Swiss Watch celebrates two decades of keeping time in timeless style with 10 of the world’s most-loved luxury watchmakers.
Arnold & Son
Arnold & Son has an ancient, long-standing relationship with the phases of the moon. Guided by the life of John Arnold and the mark he made in the British Royal Navy during the 18th century, the manufacture frequently endeavours to depict the movement of this satellite as accurately and as beautifully as possible. By completely reinventing the way the Earth’s satellite is depicted, the new Luna Magna elevates itself by pushing the boundaries of this astronomical and poetic watchmaking exercise.
Presented in a hefty 44mm red gold case, the Luna Magna features an off-centred hours and minutes dial at 12 o’clock, while at 6’oclock is the pièce de résistance — a 12mm spherical moon that is made of marble to represent the illuminated version of the moon, and an aventurine glass dial to showcase it in the dark. Changing from dazzling white to a deep, starry blue, the Luna Magna’s quarters have been delicately depicted to replicate the appearance of the lunar disc.
The moon emerges from the mainplate of the specially designed Calibre A&S1021, which features a 90-hour power reserve and a secondary display detailing the age of the moon on the back of the case. Its sophisticated celestial mechanics are also based on precise astronomical reality — Arnold & Son has managed to replicate the lunar cycle in such a way that it will take 122 years for the movement’s display to deviate from the correct celestial reading by one day. If any adjustment needs to be done earlier, the moon-phase function can be accessed directly through the crown.
A blue alligator leather strap holds together this extraordinary timepiece, which boasts an impressive total height of 15.9mm owing to the sapphire crystal box that fits the marble and aventurine moon.Deeply tapered lugs extend the curvature of the sapphire crystal to meet the natural curve of the wrist so that the watch fits as perfectly as it tells the passing of time.
Bell & Ross
Founded by friends Bruno Belamich and Carlos Rosillo in 1992, Bell & Ross specialises in luxury watchmaking for professionals working in extreme conditions.
This year, Bell & Ross enriches its BR 05 range by introducing its first dual time-zone model: the BR 05 GMT. Featuring a 41mm satinfinished and polished steel case, the BR 05 GMT is equipped with an automatic calibre with GMT function, wound by a 360° oscillating weight. The functions include hours, minutes, central seconds, second 24-hour time zone and date. The sapphire glass case, which is layered with anti-reflective coating, is perfect for a clear and unrestricted view of the watch dial.
Loyal to aviation, the black-and-white colour scheme of the timepiece echoes the colours used for on-board flight instruments. Cockpits are dominated by black to prevent reflections and white guarantees optimal reading of the flight signalling. In the same vein, the black dial contrasts with the white SuperLumiNova coated numerals, indices and hands to ensure perfect legibility both day and night. In an arresting red, the GMT hand indicates one time zone on the 24-hour graduated inner bezel, while the metal, skeletonised Super-LumiNova-filled hour and minute hands show another.
Another stunning new feature of the BR 05 GMT are the black and grey semi-circles on the flange, which correspond to the night-time and daytime hours respectively. The square-shaped case and a round dial reflect the brand’s DNA, evoking a sophisticated sense of style. The steel case and integrated bracelet capture the energy of airport hangars with concrete, metals, white lights and graphic signs. A ribbed black rubber strap is also available for wearers whose active life revolves around water and nature. Made for a man on the move, this haute horlogerie piece is designed to be the ultimate globetrotter’s tool.
Breitling
Sturdy and stylish strike a fine balance on the Super Chronomat B01 44, Breitling’s all-purpose sports watch designed to command attention at a soiree as well. The timepiece, inspired by the Frecce Tricolori watch that the Swiss maison produced for the Italian Air Force’s aerobatic fleet in 1983, retains its tough mould with rider tabs that protect the sapphire crystal. With interchangeable tabs at three o’clock and nine o’clock, you can count down to takeoff or count up the hours to a destination.
Within its 44mm case, the Super Chronomat has a stainless-steel bezel with a ceramic insert, a first on a Chronomat. Wear it with a Rouleaux-inspired rubber strap that has three distinct textures — matte, slick and woven-looking. For those who prefer the look and feel of something harder, there is Breitling’s iconic metal strap, with butterfly clasp.
Choice is the crunch for the B01 44, water-resistant up to 200m and available in three versions. Two are encased in stainless steel with blue or black dial-and-bezel combinations while the third has a rich brown dial and bezel, with a case in 18-carat red gold. Contrasting silver chronograph counters powered by the COSC-certified Breitling Manufacture Calibre 01 provide 70 hours of power reserve.
