One of the most beautiful contemporary moon-phase indications is offered by Jaeger-LeCoultre’s Master Ultra Thin Moon. This picture-perfect dress watch is now introduced in a pink gold case paired with a gradient midnight blue dial. An elegant combination that further highlights the timeless elegance and subtle beauty of this ultra-thin timepiece that is powered by the legendary Caliber 925.

Perfectly matching the pink gold case, the dial indications enhance the aesthetic harmony of the design and emphasize the beauty of the dial’s gradient color. The hours are marked by long, tapered triangles, which, like the ‘JL’ logo, are applied; their shape is echoed by the Dauphine hands; and the minutes are indicated by applied golden dots.

The moon phase display adds further detail and refinement, its subtly textured finishes contrasting with the shiny blue of the sunray dial and the mirror-polished moon disc. Displaying the date on a ring around the moon-phase aperture maintains aesthetic harmony and creates a visual anchor for the main complication.

At 39mm in diameter, the case is well-balanced and perfectly proportioned; combining a mix of polished and brushed surfaces, it maintains a strong visual presence on the wrist even with its slim profile of just 9.3mm. 

Developed and produced entirely in-house, the new-generation Calibre 925 is a high-performing automatic movement that provides 70 hours of power reserve. An 18-carat pink gold oscillating weight and refined decoration and finishing are revealed in all their beauty through the transparent case back.

Pricing of the Jaeger-LeCoultre Master Ultra Thin Moon is marked at $23,000.

To learn more, visit Jaeger-LeCoultre, here.

HERMÈS ARCEAU L’HEURE DE LA LUNE
Hermès’ new watch combines two mother-of-pearl moons and a meteorite dial. One subdial for the time and a second subdial for the date circle around a movable central axis, yet always remain vertical while they rotate. The two moons are gradually covered by the subdials, so that their visible portions correspond to the lunar phases as seen by observers in the Northern and Southern Hemispheres. However, Hermès inverts the globe and positions the moon-phase for the Southern Hemisphere in the upper half of the dial. (For more details, click here.) Stainless steel, 43 mm, manufacture Caliber H1837 with moon-phase module by Chronode, automatic, limited edition of 100 pieces, $25,500.

Hermes Arceau L’heure de la Lune

BOVET RÉCITAL 26 BRAINSTORM ONE
Bovet is shooting for new horological heights with the Récital 26 Brainstorm Chapter One, a masterpiece that combines a sapphire version of Bovet’s “writing desk” sloped case with an array of complications. Bovet’s patented, double-face flying tourbillon occupies a large aperture at the 6 o’clock position and serves as the seconds display. The hours and minutes, displayed by two golden hands, are positioned off center below 12 o’clock. Just above these hands is a three-dimensional, hemispherical moon-phase indicator, whose dome follows the curvature of the dial and whose surfaces are engraved and filled with Super-LumiNova on its lower sections. Two circular apertures reveal the current moon-phase on two circular aventurine glass plates for a strikingly realistic view of the moon in the starry sky. The big date display, whose sapphire units disk is in full view, appears in a circular window at 8 o’clock, and the power reserve – an astounding 10 days – is located at 4 o’clock. Sapphire and titanium, manufacture Caliber 17D04-SMP, hand-wound, bespoke version with enamel green quartz domed dial and bespoke engraving, $360,000.

Bovet Récital 26 Brainstorm One

JAEGER-LECOULTRE RENDEZ-VOUS CELESTIAL
In this new “Northern Lights” edition, mother-of-pearl and multi-colored sapphires take center stage, uniting two of the crafts that Jaeger-LeCoultre has so thoroughly mastered – gem setting and hand painting. On the upper section of the dial, the curvy floral numerals – a signature of the Rendez-Vous collection – are graduated in size to form a crescent that hovers above the lower dial. Outlined by an elliptical band of rose gold, this lower section carries a hand-transferred imprint of a star chart, together with the signs of the Zodiac and names of the months. Displaying the night sky as it appears above Jaeger-LeCoultre’s home in the Vallée de Joux, the star chart shows the changing positions of the constellations in real time. The automatic mechanical movement Jaeger-LeCoultre Caliber 809/1 turns the disk counterclockwise in relation to the stars, almost imperceptibly, in step with the rotation of the Earth in 23 hours, 56 minutes and 4 seconds. Rose gold, manufacture Caliber 809/1, automatic, $101,000.

