Monday, February 18, 2019

Jaquet Droz – GRANDE SECONDE Moon Swiss Serpentinite Edition

















Jaquet DrozGRANDE SECONDE Moon Swiss Serpentinite Limited Edition

A NEW SPECIAL EDITION 
SPOTLIGHTS SWITZERLAND, 
MINERALS AND THE MOON

This latest variation incorporates rock fragments from the sheer slopes of the Matterhorn.

If watchmaking is born of astronomy, the Moon is the inspirational element. The Moon allowed ancient peoples to understand the early divisions of time and the passage of the seasons. It helped us grasp the notion of time that comes and goes at a steady pace: a concrete manifestation of the “cycles” that structure our comprehension of time to this day.

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Waxing and waning through the phases of the new moon, first quarter, full moon and last quarter, the Moon brings poetry to watchmaking. It breathes into the mechanical the tender mystery of a celestial body, the secret of a satellite that remains –despite its relative proximity to us– largely unknown. The dark side of the Moon continues to be one of the great mysteries in space exploration.

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When Jaquet Droz set about adding a Moon Phase to its Grande Seconde, the challenge was to transcribe these dimensions of precision and poetry while preserving the esthetic codes of the piece centered on its signature “8” design. The brand chose to place the Moon at the heart of the perpetual calendar located inside the large seconds hand dial, forming a nexus between date and Moon (since the two are correlated) while staying true to the dial’s original esthetic. The inclusion of the Moon Phase allowed Jaquet Droz to design a multi-level dial that lends a new depth to the piece. To offset the standard error of a 59-tooth movement (an error of one day approximately every two years and eight months), the brand has developed the “mechanism 135” complication to ensure the movement maintains perfect accuracy for 122 consecutive years. The astronomical Moon phase is set using a discreet corrector positioned on the case at 8 o’clock.

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The Grande Seconde Moon Swiss Serpentinite is the heir to this destiny, and contributes two new dimensions. The first is the choice of serpentinite for the dial. This scaly-looking rock has a texture comparable to snake skin and offers a peculiar sensation to the touch. The brittle nature of the rock reveals the unique expertise of the Jaquet Droz craftsmen who cut it. Day after day, with meticulous skill, the craftsmen work to develop one of the brand’s eight codes: mineral dials. Jaquet Droz mineral dials capture the natural brilliance of the stones and magnify the treasures of the Earth.

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The Grande Seconde Moon Swiss Serpentinite is no exception. The Swiss particularity of this precise serpentinite is the other new dimension of the piece. The rock is taken from the sheer slopes of the Matterhorn, from a spot near the Hörnli Hut, the legendary base camp of the first ascent of the Matterhorn in 1865. In creating for the Swiss market alone, this Grande Seconde Moon with a 43 mm serpentinite dial, Jaquet Droz demonstrates its attachment to its native land, and to the mythical and majestic Matterhorn that has become a symbol of Switzerland across the globe. In a similar way, Jaquet Droz brings across frontiers the values of Fine Watchmaking and its Philosophy of the Unique, as embodied by this Grande Seconde Moon Swiss Serpentinite issued in a numerus clausus of 88 pieces.

 “Some watches tell time, some tell a story.”

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Technical Specifications 

Reference  J007530271


Movement 
Jaquet Droz 2660QL3, self-winding mechanical movement,
silicon balance spring and pallet horns, double barrel,
flat bridges, heavy metal oscillating weight
Jewelling     30 jewels
Power reserve     68 hours
Frequency     28,800 v.p.h
Indications 
Off-centered hours and minutes, large off-centered second.
  • Pointer-type date display at 6 o’clock. 
  • Astronomical moon phase at 6 o'clock.
Case
Stainless steel case.
Diameter Ø 43 mm.
Height 13.23 mm.
Individual limited serial number engraved on the case-back.
Water resistance  3 bar (30 meters)
Dial
Serpentinite dial, 18-karat white gold applied rings.
Moon disc in serpentinite with star and moon appliques in 18-karat white gold and 22-karat white gold respectively.
Hands     Hours, minutes, seconds and date with rhodium treatment.
Date with red varnished tip.
Strap
Rolled-edge hand-made black alligator strap
Buckle     Stainless steel folding clasp

Limited Edition  to only 88 pieces


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Press Release - 2019
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MONTRES JAQUET DROZ SA
Allée du Tourbillon 2
CH-2300 La Chaux-de-Fonds 2
· press@jaquet-droz.com
tel +41 32 924 28 72 · fax +41 (0)32 924 28 82
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Saturday, February 16, 2019

GIRARD-PERREGAUX – BRIDGES “Quasar” Neo-Tourbillon Sapphire


GIRARD-PERREGAUXBRIDGES Quasar” Neo-Tourbillon Sapphire - 2019


The Swiss watch Manufacture has chosen a U.S. venue, Miami Watches & Wonders 2019 to present this exceptional timepiece for the very first time.The intricate inner workings the new Neo-Tourbillon with Three bridges movement are fully revealed through a case entirely made of sapphire crystal – a first for Girard-Perregaux.

