Breguet Celebrates its Striking Heritage with the Classique Grande Sonnerie Métiers d’Art 1905
In Breguet Gold and Bleu de France.
The penultimate entry in Breguet’s 250th celebrations is the Classique Grande Sonnerie Métiers d’Art 1905, a complicated pocket watch that unites several of Breguet’s creations, along with the Métiers d’Art know-how and high-technology of the modern Breguet manufacture. It features hand engraving and flinqué enamel, as well as using Breguet’s magnetic strike governor and gold gongs. As with all of the brand’s 250th anniversary creations, the nearly 60 mm case is made of Breguet Gold, though with Bleu de France for an additional pop of colour.
Initial thoughts
During the 2000s, Breguet launched the Montre de Poche 1907, a minute repeating tourbillon pocket clock watch with grande et petite sonnerie. At the time, several of the best brands were building new complicated pocket watches, most notably Patek Philippe, rather than scavenging ebauches. In the 20 years since, new production complicated pocket watches have disappeared from nearly every brand’s catalogue – except for Breguet’s.
The Montre de poche 1907BA/12. Image – Breguet
Officially the 1907 has only been offered in yellow gold – though white and rose gold examples probably exist as well. Now, to celebrate 250 years of the house of Breguet, the 1907 gets a new look and technical overhaul with the striking Classique Grande Sonnerie Métiers d’Art 1905 in an 18k “Breguet Gold” case.
The 1905 is not completely novel, mechanically speaking, as none of Breguet’s launches this year have been. Yet it comes with meaningful upgrades to a now two decade-old movement, including a magnetic strike governor and greatly extended strike power reserve of 36 hours in grande sonnerie mode. The latter is an extremely significant improvement over the previous version of this calibre, which was accompanied by this guidance in the user manual: “the strike will function for about 6 hours in great strike and 10 hours in small strike… For a permanent use of the strike, we recommend winding it regularly, for example every 4 hours.”
It retains the odd eight o’clock hinge location of its predecessor, which I am less than enamoured with, though I have a strong preference for open-face watches in general. Breguet’s approach allows the watch to use an open-face dial, which is to great benefit if you want suspend it by the bow for display. Perhaps it would have been best to delete the front cover altogether and relocate the métiers d’art aspect to the reverse lid.
A métiers d’art watch is fitting for the 250th anniversary celebrations, but it’s somewhat ironic since A.-L. Breguet’s original style was famously austere for the time. That said, tastes have changed and this is probably the most commercially viable genre of pocket watches in today’s market. Louis Vuitton had good success earlier this year with a pair of quick-selling Jacquemart watches, for example. As grand as the 1905 is, I still hope to see something completely novel for the grande finale.
A striking heritage
A.-L. Breguet was a pioneer of flat repeater gongs, in lieu of striking agains bells or the inside of the case, though the musical gongs we know today are probably more attributable to François Crespe.
Repeaters were the most common complication during Breguet’s day – he referred to them “virtually indispensable” in his unpublished manuscripts – since being able to tell time in the dark is very useful when it’s dark half the time. This problem was eventually mitigated by gas, and later electric, lighting. Along the way watchmakers figured out how to make watches glow in the dark as well.
Yet chiming watches never quite died even after becoming obsolete, and the Breguet brand continued to sell chiming pocket watches throughout the entire 20th century, often using decades old ebauches, though the movement in the 1905 is of new manufacture.
All that glitters is (Breguet) gold
The case band, and rear cover are all Breguet Gold and adorned with a Quai de l’Horloge guilloche pattern, inspired by the famous isometric Turgot map of Paris. The guilloche on the back cover covered with Bleu de France grande feu enamel and the Breguet “B”.
On the front is an intricate, hand engraved depiction of the River Seine, and Quai de l’Horloge, the street on which Breguet’s workshop was located. The building occupied by Breguet, now addressed as 26 Place Dauphine, is at the centre of the scene. The Seine river is also Bleu de France enamel to make it pop.
“Quai de l’Horloge” guilloche returns on the Breguet Gold regulator dial, along with a hand painted white enamel insert (with pantograph engraved secret signature) for the hours, meant to call back to 18th century dials. Interestingly, the hammers and tourbillon bridge are blued not with heat, but via a PVD process.
Teaching an old dog new tricks
The movement is very traditional, reminiscent of the movements made by Victorin Piguet from Reymond Feres ebauches for Breguet, Patek Philippe, and others in days long past. There are quite a few oddities though; most notably the striking and going trains are flipped.
Normally in watches like this turning the crown clockwise winds the strikes and counterclockwise winds the movement, but in the cal. 508 GS, the going train is wound clockwise like a normal watch, and the strike train is wound counterclockwise. The movement is upside-down, putting the strike works on full display through the sapphire cuvette – which has an antireflective coating on both sides.
A few years ago Breguet updated the movement in the 1907, refining the strike mode selector. For the 1905, Breguet has further upgraded the calibre with a magnetic strike governor and a full 36 hours of striking in grande sonnerie mode.
Interestingly, the watch uses gongs made from a white gold alloy, rather than steel as is typical, which are connected to the case instead of the movement. This, in theory, improves the sound of the repeater as the sound waves enjoy better resonance and propagation because the gongs and case are of like materials with similar density and structure. The case walls are also extensively excavated, removing unneeded material that would otherwise deaden the sound – though it still contains about 400 g of 18k gold.
On close inspection you will also notice small rubber o-rings on the gongs, which I presume are to dampen the sounds made by the gongs contacting each other during jolts and shocks. And, of course, it also includes Breguet’s most famous invention – the tourbillon, along with a free sprung balance on a Breguet overcoil balance spring.
A regal presentation
To emphasize just how special this watch is, Breguet will use its remaining supply of “Marie-Antoinette Oak” for the box. Breguet acquired a tree from Versailles that the queen was said to have favored after it was felled due to storm damage. It was also used to make the box for Breguet No. 1160, a replica of (then missing) No. 160, which is often said to have been ordered as a gift for Marie-Antoinette. It is further accompanied by a resonance box made of spruce from the famous Risoud forest in the Vallée de Joux, near Breguet’s factory.
Key facts and price
Classique Grande Sonnerie Métiers d’Arts 1905
Ref. 1905BH/2H
Diameter: 56.5 mm
Height: 23.5 mm
Material: 18k “Breguet” gold
Crystal: Sapphire
Water resistance: Dust and moisture resistant only.
Movement: Cal. 508 GS
Functions: Hours, minutes, seconds, tourbillon, grande et petite sonnerie, minute repeating.
Winding: Manual wind
Frequency: 18,000 beats per hour (2.5 Hz)
Power reserve: 56 hours going, 36 hours striking in grande sonnerie mode
Chain: 18k Breguet gold, with the Quai del’Horloge guilloché fastenings.
Presentation: Box made from “Marie-Antoinette oak” with resonance tray
Limited edition: Made to order, and very low production.
Availability: From Breguet
Price: On request.
For more information, visit Breguet.com.
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