BASELNEWSDOUBLE TOURBILLON DE BREGUET
Breguet’s most recent entries uphold its oldest and noblest traditions, discreetly displaying the signature features that set a Breguet off from all other watches made. Dials made of manually engine-turned gold, open-tipped blued steel hands, fluted caseband, unique production number – the Breguet personality comes to the fore at first glance. Every new horological and jewellery design by Breguet expresses the philosophy laid down a full decade ago by Nicolas G. Hayek: enhanced by advanced technologies and inspired by the world of culture – beauty first, beauty foremost.
The spectacular outcome of years of diligent development, the Breguet Double Tourbillon includes a hand-wound movement fitted with a pair of tourbillon regulators rotating on the hour axis. An aesthetic as well as a technical masterpiece, the watch features today a pink gold case 44 mm in diameter housing over 570 components, all painstakingly assembled by Breguet’s master watchmakers.
Working independently from one another, two tourbillons are coupled by means of differential gears and mounted on a rotating centre plate effecting a complete revolution in twelve hours. The differential device conveys the two tourbillons’ mean rate to the rotating centre plate and to the time-display mechanism. The rate of the watch is thus the mean rate of the two tourbillons, making its movement twice as precise as a normal one. The hour is shown by the bridge connecting the tourbillon regulators doubling as a watch hand, while the minutes are indicated by a standard hand at centre.
Impeccable finish and spectacular new engraving work on the back of the movement further underscore this exceptional timepiece’s appeal. A manually engine-turned mainplate, a chapter ring inscribed with Roman numerals, pink gilt Breguet hands, a movement with decorated bridges and bars and other parts beveled and polished further testify to an exceptionally handsome design of unrivalled beauty and refinement.
First introduced at the 2006 Basle Fair but initially available in insufficient numbers, this grande complication design with double tourbillon was in 2008 delivered to Breguet clients who had ordered the watch, often paying in advance. Despite an increase in recent orders joining as yet undelivered earlier orders, newly added manufacturing capacity has allowed Breguet to schedule delivery of the first pink gold models for the end of 2009.
Case
round, in 18K pink gold, with finely fluted caseband. Sapphire caseback. Diameter: 44 mm. Rounded horns welded to the case, screw pins securing the strap. Water-resistant to 30 meters.
Dial
ring-shaped, forming a flange in 18K silvered gold. Individually numbered and signed BREGUET. Chapter ring with Roman numerals. Rose gilt open-tipped BREGUET minute hand. The hour hand is an extension of the bridge supporting the two tourbillon carriages. Manually engine-turned center plate featuring apertures for the two tourbillons and rotating in step with the hours.
Movement
hand-wound mechanical movement with twin tourbillon regulators mounted on the manually engine-turned rotating center plate. The two regulators are coupled by a differential gear that combines the mean rate of the two movements. The tourbillons effect a complete revolution in 12 hours. Movement numbered and signed BREGUET. 50-hour power reserve. 16 ½ lines. 85 jewels. Cal. 588. BREGUET overcoil. Frequency 2.5 Hz. Monometallic BREGUET balance wheels with four gold regulating screws. Adjusted in 6 positions. The back of the movement bears a hand-engraved representation of the solar system, inspired by the 60-second rotation of the tourbillons on themselves and their rotation in tandem around a center axis over a 12-hour period.