Wednesday, November 22, 2023

Czapek – ANTARCTIQUE Royal Onyx Edition


Czapek & Cie.ANTARCTIQUE Royal Onyx and Desert Rose Edition 2023

Antarctique Royal Onyx
Pure and precious in black and blue


Geneva, November 2023 - A limited edition dedicated to the United Arab Emirates and created in collaboration with Mansour Jewellers.

 Click, to see the large size. BIG FOTO 

During Dubai Watch Week, the Swiss independent watchmaking Maison, Czapek & Cie, releases a unique variation of its Antarctique family of timekeepers, created in collaboration with Mansour Jewellers and dedicated to the United Arab Emirates. A limited edition of 18 pieces, the Antarctique Royal Onyx pairs the sleek modernity of the Antarctique steel case with a dramatic black dial featuring baguette-cut sapphire hour markers.

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The Antarctique Royal Onyx eloquently express two of Czapek & Cie’s fundamental values: the pursuit of beauty and the spirit of collaboration. At Czapek, every new edition is a co-creation with the company’s unique community of ‘rare people’ – the collectors, business partners and friends whose tastes and desires fuel the Maison’s creativity, together with the talented designers, craftsmen and production partners who bring the new ideas to life. 

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“The Royal Onyx story began when the first edition of the Antarctique model was launched in 2020,” says Asma Bennani, General Manager of Mansour Jewellers, Czapek’s partner in the UAE. “True to Czapek’s open and collaborative style, we almost immediately began discussing the possibility of creating a special edition for the United Arab Emirates. The idea was to incorporate a feature celebrating the value and beauty of gemstones.”

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From that initial concept – and the imperative that the dial should be highly distinctive in both colour and detail – the first, and perhaps most difficult, task was to choose a colour from an almost limitless palette of possibilities. The solution presented itself in the form of a material – black onyx – rather than simply a colour. For a dynamic and unexpected contrast with the deep black of the polished onyx surface, baguette-cut sapphires were chosen to mark the hours.

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Emphasising the purity of the dial and the beauty of the gemstones, the Antarctique Royal Onyx does away with the complexity of a date display. Visually simple yet challenging to produce, due to the sapphire baguettes being invisibly set onto the onyx, the dial was crafted by GT Cadrans in Lonay, Switzerland.

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“The simplicity and chic modernity of the Antarctique provides a great playground for creativity,” says Xavier de Roquemaurel, CEO of Czapek. “Harnessing traditional crafts and materials and giving them a contemporary twist, as we have done for this piece, is absolutely in keeping with Czapek’s creative ethos.”

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The eye-catching dial is complemented by the flowing curves and finely honed angles of the 40.5 mm diameter Antarctique case, with its carefully judged balance of brushed and polished surfaces that are echoed on the integrated bracelet.

 Click, to see the large size. BIG FOTO  In keeping with Czapek & Cie’s central tenet of balancing refined aesthetics with high-end mechanics, the Antarctique Royal Onyx is powered by calibre SXH5. The first movement to be entirely conceived and assembled in house by Czapek, it was launched in the original Antarctique in May 2020. Blending the best of past and present, its distinctive architecture of seven skeletonised bridges was inspired by the 19th-century pocket watches of François Czapek

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The calibre features a free-sprung balance and an elegant and highly efficient micro-rotor of recycled 950 platinum; the haute horlogerie finishes combine hand-bevelled internal angles with state-of-the-art laser engraving to create a beautiful play of contrasts: light and dark, textured and smooth, matte and polished.

 Click, to see the large size. BIG FOTO 

Czapek & Cie, together with Mansour Jewellers, will also release Antarctique Desert Rose in November. A limited edition of 25 pieces, also created especially for the UAE, Antarctique Desert Rose plays with texture and colour: the ‘grainé’ textured finish has a subtle shine while the salmon colour is reminiscent of the desert sand – the warm shade contrasting with the cool tones of the steel case. While the Antarctique’s signature, sculptural indexes mark eleven of the hours, 12 o’clock and the date are both in Indian numerals.

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Being unveiled at Dubai Watch Week in November 2023, the new Antarctique Royal Onyx and Antarctique Desert Rose will be available exclusively from Mansour Jewellers in Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Al Ain in the United Arab Emirates.

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About Czapek & Cie
 

François Czapek was a Czech-born Polish watchmaker who fled to Geneva in 1832 after fighting in the Polish uprising. He immediately started his own atelier and in 1839 entered into a partnership with Antoine Norbert de Patek, introducing him to the world of watchmaking. In 1845, at the end of their partnership, he created Czapek & Cie and achieved considerable success. He became the official watchmaker of Napoleon III and opened, what was most likely the first watchmaking boutique on the Place Vendome in Paris. 

