Complications take the stage at SIHH
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Fabrice Eschmann
Freelance journalist
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More than ever, innovative materials and slim movements are the stars of this year’s crop of complicated watches. Both trends reflect the level of excellence that watchmakers have achieved when exploring beyond the realm of time only.
A. Lange & Söhne Triple Split
In 2004, the German firm introduced the Double Split which measures comparative times up to 30 minutes. The Triple Split now makes it possible to record comparative (intermediate) times of up to 12 hours by means of central sweep seconds, a 30-minute totaliser and a 12-hour totaliser with additional split-seconds hands. This new chronograph can be used, for example, to record the times of two competitors in a marathon. The white gold edition is limited to 100 pieces.
Audemars Piguet Royal Oak RD#2 Perpetual Calendar Ultra-Thin
Audemars Piguet thinks big, or rather thinks thin as it comes to SIHH with the thinnest automatic perpetual calendar on the market, at 6.3mm high. The biggest challenge was to develop a movement on a single level rather than the usual three, prompting Audemars Piguet to rethink layout and combine functions.
Girard-Perregaux Neo Tourbillon With Three Bridges Skeleton
Girard-Perregaux already presented a modernised Neo Tourbillon version of its famous Tourbillon With Three Bridges back in 2014. This year the brand has upped the ante by throwing transparency into the mix. The plate and bridges are stripped to the bare minimum to reveal an architectural movement. The absence of a bezel and the two “glass box” crystals further add to the impression of weightlessness inside the case.
Greubel Forsey Double Balancier
Easy is never an option for Greubel Forsey. The two watchmakers have come to SIHH with a rethought version of the inclined Double Balancier. Now occupying separate planes, the two balance wheels give this watch an even more theatrical construction. They are connected by a Constant Spherical Differential which averages differences in their rates. Incredibly, the minute track, numerals, markers and power-reserve indication are all in Grand Feu champlevé enamel.
IWC Portugieser Perpetual Calendar Tourbillon Edition "150 Years"
As part of its 150th anniversary celebrations this year, IWC has added five new models to the Portugieser range, including a perpetual calendar with tourbillon. This is the first time the Schaffhausen firm has combined these two complications. Made from 82 components and weighing a scant 0.635 grams, the tourbillon is visible at 12 o’clock thanks to an opening in the calendar advance ring. Limited edition of 50 pieces.
Jaeger-LeCoultre Polaris Memovox
Five watches usher in this new collection, which takes its design cue and its name, Polaris, from the Memovox Polaris which Jaeger-LeCoultre launched in 1968. Of them, this is the one that most strongly channels the historic model. Limited to 1,000 pieces, it is fitted with a modernised version of the original 956 calibre, including a striking mechanism on a gong. The top crown sets the alarm, the middle crown is for the rotating bezel, and the bottom crown is for setting the time.
Montblanc 1858 Geosphere
Mont Blanc is, as any geography student knows, the highest mountain in the Alps. To celebrate the 160th anniversary of its Minerva Haute Horlogerie Manufacture, Montblanc has dedicated this watch to the Seven Summits climb, the ultimate mountaineering challenge. The seven peaks are symbolised by as many red dots on the two domed hemisphere globes. Rotating once every 24 hours, one clockwise and one anti-clockwise, they indicate world times.
Officine Panerai L’Astronomo Luminor 1950 Tourbillon Moon Phases Equation of Time GMT
The Astronomo debuted in 2010 to mark the fourth centenary of Galileo’s observations of celestial bodies. This second model incorporates a GMT function, a moon-phase display which can be personalised for the wearer’s chosen location, and an innovative date display on a polarised borosilicate glass disc. The laser-engraved numerals remain virtually invisible until they align with the small date window, whose polarised crystal then brings them into view.
Piaget Altiplano Ultimate Concept
The Altiplano 900P, launched in 2014 for Piaget’s 140th anniversary, is still fresh in everyone’s mind. A wealth of innovations whittled its height down to just 3.65mm. But as everyone knows, records are made to be broken and Piaget has done exactly that with the Altiplano Ultimate Concept, an incredible 2mm thick. This new ultra-thin watch uses the same principle of fitting the gears directly onto the caseback. This time, though, Piaget has taken the concept much further and has filed five patents for the various technical solutions. The case is cut from a cobalt alloy to ensure it retains its shape despite this extreme thinness.
Richard Mille RM 53-01 Tourbillon Pablo Mac Donough
Richard Mille has made a habit of producing watches for the sporting elite, and this one for polo player Pablo Mac Donough lives up to expectations. This is the first time that laminated glass has been used in watchmaking; specifically two sapphire crystals separated by a thin vinyl membrane. The tourbillon movement is suspended in the Carbon TPT® case: the mainplate is connected to a peripheral plate by braided steel cables, 0.27mm thick, that are held taut by ten pulleys and four tensioners. Limited edition of 30 pieces.
Ulysse Nardin Freak Vision
This Freak Vision draws on the technical innovations which Ulysse Nardin unveiled last year in the InnoVision 2 concept. The first automatic watch in the Freak collection, it introduces the Grinder winding system that is twice as efficient as a standard rotor. The silicon balance wheel is completed with nickel mass elements. It is driven by the game-changing Ulysse Anchor Escapement whose oscillations are produced by two bi-stable blade springs. All this in a redesigned case.
Vacheron Constantin Overseas Ultra-Thin Perpetual Calendar
Vacheron Constantin is among watchmakers proposing extra-thin timepieces this year. Its perpetual calendar is one of the slimmest on the market with a case that measures 8.1mm high. The automatic movement does not exceed 4.05mm thick. Assembled from 276 components, it indicates hours, minutes, day of the week, date, month, leap year on a 48-month disc and moon phases.
