Breguet introduces the Classique Tourbillon Extra-Plat Anniversaire 5365, a 35-piece limited edition with a price of €159,900. Breguet novelties 2021
Breguet celebrates the tourbillon with the release of the Classique Tourbillon Extra-Plat Anniversaire 5365, a limited edition of just 35 pieces, the same number of tourbillon watches made during the lifetime of Abraham-Louis Breguet, the founder of the Maison and the inventor of this horological feat.
On 26 June 1801, he was granted a 10-year patent by the French Interior Minister for his “watch compensating for all of the inequalities that may be found in the balance wheel and mainspring”.
He thought that it was possible to compensate the effects of gravitational forces on the accuracy of pocket watches by installing the regulating organ (the sprung balance) and the escapement inside a mobile carriage performing a complete rotation about its own axis once per minute.
With this invention, Breguet not only improved the accuracy of pocket-chronometers but also created one of the most appreciated and fascinating horological devices, whose history you can read in our feature article "The Tourbillon, history of a watchmaking feat".
The new model comes in a 41 mm case crafted from rose gold case with the typical fluted caseband and welded lugs with screw bars.
The gold dial showcases the exceptional mastery of Breguet in the art of engine-turning, also known as guillochage.
This decoration technique became one of the many distinctive traits of a Breguet timepiece since the very beginning of the history of the brand. Founder Abraham-Louis was the first to introduce guilloché carving for watch dials. Receptive patterns were engraved on the dial plate using a manual lathe. More than merely decorative, these patterns offer the advantage of suppressing the reflection of light on metal dial plates. Engine-turned surfaces are also better protected from the ravages of time than a polished finish, which are overly shiny and prone to corrosion and scratches.
In the new Classique Tourbillon Extra-Plat Anniversaire 5365 a Clous de Paris pattern takes up the entire central part of the timepiece. Handmade with a diamond chisel, it is created by interlacing engraved and crossed lines with a pitch of only 0.25 millimeters. From a distance of 50 cm, it gives the illusion of a matte finish. This makes it easier to read the hours and minutes, indicated by the two central blued steel off-center open-tipped hands, On the periphery, the piece is decorated with a grain d’orge (or “barley grain”) motif.
The 60-second tourbillon stands out between 4 and 6 o’clock, with one of these axes indicating the seconds. In a pretty unusual way, the piece’s upper bridge is made of blued steel. The cartouche affixed above the tourbillon bears the text “Brevet No 157”, a reference to the patent number awarded in 1801.
Through a transparent sapphire-crystal, it is possible to admire the hand-engraved rear of the movement: “Anniversaire 1801–2021” on the barrel, “Brevet No 157 Du 7 Messidor An IX” upon the lower bridge of the tourbillon alongside the individual number of each piece and a faithful reproduction of the original watercolor plate used by Abraham-Louis Breguet when filing his 1801 patent application for a tourbillon regulator.
Extracts from the patent granted to Breguet by the French Interior Minister
The self-winding Calibre 581 is equipped with a high-energy barrel that, in combination with a peripheral platinum rotor engine-turned with a wave motif, guarantees a power reserve of 80 hours. The silicon Breguet balance spring oscillates at the frequency of 4 Hz (28,800 vibrations per hour).
Matched to a brown leather strap with triple clasp buckle, the new Breguet Classique Tourbillon Extra-Plat Anniversaire ref. 5365BR/15/9WU has a price of Euro 159,900. breguet.com
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