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He wrote a book about watchmaking, but unfortunately, he died before publishing a second one. Czapek & Cie has been revived in 2015 with an exceptional collection, whose leading model won the Public Prize in the Grand Prix de l’Horlogerie in Geneva in November 2016. This collection takes its inspiration from an 1850’s Czapek time piece. It features a beautiful enamel dial and a 7-day proprietary movement perfectly combining craftsmanship with design and exclusivity with rarity. The Company second collection, a suspended Tourbillon with a second time-zone, was launched one year later in 2017, while the first Czapek chronograph Faubourg de Cracovie was unveiled at Baselworld 2018. The company is headquartered in Geneva, Switzerland.

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TECHNICAL CHARACTERISTICS

Model:   GARRICK Antarctique Royal Onyx Edition
Steel case, Steel case, Onyx stone dial, Micro-rotor. New SXH5 automatic caliber.
Limited edition of 18 pieces

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MOVEMENT
- Calibre SXH5: Czapek's in house self-winding
mechanical movement
- Diameter: 30 mm – 13 lines ¼
- Height: 4.2 mm
- Number of parts: 193
- Jewels: 28
- Swiss lever escapement, variable-inertia balance
fitted with four gold inertia-blocks
- Frequency: 4 Hz – 28’800 VpH
- Power winding system: Micro rotor with an 18K
recycled gold mass
- Power-reserve > 56 hours on one single barrel
- Barrel torque: 8.8 Nmm
FINISH
Open ratchets, sandblasted black bridges,
bevelling, straight-grained sides, six hand-chamfered inward angles
FUNCTIONS
- Hours, Minutes & Seconds
CASE
- 40.5mm steel case
- Height: 10.6 mm
- Sapphire crystal glass-box with anti-reflective treatment
- Sapphire case back with anti-reflective treatment on the inner side
- Water resistance: 120m
- Screwed-down crown
DIAL
Polished Onyx stone dial
Blue Sapphire baguette hour markers
Steel seconds hand with blue tip
Steel skeletonized hours and minutes hands
BRACELET
- Integrated stainless steel bracelet with Czapek exclusive "Easy Release" system
- Additional calf leather or rubber strap

 PRODUCTION

🔰Edition - Only of ✅ 18 pieces
 
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 Model:   GARRICK Antarctique Desert Rose Edition
Steel ccase, Sandblasted Salmon dial with Oriental 12, Micro-rotor. 
New SXH5 automatic caliber.
Limited edition of 25 pieces
 
 Click, to see the large size. BIG FOTO  
 
MOVEMENT
- Calibre SXH5: Czapek's in house self-winding
mechanical movement
- Diameter: 30 mm – 13 lines ¼
- Height: 4.2 mm
- Number of parts: 193
- Jewels: 28
- Swiss lever escapement, variable-inertia balance
fitted with four gold inertia-blocks
- Frequency: 4 Hz – 28’800 VpH
- Power winding system: Micro rotor with an 18K
recycled gold mass
- Power-reserve > 56 hours on one single barrel
- Barrel torque: 8.8 Nmm
FINISH
Open ratchets, sandblasted black bridges,
bevelling, straight-grained sides, six hand-chamfered inward angles
FUNCTIONS
- Hours, Minutes & Seconds
- Date at 6 o'clock
CASE
- 40.5mm steel case
- Height: 10.6 mm
- Sapphire crystal glass-box with anti-reflective treatment
- Sapphire case back with anti-reflective treatment on the inner side
- Water resistance: 120m
- Screwed-down crown
DIAL
Sandblasted Salmon dial with Oriental 12
Luminescent, rhodium plated steel hour makers
Luminescent hours and minutes hands
Steel seconcs hand with red tip
BRACELET
- Integrated stainless steel bracelet with Czapek exclusive "Easy Release" system
- Additional calf leather or rubber strap

 PRODUCTION

🔰Edition - Only of ✅ 25 pieces

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Press Release - 2023
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Czapek & Cie – 2, Rue Saint-Léger, 1205 Genève Suisse
Contact presse: Valeria Garavaglia Pedroni
Email: valeria@czapek.com | jane@czapek.com (UK)
Tel.  +41 79 314 08 54
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Czapek.com

Tuesday, November 21, 2023

ARNOLD & SON – TIME PYRAMID Gold & Platinum Edition

 

ARNOLD & SONTIME PYRAMID Red Gold & Platinum Vertical Time Edition 2023

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Arnold & Son continues to reflect on its most iconic and classic collections. Time Pyramid, with its unique appearance and structure, has been elegantly revisited. With a fully redesigned case in a new diameter of 42.5 mm, a blue aventurine glass case back and a white opal minutes circle, the 

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Time Pyramid collection is also brought to life through materials. Red gold (5N) and platinum (PT950) offer precious alternatives, with each colour duplicated on the rim of the hours and minutes dial. With its contrasts, its play on transparency and sense of depth and symmetry, Time Pyramid 42.5 explores every creative field in watchmaking to assert its distinction.

