Showing at WatchTime New York 2019: Breguet Classique Tourbillon Extra-Plat Squelette 5395

Breguet’s Classique Tourbillon Extra-Plat Squelette 5395 is a watch that combines the most emblematic of all Breguet inventions, the tourbillon, with a unique skeletonized dial architecture. The new watch — shown to audiences in the U.S. for the first time at the upcoming WatchTime New York collectors’ event — takes the manufacture’s extra-thin, tourbillon-equipped Caliber 581 and removes close to 50 percent of its normal material construction.

The emphasis placed on Caliber 581 as the overriding aesthetic of the watch gives it a visually compelling look distinct from those of other models in the elegantly appointed Classique family of timepieces. The gold plate and bridges have been hollowed out so as to display the mechanical anatomy of the movement. Clous de Paris hobnailing was created on the remaining plates using a diamond-tipped guilloché procedure. The sharp edges were painstakingly chamfered by hand, using a file to create a series of exceptionally smooth 45-degree bevels. Significant engraving work was then carried out by hand for the different inscriptions as well as around the borders to frame the holes. The watch’s dial features applied indices in blued gold along with, of course, the signature blued steel open-tipped Breguet hands.

Coming in at only 3 mm thick, with a tourbillon carriage weighing under 0.3 grams, automatic Caliber 581 features a rotor that has been placed on the movement’s periphery in order to remain as sylphlike as possible while providing an unobstructed view of the skeletonized movement. It offers 80 hours of running autonomy courtesy of the high-energy barrel that beats at 4 Hz. The tourbillon at the heart of Caliber 581  has undergone a redesign since the movement’s appearances in Ref. 5367 and 5377, with the titanium carriage now engaging directly with the wheel train rather than via the intermediary of a pinion at its base. Furthermore, the silicon escapement has been given a distinctive, angled shape, an element that saves additional space.

The Breguet Classique Tourbillon Extra-Plat Squelette 5395 comes in either a rose-gold case with a gray-finish movement design or in a platinum case with a rose-gold movement. It comes on an alligator leather strap with a gold folding buckle. If you’re interested in checking out this timepiece for yourself, along with those of 36 other exhibiting watch brands, don’t delay: order your tickets now for WatchTime New York 2019!