Jaeger-LeCoultre Rendez-Vous Celestial

OMEGA SPEEDMASTER PROFESSIONAL
Fifty years ago, Apollo 11 astronaut Neil Armstrong stepped from the Apollo 11 Module Eagle onto the lunar surface, not only marking “one small step for [a] man, one giant leap for mankind,” but putting the Omega Speedmaster into the annals of history as the first wristwatch worn on the moon. Omega’s year-long celebration of this milestone has now culminated in the launch of a new special edition of the iconic “Moonwatch” outfitted with the recently revived Caliber 321, the first movement ever used in the Speedmaster in 1957. Platinum, 42 mm, three meteorite subdials, tachymeter scale in white enamel, CHF 55,000 (approx. $56,000).

Omega Speedmaster Professional Moonwatch

ROMAIN GAUTHIER PRESTIGE HMS STAINLESS STEEL
The Swiss watch creator Romain Gauthier fabricates the dials for this limited series of 10 watches from slices of a meteorite that was discovered in Australia in 1931. He inserts each mineral dial into a simple hand-wound watch with a manufacture movement that can be manually wound and set by turning a crown positioned flat against the back of the case. The concealed crown lets viewers focus their undivided attention on the meteorite dial’s attractively irregular pattern. Stainless steel, 43 mm, manufacture Caliber 2206 HMS, hand-wound, limited edition of 10 pieces, CHF 68,000.

Romain Gauthier Prestige HMS Stainless Steel

GIRARD-PERREGAUX BRIDGES COSMOS
One little globe in Girard-Perregaux’s Cosmos revolves around its axis once each day to indicate the time in a second time zone, while a second rotating orb progressively reveals the signs of the zodiac, and a tourbillon turns at 6 o’clock. The watch’s hands, the stars and the Earth’s continents emit a blue glow at night. Bands of light in the background suggest a time-lapse film of stars passing across the night sky. Titanium, 48 mm, manufacture Caliber GP09320-1098, hand-wound, CHF 345,000.

Girard-Perregaux Bridges Cosmos

PATEK PHILIPPE NAUTILUS ANNUAL CALENDAR
The new Patek Philippe Annual Calendar Moon Phases Ref. 5726/1A in stainless steel now features a blue dial with the emblematic horizontally embossed motif, creating a subtle shading effect in which the bright blue at the center fades to black at the edges. The watch’s annual calendar mechanism, invented and patented by Patek Philippe in 1996, displays the day and month in two in-line windows at 12 o’clock and the date in a window at 6 o’clock; directly above the latter aperture is a 24-hour day-night indicator encircling a moon-phase display with extreme precision: it requires correction only once every 122 years. The baton hands are made of white gold and coated with luminous material. 40.4-mm steel case, manufacture Caliber 324 S QA LU 24H/303, $45,928.

Patek Philippe Nautilus Annual Calendar Moon Phases

ROLEX GMT-MASTER II
This model with meteorite dial, white-gold case and three-row Oyster bracelet is one of several variations of the GMT-Master II released by Rolex in 2019. The dial’s uniquely patterned surface serves as the background for three hands that indicate the current time with chronometric precision and for an additional red hand that shows the time in a second time zone in 24-hour format. The blue-and-red “Pepsi” bezel can be turned in either direction to indicate the time in a third zone. 40 mm, manufacture Caliber 3285, automatic, chronometer, $38,400.

