Breguet once again celebrates the ladies watch with a special complication. This new invention is a hand in the shape of an ever changing heart, curving to expand or contract around the dial. Introducing the Breguet Reine de Naples Cœur 9825.
Details from Press Release with commentary and explanation in italics.
Reine de Naples Cœur 9825
This exclusive Coeur, or Heart edition, limited to 28 numbered pieces and accompanied by a matching clutch as its case, is reserved for a selection of Breguet boutiques. Retail price is SGD 66,200 inclusive of GST / CHF 45,000 inclusive of Swiss VAT.
Release info
The first wristwatch ever made, the model no. 2639 was a treasure trove of ingenuity right from its origins in 1810. Breguet was inspired by this innovative watch and by the client, Caroline Murat, Queen of Naples, who commissioned it, for its iconic contemporary collection.
Today, for its new creation dedicated to women and to love, the House of Breguet has designed a new system protected by several patents. The magic of an innovative mechanism changes the heart shape of the minute hand – off-center at 6 o’clock – depending on its position on the oval dial.
Breguet, which has always developed special watches dedicated to women, is thus faithful to its history and its practice. For this new creation, its curves stretch as the hand moves across the top half of the dial, and become more rounded at the bottom. A real heart that beats… A pared-down dial highlights the delicate elegance and great romanticism of this piece. Touches of vermilion red add to the intensity of the lines of the hours chapter, the leather strap, and the crown, which is adorned with a ruby. This luxurious and exclusive composition is brought to perfection with rose gold and diamonds.
This model, reserved for brand boutiques, is presented in an envelope clutch bag finished in grained calfskin leather and dyed vermilion red to match the strap of the Reine de Naples Coeur.
For the face of this new Reine de Naples, Breguet has opted for understated elegance. The heart-shaped minute hand moves over a sapphire-crystal dial, lacquered in white for a very soft and subtle translucent effect. Its tip, marked by a subtle red heart, indicates the minutes on the hours chapter, punctuated by tiny hearts every five minutes. For better readability, something dear to Breguet, the quarter numerals are distinguished by their size and their outline, lacquered with vermilion. The hour, indicated by a drop of purple lacquer, appears in the center through a window. The rose gold of the dial flange and bezel is set with 128 diamonds. The setting of the folding buckle, also in gold, echoes the brilliance of the case, amounting to a total of approximately 0.94 carats.
The latest invention of the House of Breguet is a minute hand composed of two independent arms, capable of twisting thanks to an ingenious set of gears to create a heart that is extended at 12 o’clock and more rounded at 6 o’clock. Equipped with an oval-shaped cam – mirroring the curves so characteristic of the Reine de Naples – the mechanism allows each of these arms to move at different speeds. This innovation, created exclusively for the Reine de Naples, is protected by four patents. The gears of this complication, like all the components of the caliber, are all carefully hand-finished in the Breguet tradition – whether visible or invisible to the eye. The sapphire-crystal caseback of the rose gold case reveals the movement of the caliber, the 78A0. On the gold rim, the individual number of the watch is engraved, recorded in the archives of the House of Breguet, which have been maintained since the end of the eighteenth century.
With the Reine de Naples Coeur, Breguet conjures up the magic of love, thanks to an innovative hand that traces a heart of ever-changing shape. The delicate and unexpected combination of technique and romanticism.
Commentary and explanation of the mechanism
The mechanism is very interesting, and is executed with the very romantic accent in the shape of an expanding and contracting heart. The time telling function is unabated by this complication, remaining intuitive and easy to read. The disc carrying the hour indicators rotate continuously, and is visible through a beautifully trimmed aperture on the dial. And the graceful, sweeping minute hand comprises of two blades which make up the shape of a heart, expanding and contracting as it traverses the dial. This is a beautiful visual, as the hand lengthens and shorten, makes the heart shape expand and contract tracing the unique egg shape of the Reine Naples case/dial.
The variable length minute hand is made of a LIGA manufactured process using nickel phosphorus. The two sweeping arms are independent of each other, yet joined at the apex of the heart. They are independently capable of flexing to lengthen or shorten. Each end is attached to one of two independent, coaxially mounted driving wheels. The minute hand is driven in one arm which is attached to one of the driving wheels. We call this the main driving wheel, and it remains in contact with the arm all the time, pushing it one revolution every hour. When the hand is on the lower part of the dial, the second driving wheel engages. This second driving wheel has blank teeth on part of its surface, and only engages on the lower part of the dial when it has teeth present and provides resistance against the main driving wheel. This causes the arm to tense and flex, shortening it. The exact timing of the engagement and the amount of flex is calculated precisely. The trick is to ensure that it is flexes sufficiently at the precise location in order to trace the egg shape perimeter of the dial. This action is coordinated by an oval shape cam, which not only determines the amount of resistance provided, but also the exact moment of engagement. The result is a smooth lengthening and shortening of the minute hand perfectly tracing the perimeter of the dial. Quite ingenious.
The special complication protected by 4 patents.
Conceptually, this is similar to the Ovale Pantographe by Parmigiani, which itself is an idea borrowed from a pocket watch made in the 1800s by Jardon & Stedmann. The mechanism is also driven by a set of cams, which allow the hands to lengthen and shorten. The visual aspects in comparing the Rein de Naples Coeur and the Ovale Pantographe is as different as chalk and cheese. The Breguet oozes with exquisite elegance and romanticism of the beautiful heart shape formed, while the Parmigiani took the more brutish mechanical route, showing the engineering of the linked plates which make up the hands.
Reine de Naples Cœur 9825 Specifications
REF. 9825BR/S8/964 D00D
Oval case in 18-karat rose gold with delicately fluted caseband. Bezel and dial flange set with 128 diamonds weighing approximately 0.77 carats. Crown set with a cabochon-cut ruby (approx. 0.25 carats). Sapphire-crystal caseback. Dimensions 36.5 × 28.45 millimeters. Thickness 10.96 millimeters. Water-resistant to 3 bar (30 meters).
Sapphire-crystal dial lacquered in white with Breguet Arabic numerals. Individually numbered and signed Breguet. Indication of the hour in a window and of the minute by a heart-shaped hand of variable length.
Mechanical self-winding movement. Caliber 78A0. 10 ¾ × 13 ½ lignes. 33 jewels. 40-hour power reserve. 252 components. In-line Swiss lever escapement, silicon escape wheel and flat balance spring. Frequency 3.5 hertz. Breguet balance wheel.
Red alligator leather strap with a triple folding buckle set with 28 diamonds weighing approximately 0.17 carats.
Limited edition of 28 timepieces, numbered from 1/28 to 28/28, accompanied by a clutch serving as a case and crafted in red grained calfskin.
