MONSIEUR de CHANEL is a finalist in the Mechanical Exception category of the 2016 Grand Prix d'Horlogerie de Genève awards

By Kien Lee

Presenting MONSIEUR de CHANEL, the French luxury label's first dedicated watch for men.

The timepiece is an entirely new project from CHANEL, from concept to reality, movement to watch case.

The 40mm case with silvered opaline dial comes with a slightly-domed sapphire crystal.

Inside, a digital hour display along with the double complication of Instant Jumping Hour and Retrograde Minute is equipped with the CALIBRE 1, its first in-house high-watchmaking movement which took five years to develop - designed, developed, reliability checked and assembled by CHANEL.

The Jumping Hour requires the careful management of micro-shocks and the energy consumption caused by the passage of the aluminium hour disc as it displays the next hour/number,

The Retrograde Minute function, spans over a 240°-display on the dial - with the minute hand resetting from 60 to 0 once the hour is up - comes with a bi-directional corrector for easy adjustment.

A manual-winding mechanical movement made up of 170 components, the CALIBRE 1 is a movement with integrated complications, meaning that the complications are integrated into the bottom plate and are not simply modules attached to a base. Power reserve is up to 3 days.

Two circular skeletonized bridges are the highlights of the mechanical movement, with matt and glossy black ADLC (Amorphous Diamond Like Carbon). Several custom-made parts bring to mind the octagonal shape of Place Vendome in Paris.

In addition, the lion, an emblem of the House, features on the buckle and crown.

Incidentally, the lion is also the seal of all CHANEL's in-house Haute Horlogerie movements.

300 numbered movements are available in 2016, in either Beige Gold or White Gold (150 each).

Beige Gold is priced at S$48,800 and White Gold S$51,100 in Singapore.

CHANEL Fine Jewellery Boutique
#01-04 Takashimaya S.C.
391 Orchard Rd, Singapore 238873
Tel: +65 6836 7588