COMPLEXITY IN HARMONY
As the firm founded by Abraham-Louis Breguet celebrates the 220th anniversary of the invention of the tourbillon, a novel version of the reference embracing three technical specialties enhances the collection.
Abraham-Louis Breguet (1747-1823) was named Horloger de la Marine royale (Watchmaker to the Royal Navy) by Louis XVIII (1755-1824) in 1815 and, more than 200 years on, this legacy has breathed life into the Marine collection. Among the pieces in this line of sporty, elegant products, a highly-specific reference stands out: the Marine Tourbillon Equation Marchante 5887. This watch, unveiled in 2017 in a platinum version, embraces three of Breguet’s great specialties, including the famous tourbillon invented by the Master watchmaker in 1801, now available in a rose gold variation with taupe-hued dial.
Wishing to showcase the same scenescape as seen through a ship’s porthole, the centre of the warm-colored face is decorated with hand-guilloché-engraved waves and encircled by a silvered ring boasting gilded Roman numerals topped with luminescent markers. Thanks to the different shapes of the hands, reading time is but child’s play: Breguet phosphorescent moon-tip for the hours and running minutes, adorned with a faceted ring for the solar minutes and tipped with an anchor for the retrograde date displayed on a circular arc. The seconds are set on the tourbillon axis at 5 o’clock which also hosts the equation month. The day and civil months (leap years mentioned) stand out in windows features respectively at 10:30 and 1:30. A small blue marker indicates the power reserve (80 hours) discreetly between 7 o’clock and 8:30.
The 43.9 mm-diameter case houses the automatic 581DPE caliber beating at 4 Hz and equipped with a peripheral rotor. The transparent caseback reveals a miniature engraving of a sailing vessel with three bridges, the legendary flagship, the “Royal Louis”. A masterpiece!
Price: CHF210,000 breguet.com
By Sharmila Bertin