Less than a year after being acquired by the Gouten family, Manufacture Royale presented at Baselworld 2014 its first completely new release under its new shareholders. In tribute to the brand’s founders and origins, the 2014 new model is named 1770, the founding date. It owes its design to the magic touch of Eric Giroud, who placed the flying tourbillon at 7 o’clock and created an understated yet sophisticated 20-part case featuring the shafts on either side which are a Manufacture Royale aesthetic signature. The purity of the dial and lines of the delightfully rounded pink or white gold case accentuates the singular stage-setting for the flying tourbillon, topped by a crossbow-shaped power-reserve display. The arrow-like hour-markers and sword-shaped hands pointing towards the interior of the dial and the mechanical treasure beneath set the perfect visual touch to the 1770. Along with its silicon escape-wheel and lever, its Haute Horlogerie finishes are revealed on the back, notably including the mirror-polished plates and bridges adorned with straight-graining, beveling and circular-graining. The impact of the original esthetic of this timepiece is matched by an excellent quality/price ratio that the court is bound to appreciate.