The Jean Dunand Shabaka, named for a twenty-fifth dynasty pharaoh of Egypt, was an Art Deco-inspired watch that could be customized, but its shaped case and unusual displays comprising cylinder rolls was not easily combined with stones and the type of dials that were common on the already-released Tourbillon Orbital. The new Shabaka is presented for the first time in a round 47 mm case – perfect for combining with artisanal dials.
The new Louis Moinet Memoris places emphasis on the chronograph function rather than the time-telling displays. CEO and creative director Jean-Marie Schaller has an interesting viewpoint: not to see the chronograph as a complication here, but rather as the primary function: he says it is a “watch chronograph” rather than a “watch.”
Philippe Delhotal, creative director of La Montre Hermès, looked a bit apprehensive as he pulled out his new line to show me. He hadn’t had much feedback from anyone outside La Montre Hermès yet, and he was probably more than curious to know what others would think. Still, he needn’t have worried. The Slim d’Hermès is . . . well, really so Hermès; the perfect synthesis of the things that Hermès does so well. Which means that it is by no means ordinary and beyond perfect in every detail while remaining eminently wearable.
Timeburner represents the first instance of two AHCI members − Miki Electa and Marc Jenni − publicly working together. Eleta (clockmaker/kinetic artist) came up with the concept and created a functioning prototype, while Jenni (watchmaker) developed and produces the production models. Miki Eleta’s name is on the dial, while the back of the nicely modified Unitas movement is engraved “Powered by Marc Jenni.”
One of the last of the so-called Radium Girls passed away at the age of 107 in late 2014. These were women working in factories tasked with painting the numerals and other markings on watch dials with a luminous paint comprising glue, water, and radium powder. Little did they know the consequences this job would have.
Jaquet Droz’s dials are some of the most beautiful in the world of watches due to their timeless simplicity. To me, it makes perfect sense to translate this beautiful, minimistically inclined design to other lifestyle objects, in this case a high-quality writing instrument and matching cufflinks. As I don’t wear French cuff shirts, I opted to give the pen a try for a few weeks and test out Jaquet Droz’s first foray into this area.
The La Joux-Perret-based team behind Arnold & Son has relaunched revered Swiss brand Angelus and presents the very contemporary U10 Tourbillon Lumière, which pays respect to Angelus’ period travel clocks in the shape of its case and to 1960s-1970s design with its funky dial.
There are few brands, boutique brands, or even well-known watchmakers hailing from Scandinavia. However, during Baselworld, two of them launching new timepieces: GoS (Gustafsson and Sjögren) and Finnish watchmaker Stepan Sarpaneva.
This month’s horological news includes new releases from: Ulysse Nardin (Hannibal Minute Repeater); Jaquet Droz (Grande Seconde Deadbeat plus Sunstone); Romain Gauthier (HMS Ten); Jaeger-LeCoultre (Master Compressor Extreme LAB 2); Omega (Seamaster Aqua Terra 150M); Girard-Perregaux (1966); Blancpain (Villeret Big Date plus Fifty Fathoms Ocean Commitment Bathyscaphe Flyback Chronograph); Arnold & Son (Dial Side True Beat DSTB Steel); Graham (Geo.Graham Tourbillon); Linde Werdelin (Oktopus Carbon Green); and Carl F. Bucherer (ScubaTec in red gold).
The latest instance of Maurice Lacroix’s independent idea of movement architecture comes with Caliber ML 230, which is highly visible inside the high domed crystal of the Masterpiece Gravity, a watch introduced at Baselworld 2014. I was fortunate in having the opportunity to wear this timepiece for a while. Please read on to see what I thought.