Simply Abu Dhabi XXVI

1 6 7 S I M P LY A B U DH A B I T he Fabergé Visionnaire Chronograph watch was one of the most impressive timepieces at Baselworld 2017. It marks a revolution in the watch world with its new chronograph development, just as the watch’s launch marks a century since the start of the Russian Revolution. The Fabergé name is synonymous with luxury and will always be linked to Russia and the feted jewelled eggs that Fabergé created for Russian tsars and aristocracy. Traditionally, the chronograph function is displayed using subdials, but with this ingenious innovation the chronograph hours, minutes and seconds are displayed on concentric chapter rings, allowing for a more intuitive reading of the elapsed time. The self-winding Calibre AGH 6361, known as the AgenGraph, includes a new patented clutch – the AgenClutch – which dispenses with the teeth in the chronograph gears. The AgenClutch operates using surface friction rather than teeth, which cuts amplitude and friction and promotes uninterrupted smoothness in the movement. The calibre is the brainchild of the founder of the Agenhor movement company, master watchmaker Jean-Marc Wiederrecht, who has worked with luxury giants Hermès, Van Cleef & Arpels and Fabergé for the second time now following the successful 2016 collaboration on the Visionnaire DTZ watch. “Working with Fabergé gave me the opportunity to explore newways to consider and express time,” Wiederrecht says. “It’s wonderful, difficult, exciting and very stimulating work. I need to bring all the knowledge of high watchmaking and inventiveness that I can to these projects.” The AgenGraph took almost ten years to develop and has created waves in the watch world, where innovation and an endlessly pioneering spirit are celebrated. The Visionnaire Chronograph is available in rose gold and titaniumwith an opaline dial or in a black and grey DLC-treated ceramic and titanium version. According to Fabergé. “It is the modern-day analogue to a Fabergé egg – a mechanical opus with wonder at its heart.”