Christian Lattmann, Vice-President, unveils the brand’s new releases

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Christian Lattmann, Vice-President, unveils the brand’s new releases - Jaquet Droz
Baselworld - Charming Bird, Quantième Perpétuel Eclipse, Grande Heure GMT, Lady Eight...Technical sophistication meets lyrical charm.

Building on a horological legacy of 275 years, Jaquet Droz has never been so youthful and dynamic. The brand is unveiling ladies’ models along with Grande Complications, art works and exclusive developments.


Enriching its collections and continuing to develop while remaining faithful to its positioning: such the challenge that awaits Jaquet Droz as BaselWorld 2013 opens. Since 2009, the brand has been headed by Marc Hayek, who is also at the head of Blancpain and Breguet. The steering committee that back him in his endeavours also includes several figures active on both fronts. Jaquet Droz has indeed never made a secret of using Blancpain movements. Thus supported by the Group, Jaquet Droz is significantly extending its range.

 

 

 

 

 

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The Bird collection takes flight


In the field of Grande Complication horology, the famous Bird Repeater is introduced in 2013 in a one-of-a-kind version graced with new finishing. In parallel, a new animated model, Charming Bird, is issued in an eight-piece limited edition. This will be no traditional minute repeater, but a timepiece animated by a bird that will in the literal sense of the word whistle a tune. “It is a logical next step on from our recent developments”, points out Christian Lattmann, Vice-President, Jaquet Droz. “In 2010, we presented our first ‘Birds’ painted on enamel dials; in 2011, the feathered creature was depicted in relief; in 2012, with the Bird Repeater, it appeared in animated relief. The Charming Bird thus continues the cycle with a piston-driven movement such as could be found on 18th century snuffboxes. To pursue this tradition in a modern-day interpretation, the whole issue lay in effectively miniaturising this mechanism”.

New Quantième Perpétuel Eclipse and Grande Heure GMT


Jaquet Droz already had perpetual calendars in its collection. In parallel, its Eclipse range featured a moon phase with a design that has become a distinctive brand characteristic. The Manufacture thus now combines the two in presenting the Quantième Perpétuel Eclipse. This model achieves the impressive feat of preserving the extremely pure aesthetic of the two models, while offering a degree of complexity unequalled to date in the existing collections.

 

 

 

 

 

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Working on this same extremely understated aesthetic signature, Jaquet Droz introduces what may well be considered the world’s simplest GMT version: a white hand for local time, a second blue one for the place at a given destination. The day/night difference is indicated on a track showing the day (noon to midnight) on the left and the night (from midnight to noon. Technically speaking, this simple read-off mode translates into the presence of a single pusher to adjust both hands. This timepiece is so evidently user-friendly that one cannot help wondering why it wasn’t developed earlier! A last amusing detail: when the two hands are superimposed, they form a compass, “in reference to the navigating instrument that guided Pierre Jaquet Droz around the world”, says Christian Lattmann.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Spotlight on ladies’ watches

“We’d been thinking about developing a new feminine collection for some time”, admits Christian Lattmann. The Elegance Paris collection thus welcomes a whole new line with the Lady Eight.


The main original feature of this playful timepiece lies in its eight-shaped case: the lower part contains the watch dial and the upper part a stone or precious metal marble, depending on the versions. Three 35 mm models are being introduced, featuring a case middle adorned with asymmetrical gem-setting that flows around the contours of the distinctive case. The visually daring Lady Eight opens up a new creative window at Jaquet Droz, that of models with non-round cases…

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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