The men's watch "In the Pocket", submitted by Hermès to the GPHG competition, has not been lucky enough to go through the preselections. But the three feminine watches have been retained: thus, Le Pendentif Boule (Ladies' Watch category), the Arceau Temps Suspendu (Ladies' Complications Watch) and the Arceau H Cube (Artistic Crafts Watch) are now in the final stage of the competition.
You can take part in the Prix du Public by voting for your favourite watches. To vote for Hermès timepieces, click here.
Le Pendentif Boule
Le Pendentif Boule is inspired by a buttonhole watch that has recently resurfaced from the archives at Hermès.
It rolls, rotates and sparkles with diamonds. Over four hundred and eighty stones adorn the white-gold case middle and crown. The hemispherical back is sheathed in leather. On the front, the sapphire crystal emphasises the roundness of the creation and protects a dial in natural white mother-of-pearl featuring delicate circular-grained hour-markers.
The watch is powered by a quartz movement that show the hours and minutes.
Arceau Le Temps Suspendu
The 38 mm diameter case of the Arceau Le Temps Suspendu features a pushbutton that may be pressed to bring the hour and minute hands to a halt at about 12 o’clock. Pressing the button once more sets time running again.
The running time and suspended time phases are coordinated by two synchronised column wheels: one driving the hours and the other the minutes. This 360° retrograde hour and minute mechanism makes time disappear without stopping the movement. Its uninterrupted running is displayed on the movement operating indicator, driven by a fourth wheel turning in the opposite direction.
Arceau H Cube
In this watch, straw is used in miniature marquetry and it adorns the dial with an iconic motif in bright colours. Each small piece of straw is assembled one by one in an unimaginably small space to reproduce the tricks of perspective that characterise the H Cube motif – designed, like the Arceau watch, by Henri d’Origny.
This geometric view, emphasised by a white gold case featuring a diameter of 41 mm and asymmetrical attachments, is powered by an H1837 Manufacture movement that can be seen through the sapphire crystal case back.