At Baselworld in 2014, Louis Vuitton created a sensation with the launch of the Escale Worldtime, which offered a new way of looking at the universal hour function. This travel watch is unlike any other you may have seen. There are no extra hands, additional windows or subdials. Just 24 time zones, along with 24 abbreviations of cities spread across the globe, allowing the wearer to see at a glance what time it is in Sydney or Los Angeles.
The time is shown on three superimposed rotating discs. The large outer disc, on two levels and in eye-catching colour, bears the city initials. It rotates on demand to set the reference city, which is positioned at the 12 o’clock position, above the yellow arrow. The inner disc, divided into two semicircles, one white and one navy blue (for day and night), shows the hours. The smallest disc, in the centre, displays the minutes. The movement of the discs, all adjusted via a single crown, is driven by the calibre LV106, a self-winding mechanical movement developed and assembled entirely in-house by the master watchmakers at La Fabrique du Temps Louis Vuitton. It provides a power reserve of 38 hours. The only fixed element on the dial is the black triangle topped with a yellow arrow, which sits directly under the non-reflecting sapphire crystal, so as not to hamper the movement of the rotating discs.
The dial of the Escale is what gives the collection its signature appeal: the colourful geometric motifs are a reminder of the emblems with which Louis Vuitton customised its clients’ travel trunks. The multi-coloured stripes, crests, initials and geometric pictograms are hand-painted by craftsmen working in the Fabrique du Temps workshops. No fewer than 38 different colours are painstakingly applied one by one, with a brush, which explains why it takes more than 40 hours to complete each dial.
The four lugs of the 41 mm case, in brushed titanium and white gold, are reminiscent of the corner-pieces of LV trunks, and yet another reference to the art of travel, a theme inseparable from the history of the French luxury brand. The Escale Worldtime comes with a navy blue alligator strap lined with yellow rubber-effect calfskin, closed with an 18-carat white gold folding clasp.
