With twin orbiting tourbillons and a highly mechanical display, the Louis Moinet Astronef builds on stylistic spacecraft origins and creates something entirely fascinating. Joshua Munchow heads into space to take a closer look.
While every one of this boutique brand’s watches is a testimony to Louis Moinet’s horological storytelling, the 8 Marvels of the World do this perhaps even more intensely. These eight watches each pay tribute to a unique historical structure highlighting the heights of human civilization. Louis Moinet worked with a large team of artists to capture these feats of human engineering in the most artistic and engaging ways.
The Louis Moinet Space Revolution for 2021 displays two tourbillons orbiting the dial in opposite directions. But that’s not all: each of these tourbillons carries a little titanium spaceship on its “tail” to create an epic science fiction space battle on the wrist!
What a diverse bunch of tourbillons in this Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève category: two of them are beautifully transparent, while one of them is combined with a chronograph. Yet another contains a constant-force device, while one example here can be flipped around. And, finally, the sixth is involved in a space war. Oh, to choose a winner!
Joshua Munchow highlights five pieces from some of our favorite independent brands that have just been released at Watches & Wonders 2021. From sapphire crystal-encased tourbillons and constant force fusée-and-chain-powered movements to stunning art pieces, these watches span genres and the spectrum of collector dreams.
Looking at the Louis Moinet Space Revolution, the latest in the brand’s Cosmic Art collection, fills you with incredulity: is it a watch? Is it a piece of kinetic art? Is it a bird? Is it a plane? Or did it spring from the mind of George Lucas? Make up your own mind by checking it out right here.
Is the universal attraction of a chronograph found in the ability to control part of the timekeeping yourself using the often-dynamic-looking extra dials and hands? For the GPHG, at any rate, this is an important category with, as usual, a very strong lineup. So how is our panel leaning when it comes to picking a winner? Find out here.
The Louis Moinet compteur de tierces is one of the most remarkable finds in horological history in an extremely long time: it was the very first chronograph ever made, though no one knew this until recently. Get the details here!
Louis Moinet has produced a watch that continues the centuries old tradition of chiming the passing hours. The watch in question is the remarkable Ultravox, a ‘sonnerie in passing’ chiming the hours and providing a show while striking. Joshua Munchow takes a closer look.
Louis Moinet’s intergalactic Spacewalker celebrates the historic 1965 flight by cosmonaut Alexey Leonov, when he became the first human to venture outside a pressurized capsule and into the void of space, barely making it back. This timepiece (and story) will brighten your day!