As part of its 250th anniversary, Breguet has introduced two new timepieces in its iconic ladies’ collection.
Breguet is continuing to celebrate its monumental birthday with the addition of a pair of ladies’ timepieces. The new Reine de Naples 9935 is equipped with a reworked mechanical movement and the 8925 features a notable design evolution. Both pieces, like all of the watches in the Reine de Naples collection, pay homage to the timepieces created for Emperor Napoleon I’s sister, Caroline Murat (née Bonaparte), between 1810 and 1812. Murat, who became the Queen of Naples when her husband Joachim Murat ascended to the throne in 1808, collected many Breguet timepieces. An oblong watch that Breguet made for her is thought to have been the first watch that was intended to be worn on the wrist, rather than placed in a pocket.
Moonlit
The new Reine de Naples 9935 watches take their design inspiration from previous versions, but feature a larger moon phase indicator at the 12 o’clock position. The new pieces do not have a power-reserve indicator on the dial, allowing for a more prominent moon and a closer focus on the hours, minutes and the small seconds. The watches measure 36.5 millimeters long and 28.45 millimeters wide, and their bezels and flanges are set with 109 brilliant-cut diamonds.
The new Calibre 537L2 movement can be seen through a sapphire crystal on the caseback, which is also engraved with “BREGUET 250 YEARS.” The watches are crafted of 18-k Breguet gold, an alloy developed exclusively for the brand.
“We wanted to offer a watch that was easy to wear every day, combining jewelry and timepieces,” said Gregory Kissling, Breguet’s CEO. “It was from this desire that the idea of a jewelry bracelet was born, to accompany its owner from morning to night, in all circumstances.”
Linked In
The new bracelet’s design draws its inspiration from the watch’s oblong case and pearls, the queen’s much-loved gemstone. Oblong links, inspired by the watch’s case shape, flank central circular links in a design that gently encircles the wrist. Due to its extremely fluid design, the bracelet’s length can be adjusted to the nearest millimeter, according to the brand, and it features an invisible clasp.
Attention to Detail
Two of the new 9935 versions, one with a pavé diamond dial and the other with a white mother-of-pearl dial, are equipped with the new jewelry bracelet, while a third version with an aventurine glass dial has a satin-effect blue alligator strap. The timepiece with the mother-of-pearl dial is also offered on the blue alligator strap. The watches’ new movement and caseback engraving are pictured left. The new Reine de Naples 8925 watches’ design is a singular minimalism inspired by Abraham-Louis Breguet watches of the late 18th century, according to the brand.
Maximal Minimalism
Breguet “laid the foundations for an aesthetic vocabulary focused on clarity and legibility.” The reference 8925 watches’ seemingly simple design, however, belies the handcraftsmanship that’s required not only for the case and dial, but also for the self-winding movement. Three distinct dials versions of the 8925 have been introduced—one crafted of white mother-of-pearl, a second in all gold with a sunburst-brushed finish and a third which is crafted of black aventurine and a black lacquer-coated hour ring.
While these seven new references pay homage to the original timepiece owned by the Queen of Naples, the original watch’s whereabouts are unknown. “All traces of it were lost in the mid-19th century,” said Emmanuel Breguet, the brand’s head of patrimony. “We know that it was repaired in 1849 the Quai de l’Horloge [Breguet’s watchmaking atelier in Paris], and then again in 1855, but it has not been seen since. Today, some of Caroline Murat’s descendants are trying to find it, and it is not impossible that this historic timepiece will reappear one day…” That would be a wonder, indeed.