With Watches and Wonders just weeks away, the watchmaking world is holding its breath... and its announcements. The Louis Moinet Workshops are no exception. However, for the past few days, their CEO Jean-Marie Schaller has been selectively sharing bits of information about a piece that seems to be named 1816. What do we know about it today?
Not a Commemoration
The year in question, 1816, marks the birth of the chronograph, of which Louis Moinet is the certified inventor. One can imagine that the watch bearing this date will also be a chronograph. An exceptional limited-edition commemorative piece? This seems unlikely: in 2025, there is no anniversary tied to 1816, as it would be 209 years ago. So, no anniversary piece on the horizon.
Not a Limited Edition
Jean-Marie Schaller also reveals that the model from the Louis Moinet Workshops, which has so far only included limited editions, will be exceptionally set aside. Translation: the 1816 will be the first non-limited Louis Moinet piece. "It's such an important watch, with almost more of Louis Moinet himself in it than the Workshops that bear his name today, that we feel a heightened responsibility, reflected in a regular and sustainable collection."
A Dedicated Movement
Regarding the movement, Jean-Marie Schaller shares a choice he did not make: taking an existing caliber and transforming it. "It’s an option I quickly dismissed. Firstly, in regard to Louis Moinet, it would almost have been a betrayal. He was a man of such passion that what we present today must correspond to what he would have done. We need to capture the same sense of authenticity. Secondly, for the display we plan, there is no technical solution currently available on the market."
Translation: the 1816 will feature a new caliber, 100% in-house, dedicated solely to this piece. It can be imagined that it was designed by the long-time partner of the Louis Moinet Workshops, Concepto, and/or assembled and adjusted in the workshop of the house hosted by Mercier in Breuleux. The only detail Jean-Marie Schaller shared: "330 components." We won't know more, but this is a high number for a chronograph, suggesting a design "in the old way," rather than a modern, ultra-optimized approach aimed at cost reduction.
In the current collections, the 1816 should be considered a centerpiece of the Louis Moinet collections. Not limited and, above all, complementary to Memoris, the chronograph tribute released in 2016 for the 200th anniversary of the chronograph's invention. It is thus likely that the 1816 and Memoris will target two different audiences.
A Smaller Size?
Then there’s the appearance of the piece. In recent years, Jean-Marie Schaller has designed watches that have progressively gotten smaller, moving away from diameters of 43 to 46 mm to 42 mm and below. The 1816 should follow this same trend, which would confirm its non-limited nature and its intended wider audience. What price? "You’ll be surprised…," Jean-Marie Schaller concludes with a smile.