Keen travellers looking for something special can consider the black dial version with a UTC-module embedded in a Rouleaux bracelet. Coordinated to universal time, it provides a way to keep track of a second time zone. True to its name, the Super Chronomat 44 Four-Year Calendar needs to be adjusted only once every leap year, or every 1,461 days. It comes with a black or blue dial featuring tone-on-tone chronograph counters. The first has a stainless-steel bezel with black ceramic bezel insert and 18-carat red gold elements; the second has a bezel in 18-carat red gold with blue ceramic insert. Water-resistant up to 100m, this watch is powered by the Breitling Calibre 19, a COSC-certified chronograph movement with a semi-perpetual calendar with day, date, month and moon phase indicators.
Introduced in 1984, the Chronomat celebrated Breitling’s centenary with sport chic. It also signalled the return of mechanical Swiss timepieces after the domination of quartz watches throughout the 1970s. With bold proportions built on technical expertise, this mechanical chronograph makes a good companion for those after adventure, airborne or on the ground.
Graham
Graham, created in Britain and now Swiss-based, continues to express the wit and irreverence of its founder, English clockmaker, inventor and geophysicist George Graham, after whom the brand is named.
The aviation-inspired Chronofighter line remains Graham’s most iconic. It is notable for its generous 44mm size and matching large start-stop trigger, knurled onion crown and mushroomshaped reset pusher. The signature lever on the left allows the wearer to start and stop the chronograph easily using the thumb and harks back to the days when pilots wearing thick aviator gloves needed oversized crowns and pushers on their watches.
This collection has also served as the canvas for Graham’s designers to express a sense of fun intrinsic to the brand’s DNA, infusing highly technical timepieces with a refreshing sense of humour. A standout example is the new Chronofighter Vintage Emergency, which features a genuine 1g Swiss ingot on the dial. The watch comes with a hammer and its dial is marked with the words “Break glass in case of emergency”, so its owners, if and when faced with a crisis, can do just that and redeem the ingot for its market value at that time. And should that happen, Graham will replace the glass and fix the dial for free.
Produced in a limited edition of 25 pieces, the Chronofighter Vintage Emergency is powered by the automatic Calibre G1747, which ticks under a sun-brushed blue dial. Its layout is remarkably balanced, with the 1g ingot at 9 o’clock, a 30-minute counter at 3 o’clock and a small date window at the base of the seconds counter at 6 o’clock. Such a generously proportioned watch requires the most robust of straps, and Graham delivers this with a hand-sewn calf-leather band with contrasting beige stitching.
IWC Schaffhausen
A new fleet of pilot watches has landed in IWC’s stable, paying tribute to the Strike Fighter Squadron 27. The unit is also known as the Royal Maces, which is stationed at Marine Corps Air Station Iwakuni in Japan and forms part of Carrier Air Wing 5. The watchmaker’s connection to aviation is not unknown in the industry ever since it debuted the Pilot Watches in 1936 and produced timepieces for use in the cockpit.
The Royal Maces line was inspired by a military-exclusive edition, which explains the “Maces” patch positioned at six o’clock on the dial. To honour the VFA-27 Squadron unit’s signature colour, the day-date indication, the central chronograph seconds hand and the stitching on the strap have all been painted with a bright swipe of yellow. Like a bolt of lightning in the midnight sky, the pop of colour stands out against the black dial and zirconium oxide ceramic case.
Aviation fanboys will relish the pushers and crown made of ceratanium, a hybrid that is as light as titanium and as scratch-resistant as ceramic. An engraving of the squadron’s F/A-18E Super Hornet jet, next to the official squadron denomination VFA-27, graces the caseback furnished from light-as-air grade 5 titanium. Inside, the model is powered by a 69380 calibre movement, engineered with a firm focus on robustness, reliability and precision.
IWC has fostered an in-depth dialogue with pilots to precisely gauge their specific needs and requirements. If one needs any more convincing, just take a gander at the brand’s classic Big Pilot, a cultural icon with a utilitarian reputation that has spanned generations.
For more than 150 years, IWC has developed a reputation for creating functional complications, especially chronographs and calendars, which are ingenious and easy for customers to use. Expanding its repertoire to include technically astute pilot pieces was a natural path for former owner Ernst Jakob Homberger and his two sons, who were passionate aviators themselves. No wonder the Swiss watchmaker has created some of the best pilot watches in the market to date.
