The universal genius Abraham-Louis Breguet was interested in all areas of watchmaking, but especially in marine chronometry. This area of expertise represented the spearhead of horological research during his lifetime. Precise nautical instruments for conquering the world’s oceans were the timekeepers of the hour, and not only in the seafaring nations. Breguet, a member of the “Bureau des Longitudes”, was appointed Chronometer Maker of the French Royal Navy by King Louis XVIII in the fall of 1815. This marked the beginning of a tradition that lasted until the 1960s and has been expressed most beautifully in the Marine collection for several years now.
The collection today comprises of a world-time watch, an alarm watch, a chronograph, a three-hand timepiece with date window and a grand complication, the Marine Tourbillon Équation Marchante which combines a perpetual calendar, an equation and a tourbillon.
The latest edition to the watch family is the Breguet Marine Tourbillon 5577. This haute-horlogerie masterpiece sets sail in a 42.5mm case in platinum or pink gold. The sunburst dial of the new 5577 references is slate-grey colored for the rose gold version and navy blue for the platinum model. The tourbillon located at 5 o’clock catches the eye with its cage rotating in 60 seconds. The chapter ring has been off-centered so as to highlight this mechanism, while, the hour-markers and the open-tipped gold Breguet hands are luminescent.
Demonstrating Breguet’s technical prowess, the self-winding manufacture Calibre 581 measures just 3mm thick, despite comprising 330 components. This thinness is made possible by the use of a peripheral rotor. The balance beats at a frequency of 4 Hertz and has an impressive power reserve of 80 hours.
To ensure it incorporates all the latest innovations, the caliber is fitted with a carriage and balance-spring in silicon, a material with multiple properties including resistance to both corrosion and wear, along with insensitivity to the influence of magnetic fields.
The sophisticated finishing quality is revealed through the sapphire case-back. As a nod to the nautical heritage, the barrel drum bears a compass rose. Various decorations typical of the Marine line are also present, including a straight ribbed motif.
The platinum version of the Marine Tourbillon, ref. 5577PT/Y2/5WV retails for $166,900. The pink gold execution, ref. 5577BR/G2/9WV has a price tag of $151,500.
To learn more, visit Breguet, here.
