Exceptional piece, the Arceau Lift Chevaux en Camouflage watch, is available in two 24-piece limited editions. Encounter between a Manufacture Hermès flying tourbillon and the art of cloisonné enamel, this timepiece reveals a motif inspired by a Hermès silk carré: Chevaux en camouflage.
The artist-artisan begins by sketching on a sheet of paper the outlines of the horses, which will serve as the base for tiny gold wires. The canvas is a gold dial on which he delicately places the golden filaments, thereby marking out the surfaces to be enamelled.
Like a painter, he then prepares his palette of colours, a symphony of blue and brown shades, according to the specific version of the watch. Using the tip of his brush, he applies the colours in light touches to create a play of light and depth effects. In the course of successive firings at around 800°C, the various subtle nuances gradually appear in all their subtle splendour, giving life to the mettlesome horses breaking into a gallop and framed by the white or rose gold case.
This cavalcade of glass, gold and fire plays out above another stunning visual show – this time of a mechanical nature. The flying tourbillon of the Manufacture Hermès H1923 movement spins airily inside a carriage topped with a double H symbol evoking that of the lift in the historical boutique at 24, Faubourg Saint Honoré in Paris. In keeping with the origins of Hermès, it is naturally fitted with a leather strap – complete, as one would expect, with finely crafted saddle stitching. Available in matt indigo blue alligator or in matt havana alligator.
