The new Breguet Classique 5177 Grand Feu Blue Enamel is essentially inspired by the neoclassical lines and refined aesthetics of Abraham-Louis Breguet's timepieces of the eighteenth century. However, Breguet adds a fresh new touch this time, with the color of the blued hands being transposed onto the deep blue grand feu enamel dial. To guarantee this exact nuance throughout the production process, the development of the pigments called for extensive research. The color needs to remain perfectly stable during firing at over 800 degrees Celsius of a grand feu enamel.
For a better readability on the blue dial, the moon-tipped hands are made of rhodium-plated steel and the Arabic numerals, stars, diamond shapes and fleur-de-lis on the chapter ring are silvered and are larger in size. Their relief is born from a very delicate, powdered tracing. The date figures are treated using the same process in order to aid visibility, due to the positioning of the aperture that sits in a darkened lower level window. Finally, Breguet’s secret signature, also in enamel, appears at 6 o’clock (Abraham-Louis Breguet introduced this originally anti-counterfeit measure as early as 1795 on his timepieces). For all of its timepieces with an enamel dial, the House of Breguet continues to use the calligraphy once drawn by Abraham-Louis Breguet, as featured, for example, on the self-winding Breguet No. 15 watch launched in 1787.
Powered by the self-winding 777Q mechanical caliber, the Classique 5177 Grand Feu Blue Enamel model has simple and useful functions: hours, minutes, central second hand and date at 3 o’clock. Current technological advances such as the use of silicon for the lever and escape wheel optimize its chronometric reliability. However, certain aesthetic elements of this caliber, in particular the form of the wheels, are reminiscent of Breguet’s creations from the late eighteenth century.
The rotor in engine-turned 18-karat gold appears through the sapphire-crystal caseback. Similarly, each of the components – visible or invisible – is delicately finished with chamfering, circular graining, brushing, or côtes de Genève.
The 777Q caliber fits into a 38 mm slim case in white gold with fluted sides. True to the Breguet style, the lugs are welded and rounded toward the midnight blue alligator leather strap. Finally, an individual number is engraved on the back of each watch, marking it unique to its owner. In turn, the owner can have their name recorded in the Breguet registers that have been kept since 1780 – as a contemporary sign of their taste for timeless elegance.