Jaeger-LeCoultre
Precision is an art form at Jaeger-LeCoultre, where skilled craftsmen employ precise techniques to create designs that reflect pure artistry and passion. The maison blurs the line between watchmaking and jewellery and brings out timepieces elegant women always want to wear because they serve that dual purpose.
The Dazzling Rendez-Vous Moon in white gold, from its Rendez-Vous collection, is one such beauty. It has a new vision of moon phases that combines soul and femininity, inspired by the spirit of finewatchmaking. A wholly original prong setting and two rows of brilliant-cut diamonds that outline the bezel and continue to the heart of the mother-of-pearl dial take centre stage in this watch.
The flawless trail of 108 diamonds circling the bezel are placed close together in the striking prong setting using a technique that requires finesse and expertise — traits synonymous with Jaeger-LeCoultre, which has continued to invent and innovate since its founding by Antoine LeCoultre in the Swiss Jura Mountains in 1833.
Within the stunning outer circle of diamonds is a second line of 47 smaller jewels. Ethereal and subtle, this inner ring in the middle of the dial accentuates the delicate character of the Rendez-Vous Moon.
The new face of the moon, reimagined in mother-of-pearl, is set against a starry sky of aventurine midnight blue. A translucent cloud in the foreground, before the new moon phase function, veils and reveals. The effect is contemporary and arresting, and the exacting craftsmanship involved cements the manufacture’s reputation. With more than 1,200 calibres and iconic collections, Jaeger-LeCoultre is a leader in the industry.
Versatile mother-of-pearl, an iridescent material that is ever-changing and ultra-feminine, makes an ideal match in the Moon with diamonds. These sparkling gems are meticulously selected and placed stone by stone to show off their purity and brightness.
Twelves diamonds encrusted in the lugs and a single diamond set on the inverted cabochon – for that final perfect touch of sophistication – complete the Rendez-Vous Moon, which comes in a 36mm case and has a power reserve of 38 hours.
Panerai
The thrilling spirit of competitive sport is epitomised in Panerai’s new limited-edition model for Italian sailboat racing team Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli. In a world in which a single tick of the clock can make all the difference in breaking records and distinguishing momentous events, Panerai’s Luminor Chrono Luna Rossa is an advanced timepiece that bears the weighty responsibility of pacing and synchronising epic competitions.
A marker of Swiss horological expertise and unmistakable Italian style, the chronograph not only stands out for its distinctively sporty character but also its visionary connection between the history of the Florentine watchmaker — which has supplied chronograhps to the Italian Navy since 1943 — and the sailing technology integral to Luna Rossa.
At the root of the new model’s accuracy and precision lies the new self-winding P.9200 Calibre, a reliable movement with a 42-hour power reserve delivered by the energy from a single barrel. The placement of the start, stop and reset pushers are on the left to preserve the brand’s iconic design conferred by the crown protecting the bridge on the other side.
Within the 44mm case is a deep-blue sun-brushed sandwich dial with Arabic numerals and indices in white Super-LumiNova. At three o’clock is a hollowed chronograph minutes counter, and at nine o’clock, a small seconds counter. Dipped in Luna Rossa’s signature red, the chrono hands on the minutes counter and the central chronograph draws the eye — almost the same way an audience pays attention when the Italian team’s sailboat cuts through the sea.
The tachymeter scale is inscribed on the flange, which allows the calculation of average speed over a predefined distance in kilometres or miles. The watch is also waterproof up to 10 bar (or 100m) and comes with two bi-material bracelets that incorporate durable technical fabric and rubber, making it ideal for vigorous sports activities.
A timepiece that celebrates the passion and talent of the Luna Rossa Prada Pirelli Team, Panerai’s Luminor Chrono Luna Rossa PAM01303 will be available in just 1,000 pieces.
Tudor
With a history of manufacturing divers’ watches dating back to 1954 — the debut timepiece was reference 7922, which was waterproof to 100m — Tudor is often the go-to watchmaker for professional divers as well as a few exceptional military navies.
The brand is known for creating robust tool watches that are able to go the distance and remain reliable and precise. As the more accessible sibling of Rolex, over the years Tudor has grown to establish a commendable range of flagship lines, namely the Black Bay, Pelagos, Royal and 1926.
The Black Bay collection in particular is special because it was based on Tudor’s most iconic design, the Submariner. The modern reinterpretation first premiered in 2012 and has since become a highly sought-after range.
