Freeing the mechanical watch from the effects of gravity, the tourbillon confers outstanding reliability. Here, it comes enclosed in a white-gold case with a Côtes de Genève dial or a red-gold case with a Grand Feu enameled dial. Once again, Jaquet Droz pushes back the limits of the watchmaker’s art by unveiling a tourbillon carriage crafted from sapphire crystal, an exceptional material, also used for the figure-8 shaped ring applied to the dial.
While sapphire crystal is an innovation, Grand Feu enameling draws on venerable tradition. After reviewing all of the creative options offered by the Grande Seconde, our master dial-makers decided to place the tourbillon at the very heart of the seconds subdial, off-centered at twelve o’clock.
The impact of this virtuoso feat of craftsmanship is heightened by the classical beauty of the hours and minutes subdial at six o’clock. The Roman numerals and the tapered, beautifully proportioned hands bespeak quiet elegance, a Jaquet Droz specialty. Striking a harmonious balance between cutting-edge technical performance and a taste for simplicity, these two timepieces not only feature a power reserve of 7 days, but also reveal their inner workings via a transparent case back, through which the movement and the new, personalized oscillating weight may be glimpsed.