Complication
To celebrate its tenth anniversary, Le Rhöne unveiled in Geneva a limited edition of ten pieces designed by Swiss designer Eric Giroud. Equipped with a retrograde tourbillon perpetual calendar movement, they were designed and developed in collaboration with the two designers Agenhor and Le Cercle des Horlogers. The caliber comprises 303 components, the decoration of which is micro-blasted, while the bridges are bevelled by hand: finishes that meet the most demanding standards. The piece has a power reserve of 72 hours and resists a pressure of 3 ATM. In platinum and titanium, this new 45 mm case is part of the Horölogy collection, the complicated watches from the independent Swiss brand.
Basketball
Lotus gets involved in basketball competitions and becomes the official timekeeper of the Turkish Airlines EuroLeague Final Four Kaunas, which sees the best teams compete for the European Championship title. Lotus, a brand of the Festina group, is responsible for measuring playing time on the pitch. A partnership that also includes the Lotus Connected watch, intended for basketball champions.
24 hours
The Patek Philippe manufacture unveiled a new reference during the Watches and Wonders show in Geneva, whose apparent simplicity and visual bias surprised observers. Calatrava 24 Hour Display Travel Time reference 5224R-001 belongs to the range of travel watches and complications useful for everyday life. It has a dual time zone, which is distinguished by its 24-hour display mode, reinterpreted in a resolutely contemporary spirit. Indeed, noon has been placed at 12 o’clock – and not at 6 o’clock as is generally the case for this type of dual time zone display –, which ensures simplified readability for the hours of the day, placed in the upper part of the dial.
The pink gold case houses the new automatic caliber 31-260 PS FUS 24H which has been the subject of several patents: for setting the time at three positions, for the delta of inertia and for the linear time zone spring, which significantly increases the torque connecting the wheel for local hours to that for home hours. These patents aim to optimize performance, precision, durability, safety and comfort of use. On the dial, 44 rose gold appliques, polished and fixed by hand, stand out against the navy blue background.
Clock
Designed by Chanel’s watchmaking design studio, the Lion Astroclock clock is equipped with a mechanical movement with manual winding, developed and produced by the Manufacture l’Epée. This creation, numbered and limited to five pieces, is inspired by the lion, Gabrielle Chanel’s astrological sign. Sculpted in brass and covered in black, the animal is placed on a base, inside a cubic structure, all dressed in black. Above, a sapphire crystal sphere houses the movement. A comet in white gold, placed on a rotating black planet, indicates the time thanks to its five branches paved with diamonds. The minutes are displayed on the upper bridge with a representation of the constellation Leo, set with diamonds. The seconds are represented by a briolette-cut rock crystal. Its movements signal whether the clock is working and whether its power reserve is sufficient.
Light
After making its debut in November 2022 with a watch creation signed by designer Eric Giroud, the young Geneva brand Charles Zuber – which takes up the name of the Swiss jeweler who died in 2012 – exhibited at the Watches and Wonders show. She unveiled her first Perfos collection there, and in particular the Perfos Karl model, hand-skeletonized by artisan watchmaker Cédric Johner. This limited edition of eight pieces in pink gold and set with 84 baguette-cut orange sapphires is named Karl, in homage to the first name – in German – of Charles Zuber. With its openwork movement and precious stones, the watch is bathed in light. A metallic color was chosen for the dial, treated with a galvanic deposit of satin-brushed ruthenium and sunburst by hand. A sapphire crystal, placed on this dial, serves as a support for 60 fine triangular appliques in pink gold, which correspond to the sixty minutes of the hour. The sconces are spaced out in an arc to represent a sun.
long necklace
Four watchmaking houses exhibiting at the Watches and Wonders show offered another way of telling the time, on high jewelry pendant watches: Jaeger-LeCoultre, Van Cleef & Arpels, Piaget and Chanel drew inspiration from their respective histories to revisit the secret watch on a necklace in gold, hard stones, diamonds or colored precious stones. The dial is displayed upside down so that the wearer can read the time with a simple tilt of the head.
oblong
In reference to the elegance of French women, March LA.B. imagined a small oval watch, 20 mm wide, with the crown at 4 o’clock. Its beveled glass reflects its contemporary style. Called Oblong, this feminine model has a leather strap, in seven colors, or a steel bracelet.
