SimplyAbuDhabi XIV

A mong the timepieces Breguet produces, those in the Reine de Naples collection have always been noted for elevating into pure visual poetry. This is no doubt due to the unique shape of the case, but it could also be because it is a collection in which each highly complicated and desirable watch is made exclusively for women. In the Reine de Naples models, Breguet expresses its high regard for the insightful female customer through both artistic and mechanical skills. Ethereal mixtures of colour and textures are combined to create breathtaking timepieces that embody creative dreams realised by the most skilful dexterity. Last year, Breguet presented the Reine de Naples Jour/Nuit model, a mechanical interpretation of the daily ballet danced by the sun and the moon in the heavens above us. It arrived to critical and popular acclaim, and thereafter won several prizes. This year, the company has decided to offer a variant that is even more splendid with a gem-encrusted Reine de Naples model that does honour to the jewellery skills of Breguet’s artists. The bezel and caseband are set with 131 baguette diamonds, while the dial and the ball attachment are finely decorated in a frosting of diamonds. The crown is topped by a briolette diamond that finishes off the case with a glittering flourish. Breguet’s precise and unerring mechanical expertise is also on display, since this watch is fitted with a movement specially made for the Reine de Naples collection. Apart from indicating the hours and minutes, it animates a whimsical representation of the hours of the day and night on a second dial. The two dials combine in a figure of 8, a symbolic number in many cultures, signifying infinity as a motif for endless time. A titanium moon is placed on a disc of lapis lazuli while the path of the sun is represented by the facetted rim of the balance-wheel that throws out rays of light. The sun moves according to the motion of the balance on a daylong tour of the Arabic Chapter ring before setting beneath the horizon of the steel bridge supporting the mechanism. Decorations on the disc add to the enchantment with inserts of mother-of- pearl for clouds and the living gleam of gold stars. To make the time simple and clear to view, the dial for the hours and minutes has a mother-of-pearl chapter ring engraved with Roman numerals, while Arabic numerals adorn the mother-of-pearl inset surrounding the representation of the day and night hours. All this is staged in the tasteful and finely crafted surroundings of the Reine de Naples case itself. An astute combination of high quality mixed with creative design, engineered by Breguet, results in excellence. Beyond this, the Reine de Naples Jour/Nuit 8999 acts as a dazzling ornament that sparkles with a thousand fires. It offers the sophistication of a unique and poetic horological composition, with the elegant beauty of a superlative Brequet timepiece. Reine deNaples Jour/Nuit 8999 Haute Joaillerie 9 5 S I M P LY A B U DH A B I