Art & Design Perfect Timing Clockwise from left: Vacheron Constantin Égérie Moon Phase; Van Cleef & Arpels Lady Arpels Pont des Amoureux Automne; Parmigiani Fleurier Tonda 1950 Double Rainbow Flying Tourbillon Previous page: Patek Philippe 7150/250R chronograph It’s worth noting that female interest in watches isn’t a 21st-century phenomenon: some of history’s most important timepieces were owned by women. Queen Elizabeth I is credited with the earliest recorded wristwatch, from 1571, a bejewelled armband “clocke”, and Queen Victoria, also a keen watch fan, bought herself a Patek Philippe blue enamel pocket watch with an engraved floral motif. The award for the most valuable watch ever goes to none other than Marie Antoinette. Created by famed horologist Abraham-Louis Breguet, watch number 160 was the grand complication of grand complications, packed with a minute repeater, perpetual calendar, equation-of-time, even a bimetallic thermometer, among other functions. Commissioned in 1783, the pocket watch took 44 years to finish, by which time both Marie Antoinette and Breguet had died. Women too, in fact, spurred the invention of the wristwatch. “They would have worn watches on their wrist, primarily in the form of jewellery. Men were wearing pocket watches,” says Ross. Here again, Patek Philippe makes history, having created the first Swiss wristwatch for Hungary’s Countess Koscowicz. That watch, a divine yellow gold rectangular design flanked with diamond flowers, personifies Patek Philippe’s prowess in marrying good looks with horological excellence. And the house has been especially ahead of the curve in catering to women. A decade ago, it launched a dedicated ladies’ chronograph, the jaunty, cushionshaped case holding its feminine own among sporty men’s chronographs. Two years later, the house followed with two more complications in feminised versions – an ultrathin split-seconds chronograph and a splendid minute repeater. Its position in women’s complications firmly established, the maison in 2018 replaced the aforementioned chronograph with the rose gold 7150/250R, its classic round case topped with a 72-diamond bezel – a beauty that will glamorously go from marketing pitch to skiing piste. The brand certainly has the modern woman as its muse, as with the sporty, dual time zone, Calatrava Pilot Travel Time with a contemporary brown sunburst dial, which is sure to keep its wearer on top of business trips, SoulCycle class and kids’ bedtime, all at the glance of the wrist. Patek Philippe is also one of the few houses to have a ladies’ annual calendar with moon phase, the rose gold version of which – with a stunning Balinese mother-of-pearl dial and diamond-set case – is an instant heirloom. If Patek Philippe has set the bar for ladies’ complications, many other watchmakers are catering to sophisticated women in 2020 as well. Vacheron Constantin has created an entirely new women’s collection, Égérie, that merges haute horlogerie and haute couture (think embroideryesque fonts, drape-like dial). Laurent Perves, the brand’s chief marketing officer, says that the new self-winding calibre 1088 was developed to “better fit our client’s modern lifestyle”, while the crowning complication, the moon phase, was 32 CENTURION-MAGAZINE.COM
Clockwise from top left: Patek Philippe 4948R- 001 annual calendar; Jaquet Droz Loving Butterfly Automaton; IWC Portugieser Chronograph; Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Frosted Gold Selfwinding Chronograph PHOTOS COURTESY OF THE WATCHMAKERS chosen for “its link to astronomy and the way high watchmaking can ‘master the sky and the stars’.” It’s an ambitious watch for an ambitious, discerning client. Zenith, too, is focusing on the fairer sex with new women’s watches “conceived from the ground up”, says CEO Julien Tornare. Cue its revamped Elite Moonphase, now with a sleeker silhouette and vintage, midcentury nods, namely a retro sunburst dial that accentuates the golden moon and stars. Breaking watchmaking records has been Bulgari’s forte with men’s pieces, an achievement its women’s watches can now boast too. Its minute repeater Divas’ Dream jewellery watch has completely sold out, while the latest Serpenti Seduttori features a mini tourbillon that, measuring only 22 x 18mm and 3.65mm thick, is now the world’s smallest women’s tourbillon. The blinged-out model is the real headturner – set with over 550 diamonds – and a worthy complement to the mastery within. Chronographs remain a beloved complication, and for women, IWC’s Portugieser is a staunch go-to for oversized styles. In February, the brand updated its chronograph with the new in-house calibre 69355, plus a new glass caseback for which to see all its beautiful interworkings. The ultra-chic steel version with blue hands and a blue strap on a silver dial is sure to inspire dreams of long, post-lockdown summer days, sipping sundowners on deck. Audemars Piguet’s iconic Royal Oak chronographs have been given the feminine treatment: a dazzling frosted white gold finish comes paired with a funky purple dial, limited to 200 pieces, while a fabulous oversized Offshore is topped with a bezel of rainbow sapphires. Parmigiani Fleurier, too, has embraced the multicolour look, while adding a flying tourbillon to its rainbow Tonda 1950, sitting stylishly off-centre and set on a whopping 562 diamonds. Elsewhere, Van Cleef & Arpels has created completely new feminised complications. In 2010, its Pont des Amoureux retrograde watch narrated two lovers rendezvousing on a bridge; last year, the story continued with the couple meeting through all four seasons, in full gem-set glory – think pink, mauve and purple sapphires as spring flowers, diamonds and sapphires for snow-covered rooftops. Finally, every year or so Jaquet Droz creates a collector’s piece in an automaton watch. The Loving Butterfly harks back to a whimsical 1774 sketch from its archives, of a cherub being pulled by a butterfly chariot. Immortalised on a 43mm limited-edition watch, the latest opal dial model will see its blue, green, yellow and pink accents firing up a new generation of women – and maybe a few men, too. • CENTURION-MAGAZINE.COM 33
