There are a goodly number of tourbillon watches in existence, many of the notable ones being exquisite examples of watchmaking’s finest craftsmanship, with such legendary names signed to their bridges as Girard-Perregaux, Helwig and Pratt, among a few others. But there’s something about a Breguet tourbillon that seems so fitting, less for the classic beauty and aesthetic details inherent in a Breguet watch, and more for the simple fact that such watches bear the name of the man who envisioned the very principles of the complication in the first place. Such was the difficulty to produce and adjust this gravity-defying escapement, that during his lifetime, Abraham-Louis Breguet only produced 35 examples of watches with tourbillon, those rare pieces destined solely for the wealthiest of his clients, and the inventories of royal houses. While the advent of modern manufacturing techniques have made the fascinating complication significantly easier to produce, and their status somewhat deflated as a result, a truly high-end tourbillon execution is still a feat of exceptional watchmaking, and few can produce one like the modern house of Breguet–certainly not with a similar degree of panache and instantly recognizable provenance. With that distinguished history in mind, and an anniversary celebration of 220 years of the Tourbillon at hand, it’s fitting that Manufacture Breguet is offering this beautiful Classique model, in a numbered edition of….you guessed it, 35 pieces.
First things I perceive: Ref 5365BR/15/9WU is a classic Breguet watch, through and through. The individually welded 18K gold lugs affixed with solid gold screwed bars, the stately fluted caseband, and most especially a stunningly intricate, silver-plated solid gold dial with multiple guilloche textures painstakingly created by a hand-guided rose engine all immediately distinguish it. Without question, a dress watch with something much, much more, yet discreetness and pure elegance to temper the virtuosity. Only a closer look reveals some interesting touches that set this apart as a special commemorative, and with a dial this gorgeous, believe me…you’ll want to spend some time with a loupe! While Breguet tourbillons from the collection typically sport a tourbillon bridge of black-polished steel, this one diverges slightly…showing off a fire-blued finish which is particularly sublime as it compliments the famously shaped, blued signature hands. Too, the outermost edge of the tourbillon aperture displays a “Brevet No 157”, a subtle detail that points to the specific patent which the pioneering French watchmaker received for the tourbillon escapement. Naturally the secret Breguet signature is in place astride the 12 o’clock roman numeral, which is as charming as ever alongside the numerous textured fineries that greet the eye, and of course, the audacious, slightly discordant, off-centered time display–a look which Breguet pioneered on his original 18th century pocket watches. The 41mm rose gold case is definitely a concession to modern tastes, but the proportional balance of this wristwatch remains superb, and there’s more reason for it when we consider the mechanically intricate, and intricately decorated caliber that greets the eye through the sapphire back.
Calibre 581 is expansive, filling the voluminous case in the way a movement purist can appreciate. It’s easy to mistake it for a manual winding caliber, but that’s not the situation. So, where is the rotor? Neither centrally mounted, nor a microrotor, the winding mass is on the edge of the caliber, a fairly uncommon way to implement the automatic mechanism, but the result is very visually pleasing and keeps the view unobstructed. To ensure that said winding mass also does a good job of winding the Calibre 581 when worn, it is wrought from massive, precious platinum for maximal inertia, and a hand engraved guilloche pattern keeps it a thing of beauty, as well. An on the topic of aesthetics, the caliber is an exemplar of classical watchmaking finishing techniques throughout, with the bridges featuring beautiful hand-polished anglage with a lusciously broad width to give that polish an extra bit of visual potency. Jewels are set in similarly polished sinks. The many screws are black polished, and a humble satin-grained texture graces the bridges, drawing the eye’s admiration to something extraordinary: a hand-engraved replication of Breguet’s drawings of the tourbillon for his patent application! It’s a detail that is both strikingly handsome and subtle, in the way that more special, commemorative pieces from other houses could take a lesson from. Other discreet commemorative details to enjoy include a mainspring barrel hand engraved with the 220th anniversary dates of the tourbillon’s patenting, and another across the tourbillon carriage bridge, this one illustrating the patent number, and the year of the patent, “7 Messidor An 9”. That latter calendar term, being equivalent to June 26, 1801, reflects the unusual parlance of the Republican calendar, ushered in after the French Revolution and coming to an end by Napoleonic decree in 1806. (And you thought this was just a watch blog! 😉 )
Returning again to the movement finishing itself, the presence of a a few tricky interior angles in places is another point that will delight perfectionists that increasingly find inspiration only in the artisanal work of the most fastidious independent masters such as Dufour or Rexhepi. Yet, despite all this charming 19th century watchmaking artistry, the one-minute tourbillon itself gets an up-to-the-minute hairspring and a LIGA-etched escape wheel in high-tech silicon. This is a very interesting thing about modern Breguet to me, as the brand respects both its heritage as one of the best in traditional high horology, and the pioneering spirit of Abraham-Louis Breguet, who always pushed to find newer and better solutions, as well as fight the eternal watchmaker’s enemy: friction. Would the great Breguet himself have used silicon, had the technologies to manufacture watchmaking components from it existed then? Hard to say for sure, but I think we can surmise he would have been highly interested in their capabilities, and eager to experiment. In any event, tradition and modernism firmly clasp hands in this beautiful mechanism which ticks at a modern 28,800 vph frequency, offers superior six-position adjustment, and will run for 80 hours at maximum wind.
That Breguet has many compellingly beautiful watches in its catalog is an understatement, some far simpler, and some more complicated. But it is the tourbillon in its pure form, arguably more than any other complication or specialty of watchmaking which defines the ingenuity and elegance of the house and its storied, endlessly inventive namesake. In that vein, the Classique Tourbillon Extra-Plat Anniversaire 5365 captures the aesthetic signatures of Breguet in a very compelling way, offering a thoughtfully conceived commemorative effort that feels truly special without excess, or a sense of overdone commercial sensationalism. With a richly padded alligator leather strap and triple-deployant buckle in rose gold, this is a distinguished high complication that will certainly dress up, but it itself is always the occasion. Bearing that in mind, the lofty CHF 158,000 price seems…well, just a formality.