The artistic director of Chopard, Caroline Scheufele, has this time envisioned a swan as a secret watch. Swan Lake is an animated sculpture, born from the alliance between jewelry and watchmaking. Its plumage shimmers with 34 carats of white diamonds, set on ethical white gold. Its onyx eyes stare steadily, its beak plays with contrasts between black diamonds, champagne, and orange garnets. Its base in blue anodized titanium, set with diamonds to represent the foam, reminds one of the waves on which the swan glides. This base made of grade 2 titanium is lightweight, easy to shape, and solid at the same time. Thanks to the use of this metal, the weight of the piece is limited to 200 grams.
The ballet of the swan
An almost theatrical movement of the swan's head opens its wings. Their three-part arrangement creates a sensation of fluidity, crafted over months. The artisans initially envisioned a tiered deployment, upward, very spectacular, but too complex. They finally opted for this type of lateral opening, more natural, more sustainable as well. Under this ballet of gold and diamond feathers, a mother-of-pearl dial engraved with a feather is revealed. The pin buckle repeats this motif, in white gold set with diamonds.
This watch, a fireworks display of precious stones, condenses 900 hours of work among designers, watchmakers, and jewelers. The ethical gold that composes it comes from responsible sources, the titanium lightens and strengthens the structure, the wing mechanism is designed for durability. Every decision, from setting to movement, aims to create a dream object, capable of withstanding the test of time.
The alliance of mechanics and jewelry
Beneath this precious adornment, a mechanical movement makes the heart of Swan Lake beat. Chopard has chosen to house the caliber 10.01-C with manual winding, one of the most compact of the manufacture: barely the thickness of two stacked 5-cent coins. Despite its tiny size, it offers 45 hours of power reserve and a frequency of 21,600 vibrations/hour. A deliberate choice, to further elevate the value of the piece: no quartz here, but traditional watchmaking, transmissible, inscribed in time.
Swan Lake is not merely a secret jewel, nor only a technical feat. It is a story in motion: that of a swan revealing, behind its set feathers, a living and durable mechanism – the union of Chopard's two craftsmanship skills, watchmaking and jewelry, so well represented by its two co-presidents, Caroline and Karl-Friedrich Scheufele. In 2024, the Geneva house won the GPHG’s Jewellery Watch Prize for its secret watch 'Laguna'. Join us on November 13 to see if the Swan will join this Lagoon...
