Time has all this and more. Its black lacquer dial makes the eleven diamond indices above the hour markers shine brighter. The minute track smoothly unfurls its numerals and lines between the gems and white gold applied indices. Two spear-shape hour and minute hands and a slim central seconds hand track the time powered by the self-winding Rolex calibre. A delicately notched bezel gleams with 62 diamonds around the 39mm white gold case. Price: 19,800 CHF

Tonda 1950 Set

Parmigiani Fleurier

The brand based in Fleurier, in the Neuchâtel canton, is so deeply rooted in the watchmaking scene that we often forget it’s not even 20 years old. Founded in 1996, it epitomises its founder Michel Parmigiani’s passion for well-made watches as you can see in the classic Tonda collection which launched in 2011. This year, the timeless Tonda 1950 has slimmed down (its 39mm rose gold case is just 8.4mm thick) and lightened up with a diamond-rimmed mother-of-pearl dial. The opalescent disc lies on a bronze dial bearing twelve rose gold indices beneath two delta-shape luminescent hour and minute hands. The seconds stand in their own blue-tone counter at 6 o’ clock. The time functions and 42-hour power reserve are brought to life by the ultra-thin self-winding PF701 calibre which you can see in action through the partially openwork case back. Price: 44,900 CHF

CHOPARD – L.U.C XPS 35mm Esprit de Fleurier

Chopard

This timepiece is a true treasure that dazzles both inside and out. All the premium materials that adorn it and make its mechanical heart beat are brimming with elegance, starting with the white gold 35mm case wrapped in a diamond bezel which illuminates its shimmering dial. Two silver dauphine-shape hour and minute hands burst from the heart of the blue lavender disc. Two diamonds on each of the eleven hour markers capture the light; number 12, the sole Arabic number, takes pride of place atop the mother-of-pearl surface whilst the small seconds pirouette in a “flinqué” engraved counter at 6 o’ clock. The self-winding calibre powering the L.U.C provides a 65-hour power reserve; look through the caseback and you’ll see the movement’s “fleurisanne” engravings. The age-old artisan engraving technique is typical of Fleurier where Chopard has been based for almost 20 years. Price: 45,000 CHF

Speedmaster Moonwatch White Side of the Moon

Omega

Following the success of the black ceramic Dark Side of the Moon in 2013 then the grey model in 2014, the Bienne-based brand has unveiled a milky piece. Unlike its predecessors, White Side of the Moon captures the moon as it’s seen from Earth. Forged in white zirconium oxide ceramic (inc. graduated bezel, crown and pushers), the 44.25mm case houses the famous self-winding 9300 calibre which provides a 60-hour power reserve and fuels the time, date and chronograph functions. The white ceramic dial features an hour rim with white gold indices coated in white Super-LumiNova® just like the hands above it. The red-tipped chronograph central seconds hand is made of rhodium. The small seconds counter stands at 9 o’ clock, the date at 6 o’ clock and the chronograph minutes and hours lie in a counter at 3 o’ clock. Price: 11,700 CHF

Big Bang Broderie

Hublot

A delicate silky web sweeps over the famous Big Bang. Despite its rather masculine feel, the timepiece exudes feminine flair. The black, silver or gold design has been created in collaboration with top Swiss embroiderer Bischoff, based in St Gallen, and moulded directly onto the dial’s carbon fibre. Time dazzles with eleven black or white diamonds surrounding the embroidered skull. Three hands, two openwork and one slim whose counterweight features the “H” by Hublot, display the hours, minutes and seconds powered by a self-winding calibre. The weave wraps its exotic arabesques around the strap and carbon fibre bezel adorned with six titanium screws. The 41mm case in steel, black PVD-coated steel or yellow gold is paved with 198 black or white diamonds. Price: 16,900 CHF (steel) – 17,900 CHF (black PVD-coated steel) – 33,900 CHF (yellow gold)

Mademoiselle Privé Only Watch 2015

Chanel

A bouquet of three camellias – Coco’s favourite flower and a symbol of loyalty and happiness – glittering in white gold and diamonds: this is Chanel’s contribution to the Only Watch auction on November 7th in Geneva whose funds will go to supporting the battle against Duchenne muscular dystrophy. All the expertise of the Maison Lesage, founded in 1924, has gone into the beige silk dial, a truly delicate flower bed bursting with three blossoming camellias. Each buxom bloom’s silky hand-embroidered petals unfurl to unveil a natural pearl. The mother-of-pearl gleam of these precious inflorescences is elevated by the row of 60 brilliant-cut diamonds (1 carat) rimming the 37.5 white gold case. The understated time display features two leaf-shape hands which track the hours and minutes at 4.30. Unique piece – www.onlywatch.com