Rolex GMT-Master II

Art Deco, as a descriptor, has become a little overused in the luxe-focused world of watch marketing. Too often, in the absence of a better term, the style is used as a catch-all word for any blend of geometric forms and vintage air. While the verbiage has no doubt worn away its welcome for many, it still maintains a larger-than-life presence in the worlds of art, design, and architecture; in fact, it’s difficult to walk the streets of New York City without seeing its influence on the surrounding skyscrapers. In watch design, the term – as buzzy as it may be – lends itself to the bold usage of atypical dial layouts with chunky numerals and faded hues. When used correctly, it can bring a dash of artistic and aesthetic merit to the wrist, but when used incorrectly, its significance melts away. Here, we’ve collected a number of recent watch releases that approach the usage of Art Deco styling with a great deal of respect and end up creating some very attractive timepieces.

Tissot

The Tissot Heritage Petite Seconde made its debut at Baselworld 2018 and was the hit of the show for the accessibly priced Swatch Group brand. The brushed finish on the dial, the combination of the large, printed Arabic numerals (just look at 9 o’clock!) and vintage Tissot logo, and the sharp, faceted lugs that contoured nicely on the wrist, all directly appealed to the enthusiast mindset. The price at $995, falling right in line with the value that Tissot is known for, only served to sweeten the deal. The design references the brand’s historic production of watches that featured special antimagnetic properties during the 1930s and ’40s. Tissot was one of the first brands to bring wristwatches featuring anti-magnetism to market, and the watches were generally known for their clean dial configuration, steel cases, thin hands, quality movement, and price accessibility. Inside the watch is a manually winding ETA 6498-1.

Panerai

As avid Paneristi are aware, today’s powerhouse Panerai watch brand had its humble beginnings in a retail watch store in Florence, founded by the Panerai family in 1860. As inspiration for the latest version of its Radiomir 1940 3 Days Acciaio – 47mm, the company reached back to that historical early era, in which the family-owned Orologerie Suizzera (precursor to the modern Officine Panerai) sold not only wristwatches and pocket watches but also table clocks and pendulum clocks. It is a particular example of this last item that provided the template for the Art Deco dials of the two watches released last fall. The dial of a pendulum clock displayed on the first floor of Panerai’s Florentine shop on the Piazza San Giovanni is re-created in two distinct dial versions, both in 47-mm cases made of polished stainless steel – ivory (Ref. PAM00791) and black (PAM00790). Both retro-look dials are notable for their large, Art Deco hour numerals; peripheral railway minute track and additional interior ring; and lacquered, spear-shaped hour and minute hands, a style used for the first time on a Panerai wristwatch. Price for both models: $9,200.

Jaeger-LeCoultre

The Reverso is Jaeger-LeCoultre’s most recognized and historically significant watch. Its Art Deco case style is mirrored in one of the greatest achievements of that period’s architecture as well: William Van Alen’s Chrysler Building in Manhattan. The timepiece and skyscraper share the same geometric forms and modernist ideals that the Art Deco movement is known for. For example, take a look at the horizontal protruding lines of the Reverso’s case and compare them with the ornate and multi-part dome and spire of the Chrysler Building. Recently, Jaeger-LeCoultre released a new Reverso Tribute Small Seconds that is a direct reference to the first Reverso watches that appeared in 1931 on the wrists of polo players. The model comes in stainless steel and features an attractive burgundy-red dial that comes with a matching leather strap from Casa Fagliano. Price: $7,900.

Bulova

At Baselworld 2019, Bulova made the surprise move of launching an entirely new collection filled to the brim with limited-edition models that echo the brand’s New York City heritage. The new Joseph Bulova Collection contains 16 different timepieces in a variety of case styles like tank, tonneau, and round that are borrowed from some of the brand’s most memorable introductions from the 1920s to the 1940s such as the Commodore, Banker and Breton. Now owned by Japan’s Citizen Group, it would be easy to expect the presence of one of the conglomerate’s automatic Miyota calibers inside these cases; instead, Bulova has opted to go the Swiss route by using a Sellita SW200 movement that is visible through an exhibition caseback. Each of the 16 watches is limited to 350 total pieces with prices ranging from $995 to $1,495.

