WATCH FUNCTIONALITY MAY BE DIFFERENT. IT IS POSSIBLE TO CHOOSE AN EASY TURBILLON OR A SIMPLE CLASSIC WITH THREE ARROWS OR EVEN AN ADVANCED DEVICE COMBINING A MECHANICS WITH A COMPUTER CHIP. A PRINCIPAL QUESTION IS CONCLUDED IN ANOTHER: FROM WHAT IS THE HOUSING MADE? IT IS THE MOST IMPORTANT AND ALREADY EXACTLY MOST IMPORTANT PART OF A WRAPPING ACCESSORIES.
Golden age
In the field of prestigious watches, two unconditional leaders among materials have long been identified: steel and gold. All other metals, alloys, and chemical compounds can be safely attributed to collection experiments.
The advantages of steel are its strength, relative ease of processing and exceptional wear resistance. Gold takes ductility (you can make complex engravings and jewelry, and it is also quite easy to polish the scratches that appear), antimagnetic, corrosion resistance and high respectability. The last argument now turned out to be decisive. People are increasingly choosing watch mechanics not for engineering "acrobatics", but because classic watches are traditions, prestige and status.
The Golden Age In the field of prestigious watches, two unconditional leaders among materials have long been identified: steel and gold. All other metals, alloys, and chemical compounds can be safely attributed to collection experiments. The advantages of steel are its strength, relative ease of processing and exceptional wear resistance. Gold takes ductility (you can make complex engravings and jewelry, and it is also quite easy to polish the scratches that appear), antimagnetic, corrosion resistance and high respectability. The last argument now turned out to be decisive. People are increasingly choosing watch mechanics not for engineering "acrobatics", but because classic watches are traditions, prestige and status. Now gold has replaced steel even in everyday models, since putting a gold watch on business negotiations is a must. And this is clearly demonstrated by recent premieres from leading watch brands.
Chopard House in honor of the 20th anniversary of its most exquisite L.U.C. collection In 2016, he presented models in a Fairmined Gold case, gold mined in compliance with all environmental and social requirements. From the classic L.U.C. XPS1860 in a 40 mm case, only 7.2 mm high, to the sophisticated L.U.C Perpetual Chrono and the first L.U.C Full Strike Minute Repeater with sapphire gongs. By the way, Chopard is the only manufactory that checks all its gold not only for chemical, but also for moral purity.
Champagne Gold
However, it is worth noting that just in the chemistry aspect, gold cannot be “pure”, because it is extremely impractical. If you drop a 999 bar of ingot onto the floor, an impressive dent will appear on it. Therefore, manufacturers strengthen the golden glory with various ligatures, which not only increase its strength, but also give an unusually interesting shade. For example, the famous Honey Gold from A. Lange & Sohne with a real "honey" tint. This year, for the first time in history, Saxon manufactory introduced the Zeitwerk Decimal Strike mechanism in such a case, beating watches and ten-minute intervals.
Rolex also has its own signature alloy (admittedly, a gold Oyster on a gold bracelet is the best symbol that life was a success). It is called Rolesor, and its composition is also kept in deep secret. The unique Rolesor sunshine can be seen on the dial, welt and in the links of the case of the latest version of the Rolex Dayjust 41 mm with a 3235 chronometer caliber. And in the new series of another Rolex Cellini collection with the GMT function, the case and dial are poured by the sunset shades of another Everose alloy.
The combination of a gold case with a golden dial (manufacturers prefer to call this color “champagne”) is the most sought-after trend of the coming seasons. It is not surprising: gold on gold gives the accessory a special form and integrity.
In this vein, the new Carl F. Bucherer Manero Flyback chronograph presented this winter was created, as well as the novelties from Audemars Piguet and Montblanc. And the Ulysse Nardin manufactory, which owns its own atelier of manual processing of dials Donze Cardans, takes full advantage of the decorative techniques of “notched” and “cloisonné” enamels to favorably shade the gold massif. In the Classico Rooster series, dedicated to the current year of the Fire Rooster, the image of the bird is engraved on the dial in solid 18-carat gold. The release is limited to 88 copies.
No aging
The real triumph of gold in 2017 was demonstrated by Cartier House, which has long set the direction in watch fashion. In this case, Cartier revived the Panthere collection, which was very popular in the 1980s. In a new reading, she also presents compact square cases similar to Santos, complemented by stylish gold bracelets. The models are presented in different sizes, with different types of calibers, from mechanics to quartz, and to emphasize the “panther” total look, a “striped” version was created entirely made of pink gold with black enamel inserts. The Golden Panther is also available in two body sizes - 22 mm and 27 mm in diameter. The limit of the average model is 30 copies, the small one is 50 copies.
Among the premier Panthere de Cartier there is one version in a yellow gold case. Of course, “yellow” is the key word for the upcoming season, and there will be many more premieres in this metal, in addition to the already presented Cartier, Jaeger-LeCoultre in the Rendez-Vous and Piaget collections in the iconic Altiplano, celebrating its 60th anniversary this year.
It should be noted that in addition to the noble appearance, yellow gold has several objective advantages. Firstly, due to the lack of copper, the alloy does not oxidize at all (unlike pink gold, which nevertheless tarnishes over time), and secondly, yellow gold is better combined with most expensive jewelry.
A look into the future
But for those who appreciate prestigious mechanics who don’t want to be like everyone else and demonstrate not only a high status, but also an independent character, brands continue to experiment with new materials, and have found a very promising direction - an ultra-black case. It looks no less spectacular than gold, and much more versatile. A number of brands (Officine Panerai, MCT, Roger Dubuis) presented novelties from black composites with nanocrystals of carbon, which almost completely absorb light. And the farthest, as usual, was Richard Mille, who created the first ever watch based on graphene-strong carbon fiber with a thickness of one atom. For this invention, in 2010, Russian scientists Game and Novoselov received the Nobel Prize, and now it is used in many fields: from medicine to mechanical engineering. It was in commemoration of cooperation with the McLaren Honda racing team that the revolutionary RM 50-03 Tourbillon SplitSeconds Chronograph Ultralight was created — the lightest watch in the world weighing only 38 grams! The series is limited to 75 copies, so connoisseurs of exclusive technology should hurry up.
Text: Lisa Epifanova
