Monsieur de Chanel

CASE : white gold, waterresistant to 30m

DIAMETER : 40mm

MOVEMENT : mechanical hand-wound, Caliber 1, three-day power reserve

FUNCTIONS : instant jumping hours, retrograde minutes, small seconds

DIAL : opaline ivory-toned

STRAP : black alligator leather

 

La Chaux-de-Fonds, Suisse. Altitude : 1,000m. Specialty : the watch industry in all its forms. It is here, in the G&F Châtelain factory dedicated to high-end watch exterior elements and owned by Chanel since 1993, that the brand’s timepieces spring to life.

 

Monsieur de Chanel

CASE : beige gold, waterresistant to 30m

DIAMETER : 40mm

MOVEMENT : mechanical hand-wound, Caliber 1, three-day power reserve

FUNCTIONS : instant jumping hours, retrograde minutes, small seconds

DIAL : opaline ivory-toned

STRAP : black alligator leather

For Chanel, this year marks a new stage in mastering time. Not only has it earned a place of its own on the watchmaking scene with such distinctive models as the J12 and the Première watch, but the Parisian Maison has now entered the select circle of brands capable of producing their own movements. The name of the first Chanel movement is Caliber 1, and the model housing it is called Monsieur de Chanel.

Dedicated exclusively to this model, the Caliber 1 with Instant Jumping Hour and Retrograde Minute is the first movement entirely designed, developed, fine-tuned and assembled by Chanel. This mechanical handwound 170-part caliber is a movement with integrated complications, meaning that they are built into the movement right from its baseplate and not added as a module to a base blank.

Crafted in keeping with traditions yet highly contemporary, Caliber 1 – which powers a double complication – called for a full five years of development.

This technical and creative approach is a token of nobility and reliability. A mechanical construction accentuated by two circular skeleton-worked bridges, Caliber 1 features a wealth of references to the distinctive brand codes, with predominantly black, matt and shiny surfaces, as well as the lion – its most masculine emblem – that sets a seal on all in-house Haute Horlogerie movements.

The gem of horological technology represented by Caliber 1 deserved a worthy housing. An all-new 40 mm-diameter round case was thus developed for the Monsieur de Chanel collection. Ever since its first steps in the realm of prestige watchmaking in 1987, Chanel has been working with the Swiss G&F Châtelain manufacturer renowned for its expertise in the production of cases and bracelets, as well as its gemsetting know-how. In 1993, Chanel decided to acquire this company based in La Chaux-de-Fonds and which has maintained its autonomy, its entire range of activities as well as its name. It is there that all Chanel watches are developed, in collaboration with the design studio in Paris.

In design terms, the circle was a deliberate choice by the Chanel creative team. This model is stripped of anything superfluous, expressing a quest for purity equivalent to a style manifesto. The opaline silver-toned dial is protected by a box-type sapphire crystal slightly curved to ensure subtle light effects.

On the dial, the position of the two horological complications (off-centered jumping hour at 6 o’clock and 240° retrograde minute sweep), as well as the exclusive font of the hour numerals, accentuate this deliberate determination to stand out from the crowd. The contrast between the understated dial and the highly structured movement design is entirely in tune with the uncompromisingly creative approach adopted by the Maison.

In 2016, 300 numbered movements will be produced : 150 for the Monsieur de Chanel watch in beige gold and 150 for the white gold version. With this outstanding new timepiece, Chanel’s vision of masculine Fine Watchmaking is conveyed through technical excellence matched by a unique style and a distinguished appearance.

See also : Chanel – Boy.Friend, or the art of combining masculine and feminine elements