Cartier

Cartier Prive Tonneau – Platinum

While many of Cartier’s iconic watch designs like the Tank and the Santos are informed by Art Deco design and worthy of a mention on this list, it has recently revived another early 20th-century shaped model that went on to become hugely influential, its 1906 Tonneau, with the recently launched Privé line. The Cartier Privé collection kicked off with two two- handed versions in rose gold and platinum in addition to a skeletonized dual-time model. Hearkening back to the original 1906 watch – which was cased in platinum rather than more common gold and featured wrist-hugging curves and vis armurier (or “gunsmith”-style) tube screws to fasten the lugs – the Privé case is double bracketed, with an oblong, curved shape engineered to follow the contours of the wrist. The bezel of the two-hand Tonneau model is formed from a single block of either rose gold or platinum and boasts, according to Cartier, “no overhangs or breaks in the plane” of its surface. The winding crown is topped off with a cabochon in classic Cartier style. The dial – champagne-colored on the rose-gold watch, silvered on the platinum – features polished, rhodium-plated applied Roman numerals and a vintage-style railtrack minutes scale. Both versions of the Tonneau have alligator leather straps, gray with the platinum, brown with the gold, and are outfitted with Cartier’s new Caliber 1917, a manual-winder with a 38-hour power reserve. The platinum watch is limited to 100 pieces and is priced at $26,200. The rose-gold model is priced at $22,400.

Vacheron Constantin

Vacheron Constantin released a mid-size version of its fan-favorite Historiques 1921 American collection in 2017. First added to the contemporary lineup in 2008, the Historiques 1921 American has become one of the brand’s most popular designs across social media and online forums. The original watch that the Historiques 1921 American is based on was released in 1921 and produced in limited quantities for American motorists, with its dial rotated 45 degrees for easier viewing while driving. Only 12 pieces of the vintage watch were produced from 1921 to 1931. The version of the watch (Ref. 1100S/000R-B430) in 36.5 mm, like the 40-mm version before it, is a faithful homage to the original that keeps much of the vintage elements intact while further developing the modern luxury elements associated with Vacheron Constantin today. With its straight, wire-inspired lugs and an upper corner crown adding to the case, the watch hosts a distinguished border on its rose-gold, cushion-shaped case. Its grained metal dial is angled to the right for a left-handed wearer, using an outer black railroad minutes track, printed “Breguet” Arabic numerals and subtle corporate script with an applied gold VC logo toward the 12 o’clock position. At the 3 o’clock mark is the running seconds subdial, conspicuously non-angled like the rest of the face, while two black pomme-style hands sweep over the whole dial. Inside is the Geneva Seal-certified, manufacture Caliber 4400 AS manually wound movement with a 65-hour power reserve. Price: $28,600.

Featuring lacquered surfaces in rich tones – one in deep blue and the other in warm gray, a new addition to Jaeger-LeCoultre’s collection – these dials are a sight to behold. Intricately designed, they consist of a central disc, a middle ring adorned with hour markers, and an outer ring featuring the seconds scale.

The color of the lacquer on both the central disc and the part for the hour ring transitions from light to dark, creating visual depth. The lacquering is a meticulous and time-consuming process, with each layer of coating applied by hand. It begins with a clear varnish coat, followed by a layer of color. The challenge lies in controlling both the hue and gradient to ensure coherence between the two sections. This is followed by 35 layers of translucent lacquer to add depth and richness. The components are then polished to achieve a bright mirror finish.

The circular graining of the sub-dials – the 30-minute counter at 3 o’clock and the small seconds at 9 o’clock – contrasts with the high gloss of the lacquered surfaces and the opaline finish of the outer ring. In line with the Polaris design codes, bold trapezoid-shaped indexes complement the panda-dial layout. Luminescent coating on the indexes, numerals, and hand tips improves legibility under various lighting conditions.

