IN PRAISE OF ROOTS
With this series of new timepieces, the manufacture based in the heart of the Vallée de Joux offers a modern take on the mechanical design – pioneering for its time – introduced over two centuries ago by its famous founder.
It undoubtedly embodies, with all due respect to the rest of the collections, the true essence of Breguet watchmaking. The Tradition, a line launched in 2005 and based on the work of the illustrious Abraham-Louis Breguet (1747–1823), whose mechanical genius is reflected in its design. With its distinctive geometry, featuring an inverted and symmetrical architecture that has nonetheless become a classic, this collection welcomes four new Tradition Seconde Rétrograde models, on which Breguet Arabic numerals replace the usual Roman ones.
Among this small series with a fluted case, there are two variants of the 38mm-diameter Tradition 7037. The first, in white gold, exposes the mainplate and bridges of its movement, coated in an intense blue that highlights the white Grand Feu enamel dial, offset toward 12 o’clock. The second, in platinum, evokes a black-and-white film, with its various silvered elements – including the retrograde seconds hand at 10 o’clock – contrasting with the overall dark palette.
Also crafted in white gold, the Tradition 7038 features a slightly smaller case—37mm in diameter and 11.6mm thick—whose bezel is edged with a band of 58 brilliant-cut diamonds. Its dial, meanwhile, is covered with jet-black aventurine glass and features a pair of small Breguet hands with hollowed-out tips for the hours and minutes. These three models are powered by the 505 SR caliber, a 3hz self-winding movement with a rotating weight – made of platinum and shaped like a half-moon for the Tradition 7037, and in a traditional shape with rhodium-plated gold and guilloché for the Tradition 7038 – which provides a 50-hour power reserve. A 505 SR1 version powers the fourth model, the Tradition 7097, which combines a 40mm-diameter rose gold case with a gray dial, while the seconds sweep along a silver arc at the 10 o’clock position.
