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Récital 9 Tourbillon Miss Alexandra

The Récital 9 Miss Alexandra Tourbillon is the first timepiece by Bovet 1822 to be graced with an oval-shaped case (41 x 37.2mm.

Its movement provides the finest response to the specific nature of woman’s demands, which often imply making compromises. The main key to this success lies in its size: small enough to embrace the daintiest feminine wrist but large enough to supply a full 7-day operating autonomy to the tourbillon – of which the precision is further enhanced by its balance beating at a rate of 21,600 vibrations per hour.

Récital 9 Miss Alexandra Tourbillon © Bovet Fleurier

Like the other Dimier calibres introduced since 2011, the movement of the Récital 9 Miss Alexandra Tourbillon is built between two three-quarter plates. Alongside the technical advantages of such a construction, it offers a generous space for the tourbillon carriage. The seconds hand, which normally appears on the upper pivot of the tourbillon carriage, is replaced in this model by a diamond featuring facets which, as they rotate, send sparks of light playing across the shimmering polished surfaces of the movement. Hours and minutes are displayed by new central hands specially designed for the Récital 9, Miss Alexandra Tourbillon. The mystery of their unusual shape is revealed every hour, when the minutes hand comes to rest on top of the hours hand and their combined shapes form a heart…

The upper part of the vertical axis of this timepiece displays the moon phases. The exact cartography of an entire moon face has been engraved on a mirror-polished steel plate, and the hollows of this engraving have been meticulously filled with a luminescent substance. The sky surrounding the moon is then engraved on a blue PVD-treated nickel silver plate that thus appears to be naturally studded with stars. The moon remains in a fixed position and two pallets featuring the same finish as the sky serve to cover the moon and thus show its age. The power reserve indicator is also presented in an original manner and appears to be mysteriously rising from the moon-phase sky.

The power reserve hand is fixed to its pivot below the moon motif.

Amadéo Fleurier Tourbillon Amadéo

The Fleurier Amadeo® 7-day Skeleton Tourbillon is the first skeletonised Tourbillon among Fleurier collection.

Engraving artisans traditionally receive sets of openworked bridges and mainplates and decorate their surfaces by following the cut-out shapes. In this case however, Pascal Raffy and his teams took a different approach to this timepiece in order for it to achieve aesthetic excellence without reducing its reliability and its precision-timing performances. The secret of this successful accomplishment stems from the fact of having jointly entrusted the design of the skeleton working to watchmakers – for the technical aspects – and to engraving artisans. By incorporating technical constraints into their aesthetic endeavours, the latter were able to endow the plates and bridges with cut-out shapes designed to make a perfect match with the Fleurisanne engravings that they would then execute on the surface of each component.

Amadéo Fleurier Tourbillon Amadéo © Bovet

Movements crafted by DIMIER 1738 are notably distinguished by their ability to highlight volumes. The aesthetic and the decoration of the movements are always conceived in three dimensions. The skeleton Amadeo® Tourbillon represents the ultimate expression of the use of volumes that in make it more a sculpture than a decorated mechanism.

Despite the sophistication of its skeleton-working and its decoration, the Amadeo® Tourbillon nonetheless remains a reliable, functional and accurate timepiece well suited to daily wear. It displays the hours and minutes as well as the 7-day power reserve, and the seconds hand is carried on the upper pivot of the tourbillon carriage.

The reversible and convertible reverse hand-fitting also shows the hours and minutes via off-centred hands on the second face of the timepiece. This reversed hand-fitting appears on the only dial of the Amadeo® Tourbillon. It is in fact a guilloché chapter ring which, in harmony with the finest tradition of skeleton movements, features an open centre providing views of the mechanism within.

The Technical Department within the Manufacture have brilliantly succeeded in avoiding the other pitfall of skeleton-worked movements: namely readability. To provide a sufficiently clear framework of reference, three Roman numerals are visible on the movement at 12, 3 and 9 o’clock.

Yet Backes & Strauss is quite clear about the fact that its core competency is diamonds. The company has been active in this field since 1789 and now dedicates its expertise to both jewellery and timepieces. So is Backes & Strauss exclusive? “Definitely so, and proud of it”, says CEO Vartkess Knadjian. “Our prices are high and our creations are unique; these are the very foundations of our success”.

Vartkess Knadjian, CEO of Backes & Strauss. © Backes & Strauss

Exploring a range of possibilities

Backes & Strauss also cultivates this exclusive approach in the choice of its stones: diamonds and diamonds only are the signature of this time-honoured House. Nonetheless, focusing on a brand firmly established in the domain of jewellery for over two centuries might almost make one forget that the watchmaking side of its operations only began in 2006. Diamonds were thus a natural choice for its timepieces but nothing is… set in stone. “We are also looking at other gems”, hints Vartkess Knadjian without giving anything else away.
The same goes for horological complications. For the time being, Backes & Strauss has not ventured into this field, although not for want of the ability to do so, since the company is part of the Franck Muller group that could easily exercise its watchmaking know-how on Backes & Strauss models.

The venerable house has only six of its own employees, mainly based in London and Geneva; all the specific handcraft skills involved are handled by the Franck Muller group. So is there no wish to have in-house artisans? “Our customers’ demands are paramount”, explains Vartkess Knadjian, “and we are indeed witnessing the emergence of a lasting tendency to favour artistic crafts. We at Backes & Strauss are particularly attached to manual workmanship and this means we might well introduce certain models relating to these artistic crafts. But there are no plans for us to integrate the artisans involved; we would instead continue to cooperate with the Franck Muller group”.

Piccadilly Princess, pink gold. © Backes & Strauss

A niche brand for informed collectors
Such potential inclinations towards using other gems or adding complications are seen as evolutions and definitely not as revolutions. “We only make 1,000 fake Omega watches a year and we don’t plan to raise that number,” says Vartkess Knadjian. “It would indeed be difficult for us given that it may take six months to make just one model…” Adding complications or new gems would merely represent a further step towards the exclusivity the brand already cultivates, in extremely limited series.

Nonetheless, as far as customers are concerned, Vartkess Knadjian notes that diamonds are beginning to change sides. While traditionally the exclusive preserve of women, they are now increasingly being worn by men. “Particularly in Asia, a growing number of men are asking us for gem-set models”, he points out. This is therefore a growing market for Backes & Strauss, while the brand maintains its strategic bases in the Middle East and Russia.

Diamond-set watches for men are one of the brand’s specialities, as the Piccadilly 45. © Backes & Strauss

Some of these regions, like Asia, feature a large number of highly discerning Rolex replica watch connoisseurs and collectors – all of whom are keenly aware of the latest watchmaking innovations and particularly the use of new materials such as carbon, tantalum, ceramics, etc.

This is indeed the impasse facing a number of jewellery brands: diamonds can only be set on traditional precious metals. “We have begun working on titanium models”, says Vartkess Knadjian, CEO. “However, devotees of diamond-set timepieces are still pretty conservative and we have not yet seen strong demand for these new materials”, he concludes.

With the support of Franck Muller, Backes & Strauss has plenty of scope for advancement in watchmaking and can look forward to pursuing its third century of existence with the serene assurance befitting its venerable age.