The sapphire crystal caseback reveals the automatic movement, calibre 761, an offspring of the previous caliber 751. Powered by twin barrels, the fully integrated chronograph movement features a column-wheel chronograph mechanism with vertical clutch and offers a 65-hour power reserve. In contrast to its predecessor, it allows for a central chronograph seconds hand and displays the running seconds via a sub-dial at 9 o’clock.

The fine finishing includes blued screws and Côtes de Genève decoration on the baseplate as well as on the signature open-worked winding rotor bearing the ‘JL’ motif. The movement was designed, produced, finished and assembled within its own Manufacture at Le Sentier, in Switzerland’s Vallée de Joux. 

Each new Polaris Chrongraph is accompanied by a package of two straps: the blue dial execution is complemented by a steel bracelet and a blue rubber strap textured with a ‘Clous de Paris’ pattern, while the dynamic styling of the grey dial model is complemented by a beige canvas strap and a similarly textured black rubber strap. 

Pricing for the Jaeger-LeCoultre Polaris Chronograph with a gray dial is marked at $14,300. The variant with a blue dial retails for $14,800.

To learn more, visit Jaeger-LeCoultre, here.

Magnetism has been the mechanical timekeeping’s nemesis through the years. It is to the mechanical watch what Prof. Moriarty is to Sherlock Holmes.  Though the watch industry has responded to this threat with many innovations through the years, we’ve always been asked this question by readers and budding watch enthusiasts: just how real is the threat of magnetic fields in our daily lives?

The industry has used everything from soft-iron shields to silicon escapements in their fight.

Before we set out to answer that questions, let’s examine what happens to a mechanical watch when it is exposed to a magnetic field. The simple truth is that certain parts of the escapement like the balance wheel and hairspring, become magnetized upon such exposure. For example, the concentric circles of the hairspring may bunch together, thus leading to friction. This could ultimately affect the escapement’s amplitude and accuracy. In most cases, once the magnetic field is removed, the watch might start running as normal again but in the case of a particularly strong magnetic field, it may stop working altogether.

In 1915, Vacheron Constantin created an anti-magnetic pocketwatch and in 1930, Tissot produced its first amagnetic watches. In both cases, palladium was used in the construction of the escapement.

Pilots’ Watches like the IWC Mark XI used an anti-magnetic soft-iron cage.

During World II, the German Air Force (Luftwaffe) was supplied with Pilots’ watches that had movements encased in a soft iron case, known as a Faraday cage, to withstand the effects of magnetism at high altitudes. Longines supplied the Czech Air Force in the Thirties with watches that had ‘antimagnetique’ markings on the dial.

In 1949, Jaeger-LeCoultre and IWC produced the Mk11 pilots watch for Britain’s RAF pilots. These watches were made to the strictest conditions set by the Ministry of Defence and required that the movement be enclosed in a soft iron case. IWC famously produced the Mk11 from 1949 to the early Eighties.  

The Fifties was the “tool watch era,” in which a clutch of watches celebrated man’s spirit of adventure and exploration. These included Universal Genève’s Polerouter (initially called the Polarouter) made for the pilots and crew of SAS (Scandinavian Air Services) Airlines flights, who flew over the North Pole in an attempt to reduce flying times between Europe and New America.

These watches, which had to withstand the strong magnetic fields present around the North pole, were initially issued only to SAS crew and were designed by a young Gérald Genta, who would go on to design classics like the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak and Patek Philippe Nautilus.

Universal Genève Polerouter

In 1955, IWC launched the Ingenieur (Ref: 666A), the brand’s first automatic, anti-magnetic watch. The handiwork of IWC’s technical director Albert Pellaton, the watch was supposed to be the civilian, automatic version of the famous Mk11.