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The architecture is literally bursting with brightness.
Thus revealed, the tourbillon with a contemporary spirit enters the light spectrum.

Like its well-chosen name… A quasar is an ultra-luminous region at the centre of a galaxy accreting around a black hole. A strange pairing of light and darkness that Quasar expresses through the Girard-Perregaux art of watchmaking

2019: Girard-Perregaux, aesthete of the invisible, explores the Cosmos, the essence of time. The Swiss watch Manufacture is introducing a new universe, innovative materials and unexpected complications within its fundamental collections united under a single theme: “Earth to Sky”.

Just one year ago, Girard-Perregaux introduced the Neo-Tourbillon with Three Bridges Skeleton.

Today, at Miami Watches & Wonders, Girard-Perregaux is unveiling Quasar, a timepiece revealing a new dimension of this iconic movement.

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Based on the “Earth to Sky” theme, this complication model is named after the most brilliant of astronomical entities, the quasar. Thus illuminated, this tourbillon with its contemporary spirit enters the light spectrum with a case entirely made of transparent sapphire crystal.

Through these crystalline walls, Calibre GP9400-1035 reveals its openworked construction much like a star viewed with a telescope. This Haute Horlogerie movement draws the eye like a black hole and explodes with light, illuminating the gap between its components. Devoid of any opacity, Quasar allows photons to play freely across its matt surfaces and taut curves.

Quasar embodies a natural application of the four principles governing the Girard-Perregaux universe.

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The first is the 1884 patent for three gold bridges visible on the dial side, the unique signature of the Maison. The second is the skeleton work hand-finished in the workshops of La Chaux-de-Fonds. The third is the 2015 birth of the Neo-Tourbillon with Three Bridges. The latter were neither straight nor made of gold, but instead arched, skeletonised and black. The fourth is the use of sapphire serving a function that is more technical than that of mere watch glasses. With the Laureato with Three Sapphire Bridges presented in 2007, crystal corundum had found its place in the very structure of a Fine Watchmaking calibre. These four vectors converge to create Quasar.

Fusion of matter and light

The 45 mm diameter Quasar case is entirely made of sapphire crystal. A chimney-style glass covers the movement bridges like a telluric dome. Its all-of-a-piece caseband features curving sides and angular lugs.

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At nearly 3,000 degrees Kelvin, fundamental particles merge under the effect of an incandescent flow of oxygen and dihydrogen. It is from this process that sapphire crystal emerges. It is then cut, machined, drilled, domed and polished using tools made from the hardest material in the universe: diamond.

Weightless core

Calibre GP9400-1035 is a modified version of Calibre 9400, from which the mainplate has been removed. Almost as if this had created a vacuum, the movement finds itself in an almost weightless state. Only physically essential anchoring points remain, as if providing a demonstration of aerial technique.

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The bridges visually contribute to Quasar's overall transparency effect. They are made of titanium, sandblasted and then blackened by a PVD treatment. Their shape is so complex in all three dimensions, composed of interior angles, arches, returns and overhangs, that machining them represents a true watchmaking feat.

Horological astrophysics

According to the Encyclopaedia Britannica, a quasar is an astronomical object of very high luminosity found in the centres of certain galaxies. powered by gas spiralling at high velocity into an extremely large black hole. A strange paradox composed of light and shade, it reflects the nature of the Girard-Perregaux Quasar.

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Combining the radiance pouring through the sapphire with the shadowy depths of its movement, it lives on the contrast that is the very essence of the universe. This watch shines like a star on the wrist, as complex as an equation and hotter than a galactic sun.

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TECHNICAL CHARACTERISTICS

Model:  Quasar – W&W

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Reference: 99295-43-000-BA6A

Movement
Reference: GP09400-1035

Winding: Automatic
Functions: Tourbillon, hours, minutes, small seconds on the tourbillon
Power reserve: min. 60 hours
Number of components: 260, of which 27 jewels
Frequency: 21,600 Vib/h – (3 Hz)
Diameter: 36.00 mm (16’’’)
Thickness: 9.54 mm
Tourbillon
Tourbillon carriage composed of 80 components weighing only 0.250 grams
Case
Material: sapphire glass
Diameter: 45 mm
Height: 15.25 mm
Glass: anti-reflective sapphire
Case-back: sapphire crystal 
Water resistance: 30 meters (3 ATM)
Dial
No dial. Skeleton
Hands: skeletonised, white gold, ‘Dauphine’ type, with luminescent material
Strap
Material:
hand-sewn black alligator leather
Buckle: titanium triple folding clasp


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Press release - 2019
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Press Contact:
Manager: Ivanne Perrinjaquet, iperrinjaquet@girard-perregaux.ch
Girard-Perregaux,
International PR : christine.giotto@girard-perregaux.com
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