The Da Vinci Tourbillon Rétrograde Chronograph’s precious 44mm red gold case with golden push-buttons and lugs has a carefully balanced appearance. The harmonious arrangement of the three complications on the silver-plated dial, with the chronograph function at “12 o’clock”, follows the typical IWC pattern.
The most conspicuous feature of the watch is the flying tourbillon. Its cage is bearing-mounted only at one end, on the underside, and is not connected to an upper bridge. The tourbillon also features a technically complex hacking function that guarantees down-to-the-second accuracy when setting the watch. When the crown is pulled out, two levers grip the balance rim and block the mechanism consisting of the balance, wheel train and hands. New geometry in the pallet and escape wheel (made of diamond-coated silicon) combined with diamond shell technology ensures that the watch’s 68-hour power reserve when fully wound is maintained despite the additional complications.
Second complication, the chronograph function at “12 o’clock” allows stopped times of up to 11 hours and 59 minutes, which can be read off as easily as the time of day. The central seconds hand measures stopped times to an accuracy of one-quarter of a second.
So essentially, it is, in my mind, anything that makes us feel, as opposed to telling us what to believe. Loads of stuff fall into this class, even sport! Literature qualifies because the words, like brush strokes, paint a picture in our heads that’s different for everyone. A technical guide does nothing but instruct; art enables lateral thought, individual emotion, along with a unique takeaway. The Bovet Amadeo Fleurier 43, therefore, qualifies as art in my thoughts. A cool bit that adds a small bit of technical attention to something that’s otherwise little more than jewelry.So the principal thing you’ll notice when you look at the Bovet Amadeo Fleurier 43 is probably the rather striking picture of a horse-mounted, crown-wearing, bow-toting rider of the Apocalypse bedecked in a cloak, galloping over clouds. Right. Standard wrist candy? Not so much. This is something for the connoisseur. I mean, it’s easy to criticism within this view’s lack of mainstream appeal (particularly at Bovet’s price bracket), but if you’re only earning one (and this piece is truly exceptional in that feeling) you don’t need a great deal of people to enjoy it. There are a startling number of people in the world who have sufficient cash to buy this sort of merchandise, and the odds are in Bovet’s favour that among them will think that it’s the bees knees. And anyway, artwork has a bizarre habit of appreciating in value to the strangest reasons.Watches are no different. It was widely derided for its appearance, but nevertheless sold like hot cakes. These days, instead of his departure and his assured place in history, the Hayek Swatch is among the most collectable and sought after. Now, I am not saying this Bovet has exactly the same kind of importance to the market, but it might have that kind of emotional appeal to someone who has a specific penchant for the dial up subject.
The third complication is the retrograde date display, located on the left-hand side of the dial. The hand shows the date from the 1st to the 31st of the month as it moves across an arc and then, at the end of the scale, reverts to its starting point. In months with fewer than 31 days or when the watch has not been used for a while, the date display can be advanced rapidly and conveniently using the crown. Compared with a traditional date window, the analogue display turns the passage of time into a much more vivid experience.
The watch, which is water-resistant to 3 bar, has a transparent sapphire-glass back that reveals the new IWC-manufactured 89900 calibre with its solid red gold rotor.
The movable horns ensure that the dark brown alligator leather strap by Santoni with its 18-carat red gold folding clasp fits perfectly around the wrist.