Bovet 1822 and Mr. Pascal Raffy present the Ateliers Bovet concept dedicated to the watchmaking arts and the technical excellence. It concentrates on the quintessence of decorative arts such as engraving, miniature painting, and watchmaking technology.
The craftsmen of the Ateliers Bovet demonstrate their propensity to innovate with the greatest respect for watchmaking traditions. While nearly 30% of the timepieces handcrafted today by Maison Bovet 1822 are unique pieces, the ones from the Ateliers Bovet allow collectors to bespoke their acquisition to the highest level of precision. The collector has the opportunity to join a team of specialists to define the specific technical and artistic detail of customization. The first chapter of the Ateliers Bovet is the Virtuoso X Tourbillon timepiece which is limited to 10 pieces.
The fascination of Mr. Raffy as a collector for decorative arts, and an uncompromising luxury watchmaking definition, inspired the development of the Virtuoso X Tourbillon timepiece. The Virtuoso X timepiece features the patented flying-tourbillon, it has ten days power reserve using only a single barrel, while presenting three distinct time zones. The local time is indicated in the centre of the dial, as well as on an eccentric dial on its reverse side. The two secondary time zones are displayed on a horizontal axis on the front side of the timepiece. The collector will have the opportunity to bespoke the names of the cities for each of the 24 timezones.
In the centre of each secondary dual time is a hand-painted hemispherical globe of the Earth. On the upper part of the two time zones is displayed the name of the city corresponding to the time zone. A clever combination of correctors allows summer and winter time to be taken into account for each of the 24 time zones.
The back side face of the Virtuoso X Tourbillon timepiece combines the talent of the artisans with the virtuosity of the engravers. The first master artisans manufactured a flinqué dial in the purest tradition of the cabin makers of the 18th and 19th centuries. The second artisans fully engraved the movement with the « Fleurisanne » motif, already known at the dawn of the 19th century by the Bovet brothers. The depth of the engraving is remarkable and the motif goes through the bridges of the movement without any interruption, it offers a dazzling contrast to the dial for incredible readability.
Also, the “guilloché laqué” on the front side of the dial features a half-moon shape. The two globes of the second and third time zones are hand-painted in three dimensions. The hand-painted globes are illuminated in the dark by an exclusive process that the Bovet brothers would not have denied.
The Virtuoso X Tourbillon adopts the Amadeo® convertible case system, which allows the collector to wear his wristwatch on two sides, face or reverse side, or use it as a pocket watch or a table clock. The reliability of this complication is certified by an independent laboratory for 30,000 conversion cycles without any alteration featuring both the elegance and functionality of the case.
The Virtuoso X Tourbillon is available in 18K red gold and 18K white gold for CHF 325,000, or in platinum
