Breguet pays tribute to the iconic Year of the Snake by unveiling an exclusive model, limited to 8 numbered pieces, that highlights two handcrafted artistic techniques: guilloché and engraving.
Symbol of wisdom, intuition, transformation, and mystery, the snake holds a special place in Chinese culture, where it is regarded as a creature of knowledge and renewal. To celebrate the Year of the Snake, the Manufacture highlights its artisanal expertise with an exceptional timepiece that honours the elegance and profound symbolism of this enigmatic animal.
The Art of Hand Engraving
Breguet’s latest creation showcases the refined art of engraving on gold, a bas-relief technique that transforms the dial into a miniature sculpture. Each motif is carefully drawn and then sculpted by the artisan, who handles chisels and burins with extreme precision while observing the work under a microscope. This meticulous craftsmanship, the most delicate stage of the process, brings to life subtle and refined details. Finally, the component is cleaned and polished, revealing the depth and brilliance of each engraving, underscoring the Maison’s mastery and watchmaking expertise.
The Art of Hand Guilloché
Around 1786, Breguet introduced a new art form with its finely guilloché silver or gold dials, a distinctive detail that became a signature of the Maison. Today, this traditional expertise is expressed in the guilloché work of its latest creation, performed using ancestral guilloché lathes that have been in use for over a century. These machines, extensions of the artisan’s hand, enable the creation of hand-engraved patterns with precision to the nearest tenth of a millimetre. The more intricate the motif, the more it reveals the artisan’s sensitivity and skill, as each line and curve is meticulously shaped, transforming the dial into a true work of horological art.
Aesthetics
After meticulously engraving every detail of the snake and its environment, Breguet enhances the depth of the artwork by applying a black coating, creating a striking contrast. This is followed by polishing and hand guilloché, which require perfect dexterity to preserve the precision of the already intricate work. To elevate the foliage, a translucent miniature painting is applied, highlighting various shades of green while maintaining the artisanal essence of the engraving, in harmony with the rest of the dial. This precise and meticulous work, entirely handcrafted, creates a subtle interplay between deep green and sea green. The Breguet hands with “open-tipped pomme” design sweep over the hour track adorned with discreet round gold indices, while the gold oscillating weight features a hand-guilloché barleycorn motif—another detail that embodies Breguet’s timeless elegance and artisanal mastery.
The Movement
The Breguet calibre 502 exemplifies elegance and refinement with a thickness of only 2.40mm. A true technical feat, this movement is one of the thinnest in production today and is equipped with a 22K gold rotor, hand-engraved with a guilloché pattern. Entirely crafted in-house, every stage of its creation is handled within the Manufacture, from shaping components to final assembly. This meticulous process demands exceptional horological expertise, ensuring not only the movement’s precision but also the visual harmony of every detail. With the calibre 502, Breguet continues to uphold the art of delicate mechanics, combining aesthetic excellence with technical mastery to deliver a timepiece that lives up to its storied heritage.
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