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Our conception of time is often either linear or cyclical. A vertical alignment is not part of our mental landscape. And yet, it is this vision that Arnold & Son has chosen to portray on Time Pyramid. Inspired by the creations of John Arnold and his British peers, it revives a clock shape that was fashionable in the 1830s

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By arranging the movement’s organs from top to bottom instead of in a circle, Arnold & Son goes beyond the chronometric horizon to achieve an unparalleled feat of design.

Design

In creating Time Pyramid, Arnold & Son has revisited, adapted and extended clockmaking codes. Devoid of a full-sized dial, this wristwatch reveals a skeletonised movement in the shape of a pyramid. Alternatively, it can be seen as taking the form of an anchor, recalling the Arnold & Son logo and making direct reference to John Arnold’s title as watchmaker for the Royal Navy.

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In the new case, with a diameter of 42.5 mm, a thickness of 10.72 mm, and in a choice of either red gold (5N) or platinum (PT950), the distinct features of Time Pyramid’s movement stand out. Its crown at 6 o’clock remains unique in the world of watchmaking, as does its baroque approach to symmetry.

Case back

The expression ‘open-air’ applies literally here, as the glass used for the case-back offers yet another new interpretation by Arnold & Son. 

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Neither transparent nor opaque, it is composed of an extremely thin disc of aventurine glass in what constitutes a first for this iconic material.

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Constellated with copper inclusions, aventurine glass originated in the region of Venice, which is renowned for its glass-making culture. 

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It is said to have been discovered by accident when a workman dropped some copper filings into a vat of molten glass. One cooled and cut, the dazzling ‘all’avventura’ glass revealed a myriad of sparkles.

Light

Arnold & Son has chosen to use this decorated glass as a backdrop for its Time Pyramid. This backdrop allows the light to filter through when the watch is not being worn, revealing interplays of transparency and colour.

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The interaction of reflections is just as strong on the dial, where alternating gold-plated and NAC-treated (anthracite) finishes showcase the Côtes de Genève stripes. The subtle glimpse it offers of the two barrels’ bridges reinforces the powerful and omnipresent sense of symmetry that underpins Time Pyramid.

Structure

The movement driving Time Pyramid is displayed for all to see. The case’s wide opening and slender bezel showcase the movement’s mechanical arrangement, while the screw balance sits majestically at 12 o’clock. 

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Below, the gear train highlights an array of finishes that include hand chamfering, satin-finished and sunray-brushed wheels, snailed barrels and blued screws. The calibre’s structure then splits in two beneath a ring in white opal – the signature stone of Arnold & Son’s off-centred dials.

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On either side of the encircled dial, two power-reserve indicators mirror one other, indicating the same information and reflecting the two barrels that power the calibre A&S1615 just a few millimetres below the surface. 

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Fully developed, machined, assembled and adjusted at the Manufacture, it can operate for 90 hours without rewinding.

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TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Collection:  TIME PYRAMID

Model:  TIME PYRAMID Red Gold & Platinum Edition

References

 Click, to see the large size. BIG FOTO      


Platinum: 1TPEX.W01A.C153X  

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Click, to see the large size. BIG FOTO     

 Movement

Calibre  A&S1615 with manual winding
Jewels  27
Diameter  37.60 mm
Thickness  4.40 mm
Power reserve  90 hours
Frequency  3 Hz/21,600 vph

Finishes
mainplate: NAC-treated, satin-finished
bridges: NAC-treated, hand-chamfered, vertical Côtes de Genève stripes
wheels: gold-plated, circular satin-finish
screws: blued and chamfered, mirror-polished heads
Hours dial  white opal  
Functions   hours, minutes, seconds, double power reserve
Dial 
Hours on a white opal disc, minutes on a rhodium plated ring
Case
Material  18-carat (5N) red gold or platinum (PT 950)
Diameter  42.5 mm
Thickness  10.72 mm (with crystal)
Crystal  domed sapphire with an anti-reflective coating on both sides
Case back  blue aventurine glass lined with a sapphire crystal, anti-reflective coating
Water resistance  3 bar (30 metres/100 feet)
Strap
Material  blue alligator leather, black calfskin lining, hand-stitched
Buckle  pin buckle, 18-carat (5N) red gold or platinum (PT 950)

Limited edition

  • red gold: 88 timepieces
  • platinum: 38 timepieces 

🔴Swiss retail price

  • Red Gold: CHF 43,000 incl. tax (subject to change)
  • Platinum: CHF 54,900 incl. tax (subject to change)

#ARNOLDandSON; #TIMEYRAMID; #CalibreA&S1615; #VerticalTime; #Platinum; #RedGold

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Press releases - 2023
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Marketing & Sales
Boulevard des Eplatures 38
CH – 2300 La Chaux-de-Fonds
Switzerland
info@arnoldandson.com
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www.Arnold&Son.com