Jacquemart
The Tambour Carpe Diem watch by Louis Vuitton was awarded the audacity prize at the Grand Prix de l’Horlogerie de Genève in 2021. La Fabrique du Temps Louis Vuitton continues its journey into the world of fine watchmaking parts with automatons with the Tambour Opera Automata, which pays homage to the art of Sichuan Opera’s Bian Lian and his face play. The dial features a traditional mask that comes to life and changes expression on demand thanks to the LV 525 caliber, with jumping hours and retrograde minutes, with its 426 components. This miniature theatre, designed by master watchmakers Michel Navas and Enrico Barbasini, has been the subject of several patents. Anita Porchet – master enameller – and Dick Steenman – master engraver – created the decor for the room.
Sustainability
Transforming a coffee capsule into a watch is the bet launched by the two Swiss companies Hublot and Nespresso. Their project was born after a year of research and development: the creation of a green Big Bang watch, resulting from recycling and circularity, from capsules and coffee grounds. Nespresso implemented its recycling system in 1991, which separates the aluminum from the residue and recycles the two products. The fabric straps of the Big Bang Unico Nespresso Origin are made from coffee grounds: the fabric, used for the first time on a watch strap, is made of 5% waste and 95% recycled polyester. As for the rubber straps, they are made of 4% coffee grounds and 8% recycled white rubber, then dyed green. While the aluminum of the capsules is found up to 28% on the case, the bezel, the crown and the pushers of the Hublot watch. The alloy has been anodized in the specific green color of a Nespresso capsule reference.
Oval
She was born in 1912 and has never stopped changing over time. The Bateau de Cartier watch changes into a mini-model. From now on, its bracelet becomes a gold bangle and its cambered case envelops the oval of the dial in this same precious metal. A reference available in June and available in pink gold, yellow gold, diamond paving on white gold, or even with a black patent leather strap.
Reissue
Nivada Grenchen’s first diver’s watch, the Antarctic Diver, was born at the end of the 1950s. It is now reborn in a vintage version, which is faithful to the original model down to the aged aspect, the patina applied to the indexes and hands. In parallel is edited The Antarctic Book, which lists in a hundred pages all the variations of the eponymous collection. The author, Ashdin K. Billmoria, has been a collector of the brand since childhood.
Connected
Jean-Pierre Lutgen, founder of the Belgian brand Ice-Watch, is entering the connected watch niche with the Ice Smart collection. On a silicone strap and a rectangular aluminum case, these references are compatible with IOS and Android. The average autonomy reaches three to five days, even fifteen in standby mode. Features track weather, sleep duration and stages, hundreds of sports activities, daily steps taken, and health. Via the integrated sensors, blood pressure, heart rate and blood oxygen level can be measured. Three contact details of people to be contacted in the event of an emergency are also recorded. Finally, thanks to its microphone and Bluetooth connection, this watch allows you to make phone calls.
Crimping
The ceiling of the Paris Opera and its 8-meter-high chandelier – nicknamed the “belt of diamonds” – inspired the French watchmaker Trilobe. Gautier Massonneau and Volcy Bloch have based the concept of their brand on a singular reading of time, including for their latest creation, Une Folle Journée Diamant, at the crossroads between fine watchmaking and fine jewelry. In homage to the Palais Garnier chandelier, the three moving rings, which replace the hands, are adorned with diamonds. After two years of research and development, two craftsmen from rue de la Paix have perfected a process to cut and set 150 baguette diamonds on the three rings. An invisible opening and a system exclusive to Trilobe allow the stones to be inserted and slid along the ring. The latter, completely redesigned to accommodate the diamonds, was made from a featherweight aluminum, silicon and magnesium alloy. The case is in platinum or pink gold. Finally, a French miniaturist painter placed the hour numerals on the diamonds by hand.
Tourbillon
Franck Muller puts the tourbillon in the spotlight on his Curvex CX Grand Central Tourbillon collection. All the originality and complexity of this reference lie in the placement of this rotating cage in the center of the watch, where the time is read thanks to the hour and minute hands which have been placed around it. The self-winding movement offers four days of power reserve.
Caning
The first jewelry watch designed by Victoire de Castellane, artistic director of Dior jewelry, is celebrating its 20th anniversary with a version called D My Dior. It represents cannage, Dior’s signature motif. This graphic code pays homage to the seat of the Napoleon III chairs, installed on Avenue Montaigne during the Christian Dior fashion show in February 1947. The lines of the caning are engraved by hand on gold or silver-plated steel. They adorn the bracelet and extend onto the dial.