Czapek – FAUBOURG DE CRACOVIE L'Heure Bleue Edition

Czapek – FAUBOURG DE CRACOVIE L'Heure Bleue Handcrafted Guilloché "Résonance" Dial Chronograph Steel Limited Edition
 

Faubourg de Cracovie “L’Heure Bleue”

Geneva, 2018 | Czapek & Cie unveils a new collection for its growing portfolio of elegant timepieces. The Faubourg de Cracovie combines traditional refinement with the sportive twist of a chronograph function. The watch comes with three different dials that illustrate the outstanding quality of Swiss craftsmanship.

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"Take the romantic nobility of our first watches and add a chronograph to give it some athletic pizzazz," says Czapek & Cie CEO Xavier de Roquemaurel. "That's our latest model, and it's unmistakably Czapek, traditional but with a modern flair."

Czapek’s Faubourg de Cracovie combines traditional refinement with the sportive twist of a chronograph function. The timepiece comes in a slightly modified 41.5-millimeter Quai des Bergues Revolution case in sober steel. The famous crown protectors are still in place and now serve, ingeniously, as pushers.

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The dial, under an edgy sapphire crystal, is also unmistakably Czapek: The two signature subdials have been enlarged and moved up to 3 and 9 o'clock positions, where they now display the chronograph's minutes and hours respectively. A small seconds subdial shares the date spot at 6 o'clock. The razor fine "trotteuse" chronograph hand stands out thanks to its bright red tip, which homes in on an equally visible "60" at the top of the hour.

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The Faubourg de Cracovie dial reintroduces the fascinating guilloché "Ricochet" of the Quai des Bergues collection. Intersecting circular lines form a pattern of bas-relief squares that make the dial come alive, recalling the wave interference pattern a stone might make when ricocheting on water.

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This traditional technique was made possible by the rose engine lathe, which was devised in the late Eighteenth century and became a key machine in fine dial-making. The Ricochet design goes back to François Czapek himself.

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The new model is called “L’Heure Bleue”, a romantic inspiration related to Nature. The “Heure Bleue”, “Blue Hour”, a nautical term, is a period of twilight in the morning and in the evening when the sun is below the horizon and the residual sunlight takes on a predominantly blue shade. On a clear day, blue hour can be a colorful spectacle, treasured by many artists.

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Czapek's first chronograph is driven by a bespoke automatic movement, the SXH3. This integrated column-wheel chronograph movement was built by the outstanding craftspeople at Vaucher Manufacture Fleurier in the Jura mountains, the cradle of Swiss watchmaking. It delivers 65h power reserve from a single barrel that drives the balance wheel at 36,000 vph.

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The movement makes use of some of the most advanced and effective mechanical elements, like the linear hammer, which reduces wear and tear on parts and resets all the associated dials in one easy movement.

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A modern solution, the vertical clutch, ensures a perfect start for the chronograph hand. Finally, the diamond-blasted anthracite bridges give the final aesthetic twist to the movement visible through the transparent case back.

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The Faubourg de Cracovie chronograph is the company's third collection and was named after the location of Czapek third boutique, which he opened in 1850 in Warsaw, Poland.

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The calibre inside is also Czapek's third, following the seven-day manually-wound movement in the Quai des Bergues and the suspended tourbillon with GMT in the Place Vendôme, both famous locations of the late François Czapek. The Faubourg de Cracovie represents another major milestone in the company's modern history... for the pleasure of watch lovers and collectors world-wide.

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The three new models are called “Grand Feu”, “L’Heure Bleue” and “Dioné & Rhéa”. While the explanation of the first name is evident, the other two have a romantic inspiration related to Nature. The “Heure Bleue”, “Blue Hour”, a nautical term, is a period of twilight in the morning and in the evening when the sun is below the horizon and the residual sunlight takes on a predominantly blue shade.

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On a clear day, blue hour can be a colorful spectacle, treasured by many artists. “Dioné & Rhéa”, instead, are two of the four moons of the planet Saturn, discovered by Italian astronomer Cassini and called so after two Titaness of Greek mythology. The two white satellites stand bright in the dark sky as the two subdials in the black guilloche dial of the eponymous model.

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Technical Specifications

Collection: – FAUBOURG DE CRACOVIE
L'Heure Bleue Edition
Handcrafted Guilloché "Résonance" dial Chronograph Steel 

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MOVEMENT
Caliber SXH3: 
Haute Horlogerie integrated automatic Chronograph movement with a bespoke execution
Power reserve: 65 hours
Frequency: 5 Hz - 36'000 VpH
Column Wheel, Vertical Clutch and Linear Hammer
Golden Rotor with Czapek logo
Diameter: 30mm - 13 lines 1/4
Height: 6.95mm
Finish: finely sandblasted and diamond polished anthracite bridges, snailed trottoirs
CASE
Stainless Steel
Diameter:  41.5mm  
Height:  13.8 mm
Sapphire crystal Glass-Box with anti-reflective treatment
Sapphire case back with Anti-reflective treatment on the inner side.
Water Resistance: 50m
FUNCTIONS
Chronograph, Hours, Minutes & Seconds

• Chronograph's Minutes at 3 o'clock
• Chronograph's Hours at 9 o'clock
• Small seconds at 6 o'clock
• Date at 6 o'clock

DIAL
Handcrafted Guilloché "Résonance" bombé dial in AuPtPdAg
Baton applied indexes with Super Luminova treatment
12 in Arabic numerals with Super Luminova treatment
HANDS
Czapek Modern Rodhium plated steel hands,
Arrow with Superluminova treatment, Original 'Fleur de Lys'
Small second hand with red tip
BRACELET
Alligator Strap with a steel deploying buckle

Limited Edition to 18 exemplaires

Price incl. VAT  24'000 CHF

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Press Release - 2018
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Czapek & Cie – 2, Rue Saint-Léger, 1205 Genève Suisse
Contact presse: Valeria Garavaglia Pedroni
Email: valeria@czapek.com | +41 79 314 08 54
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