It was also famous for featuring the first bidirectional rotor in an automatic movement. Early advertisements of the Ingenier (“Engineer” in French) claimed that the watch could withstand a magnetism up to 1,000 Oersted (1,000 Gauss). This was at a time when most mechanical watches could withstand magnetic fields up to 100 Gauss only.

ISO 764 standard states that, to be considered antimagnetic, a watch must resist a magnetic field of 4,800 A/m (60 Gauss) and its accuracy must stay within +/- 30 seconds per day.

In 1956 Rolex introduced the Milgauss (Ref: 6541), a watch capable of withstanding a magnetix flux density of 1,000 Gauss and was supplied to scientists at CERN and technicians at power plants. The Milgauss would go on to become the most famous anti-magnetic watch of our times.

Omega launched the Railmaster (ref CK2914), capable of withstanding magnetic fields, and produced these watches until 1963 before they were discontinued. Omega did revive the Railmaster a few years ago, but it’s the early models that are collectible now.

In 1958, Jaeger-LeCoultre introduced the Geophysic chronometer to commemorate the International Geophysical Year. The Geophysic was created for engineers and scientists and was capable of withstanding the magnetic fields of the North Pole. (More details here.)

The legendary Rolex Milgauss

Patek Philippe came to the tool watch party in 1958 as well, with its first anti-magnetic wristwatch, the Amagnetic (Ref. 3417 in stainless steel). It was produced for two years and featured a soft-iron cage and, in some cases, beryllium components to additionally thwart magnetics.

Most modern watches use non-ferrous metals in the escapement, so unless they are subject to very high magnetic fields, they should be able to withstand with any magnetic fields they encounter on a regular day. 

In 1989, IWC introduced a rare iteration (Ref. 3508) which was tested to withstand magnetic fields up to a strength of 500,000 A/m (6,250 Gauss), the most anti-magnetic watch of its time.

Ulysee Nardin made a significant leap in 2001 when it launched the Freak, the first production wristwatch to use a silicon escape wheel, it was the first time silicon parts were used in a wristwatch. Designed by Ludwig Oechslin, the Freak heralded the use of silicon in watch movements.

The Ulysse Nardin Freak was the first watch to use silicon parts.

Boutique watchmaker Christophe Claret created a stir in the horological world with the introduction of the X-TREM-1, a timepiece that used magnetic fields to display time, in 2012. The watch featured two spherical balls enclosed in clear sapphire tubes attached to the caseband of the watch to display the time. The bi-retrograde display of the watch was unique and revolutionary. You can read about the new Christophe Claret X-Trem-1 – Sting HD here. 

In 2013, Breguet delivered the first Classique Chronométrie 7727, a high-beat wristwatch with magnets (yes, magnets) holding the balance. These magnets do no harm to the movement because its in-line Swiss lever escapement and double balance springs are made of silicon.

This Breguet watch uses magnetic pivots in its movement. With the introduction of silicon in the moving parts of a watch’s movement, the battle against magnetism received a big boost, and in 2013, Omega took the next step, introducing the Master Co-Axial movement (Calibre 8508) that was capable of withstanding up to 15,000 Gauss. That’s a long way from when watches withstood a 1,000 Gauss in the late Fifties.

The use of silicon and anti-magnetic materials in the movement ensured that the movement did not need a soft-iron cage, so the watches could benefit from having see-through sapphire crystal casebacks. Omega hopes to roll out this technology across all its movements by 2020.

In 2017, Zenith unveiled the Defy Lab, which used a new oscillator to replace the traditional sprung balance first used in 1657 by Christiaan Huygens. The result is an incredibly precise (to within 0.3 seconds) mechanical timepiece. The movement is impervious to temperature gradients, gravity and magnetic fields — all bugbears in the current balance-and-spring assemblies that are subject to deformation and/or dilatation, thereby leading to diminished precision.

The new oscillator used on the Zenith Defy Lab

A version of this article first appeared on WatchTime Middle East.