The new Black Bay Fifty-Eight 18k’s name references the year 1958, which was when the “Big Crown” or reference 7924 was introduced. This watch was Tudor’s first piece that was waterproof to 200m, a feature the Fifty-Eight 18k shares. The new piece also takes a few aesthetic cues from the “Big Crown”, such as its 39mm case, making it a compact piece perfect for slim wrists. The new watch is powered by the Manufacture Calibre MT5400, which is certified by the Swiss Official Chronometer Testing Institute (COSC). This self-winding mechanical movement with bidirectional rotor system has an approximate 70-hour power reserve.
Also, like its inspiration, the Black Bay Fifty-Eight 18k breaks limits with two Tudor firsts in the Black Bay Collection — a matte 18-carat yellow gold case with a satin finish and an open caseback with sapphire crystal. Like its Black Bay brethren, this timepiece sports Tudor’s characteristic “Snowflake” hands. Completing its neo-vintage feel is a golden dial, a matching bezel and a green Jacquard fabric with gold band strap. On top of that, this watch comes with a complimentary dark brown alligator strap with 18-carat yellow gold buckle.
Ulysse Nardin
Marine chronometers, which date back to 1761, are precision timepieces that were employed in the determination of a ship’s position by celestial navigation. Versions of this unusual instrument developed by Swiss watchmaker Ulysse Nardin in the mid-1800s were extremely popular, and saw service with the navies of some 50 countries before modern technology rendered it redundant.
In 1996, Ulysse Nardin returned to its maritime history with the limited-edition Marine Chronometer 1846. In honour of its 175th anniversary, the watchmaker is unveiling a new Chronometry collection that connects the company to its history as a maker of marine chronometers, of which the Marine Torpilleur Tourbillon Grand Feu is the star.
Limited to 175 pieces, this 42mm rose gold watch is anchored by a stunning grand feu enamel dial made by Donzé Cadrans’ craftsmen, atop which rose gold hands glide magically. Nestled between oversized Roman numerals, a power reserve indicator occupies a slightly unusual position up at 12 o’clock while the Calibre UN-128 flying tourbillon is positioned at 6 o’clock for perfect symmetry.
It is worth noting that the patented movement won the Tourbillon Watch Prize at the annual 2015 GPHG (Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève) award ceremony and is one of the special features of this stellar model. The watch is completed by a supple, alligator leather strap in black to match the dial.
With its vintage aesthetic, richly enamelled dial and highly sophisticated calibre, the Marine Torpilleur Tourbillon Grand Feu is a worthy tribute to Ulysse Nardin’s epic voyages, bringing a taste of the extremes of the ocean to the wrists of only the most discerning of connoisseurs.
Zenith
Zenith’s watches are all about achieving the impossible and pushing the limits of horology and craftsmanship to craft incredible timepieces. Established in 1865, Zenith uses innovation as its guiding star towards developing groundbreaking movements. Every year, the horologist dreams bigger and better timepieces that have continued to advance the craft of watchmaking.
The new addition to the Defy collection is the Defy Extreme, an all-terrain 1/100th of a second chronograph. It has two escapements, one for timekeeping that beats at 36’000 VpH, and the other for the chronograph itself, which beats at 360’000 VpH. The heart of this innovation is the El Primero 9004 automatic, which has a power reserve of 50 hours. This powers multiple functions, including the hour and minute hands, small seconds at nine o’clock, 30-minute counter at three o’clock, 60-second counter at six o’clock, a central chronograph hand that makes one turn each second, and a chronograph power-reserve indication at 12 o’clock.
To match the futuristic calibre, the aesthetics of the Defy Extreme embodies a robust ruggedness so it is ready for uncharted territory. This timepiece is built for anything. The 45mm case is crafted out of micro-blasted titanium and is water-resistant to 200m.
The dial itself is a tinted sapphire, through which the black main plate on the movement and matching oscillating weight with satin finish are visible. Standing out on the dial are the three black counters as well as the rhodium-plated and faceted indices and hands that are also coated with Super-LumiNova. Completing this futuristic timepiece are three straps that benefit from the new quick interchangeable system — a classic micro-blasted or polished and satin-brushed titanium bracelet; a rubber strap with a folding buckle; and, a first for the Defy line, an easily adjustable velcro strap.
Swiss Watch proud to be an official retailer of Arnold & Son, Bell & Ross, Breitling, Graham, IWC Schaffhausen, Jaeger-LeCoultre, Panerai, Tudor, Ulysse Nardin and Zenith.
This article has been mirrored from the original article by The Edge in October 2021.
