Breguet Marine
The Breguet Marine upholds the Maison’s links to its naval past courtesy of dials adorned with a wave motif. Consistent with the marque’s elevated standards, the dial decoration is imparted with a rose-engine lathe, perpetuating an age-old technique. Now, the luxury brand has announced that three of its Marine models are available with matching gold bracelets.
The marine world and horology have been inseparable bedfellows since the 18th century. For many years, marine chronometers have been used to determine longitude in order to ensure the safe passage of ships. The leading lights of horology expended much energy creating increasingly precise marine chronometers. The leading lights in this field include, John Harrison, Ferdinand Berthoud and Abraham-Louis Breguet.
King Louis XVIII appointed Breguet as Chronometer maker to the French Royal Navy. Despite the passage of time, the House of Breguet has never forgotten its history of making naval clocks.
The Breguet Marine 5517, Breguet Marine Chronographe 5527 and Breguet Marine Alarme Musical 5547, three models endowed with wave-themed guilloché dials are now offered with matching gold bracelets.
The brand’s press release
The Marine collection is firmly rooted in the fundamentals of Breguet’s heritage. Back in the late eighteenth century, Abraham-Louis Breguet, the father of modern clock and watchmaking, determined the essentials in the art of fashioning timepieces: reliability and legibility. His many technical innovations, among them the tourbillon, were designed to optimise chronometry and its applications. Just as crucially, an uncluttered aesthetic ensures the pieces are also easy to read.
In 1815, King Louis XVIII of France recognized the exceptional qualities of Breguet’s work, appointing him Chronometer-maker to the French royal navy. From that point on, the success of the royal expeditions was in part dependent on the reliability of his naval clocks – both a great honour and a heavy responsibility. In 1840, for example, a Breguet instrument was the first timepiece to reach the Antarctic, with the Jules Dumont d’Urville expedition. The links between the House of Breguet and the maritime world are as tangible as they have always been.
Marine 5517, Marine Chronographe 5527, Marine Alarme Musicale 5547
Perfectly placed on its clean, simple three-hand display, the Marine 5517 features a date window. The Marine Chronographe 5527, on the other hand, measures short time intervals. Finally, the Marine Alarme Musicale 5547 features an alarm complication, as well as displaying the date and time for a second time zone. Each watch is available in three materials: titanium, rose gold, and white gold. The titanium model features an elegantly understated sunburst slate-grey dial in gold. The rose gold and white gold cases feature a gold dial engine-turned by hand with an original wave design.
Gold Bracelets
For 2020, Breguet is offering the Marine collection with matching gold straps for a sportier look – rose gold for versions with a silver dial and white gold for those with a blue dial. The first link, which is attached directly – integrated – to the case, continues the smooth lines of the Marine to the wrist, offering superior comfort for the wearer. Echoing the contrasting gold on the case, the links alternate between polished and glossy facets – a finishing touch of the highest precision, requiring the greatest delicacy.
A Maritime Aesthetic
The sculpted lugs accentuate the roundness of the case on the Marine models. The fluted case flanks evoke Breguet creations of times gone by. The artisan watchmaker’s skill heightens the dial’s legibility, whilst the bright polished finish of the Breguet moon-tipped hands makes reading the time all but effortless. For nighttime use, the tip of each hand features a luminescent material, as do the five-minute markers above the Roman numerals. For its Marine collection, Breguet has created an engine-turning pattern inspired by the crests of the waves, executed by hand on the versions in gold.
Countless details from the Marine 5517, Marine Chronographe 5527, and Marine Alarme Musicale 5547 pay homage to the nautical world. On the calibre bridges, the côtes de Genève pattern engine-turned by hand calls to mind a ship’s deck boards. The tip of the second hand forms a “B,” which stands for the “Bravo” of maritime parlance, or for Breguet. A ship’s wheel design features on the rotor.
With Marine from Breguet, the elegance of adventure lends inspiration to the explorers of today.
Further reading