Breguet’s new Classique Répétition Minutes 7637 has arrived on our shores with elegant ease, cloaked in a black grand feu enamel dial with Arabic numerals and a secret signature.
What’s not a secret is the remarkable craft and technical expertise that Breguet brings to the table, especially to the Classique Répétition Minutes 7637. In a world of over-the-top, jewel-studded glamour, the new timepiece presents a sedated respite to luxury watches. Dressed in all black with rose gold accents, it’s a nod to Swiss-French watchmaker and company founder Abraham-Louis Breguet’s adept abilities and aesthetic vision to create handcrafted instruments of impeccable and—pardon the pun—timeless quality.
An invention brought about by necessity, the minute repeater stands out in watchmaking history as one of the most remarkable complications. Before the widespread use of electricity, there was a primordial need for a timepiece that could easily tell the time at night when visibility was low. With the invention of the first minute repeater watch in 1680, it set the precedent; finally, a device that could chime the hours and sound the quarters and minutes. Breguet, who harboured a passion for constant improvement, quickly developed his interest in the mechanism into a lifelong pursuit for constant, methodical improvement.
With the new Classique Répétition Minutes 7637, the brand pays tribute to a facet first created 240 years ago in 1783, when the founder invented the first repeating watches using a gong-spring. It also had the added benefit of reducing the thickness of such timepieces.
In addition to the movement, a sense of modality became imperative as the chiming mechanism had to have impeccable acoustic qualities. An in-house acoustician, with the innate ability to comprehend the musicality of perfect sound, has to tune the gong in two phases: harmonic and melodic. As to how the detailed work is done, the literature in Breguet, Watchmakers Since 1775: The Life and Legacy of Abraham-Louis Breguet puts it best: “Inside an anechoic chamber specially dedicated to this horological complication, the specialist will first seek to ascertain the resonant frequency of each gong. Once this note has been determined, further work is carried out to find the melody most closely resembling Breguet’s signature sound. As each timepiece is hand-crafted, the acoustics differ subtly from one watch to another, making this complication even more unique.”
On the dial, the grand feu enamelling technique adds an elegant sheen, creating the classic, minimalist “dress watch” look. Few artisans can replicate this craft; just to get the desired shade and hue, it can take several weeks to produce a single dial. An alligator leather strap with a gold triple-blade folding clasp holds the rose-gold case together. Look past the dial to the back of the watch to see the real masterpiece—an intricately decorated hand-wound calibre 567.2 movement, with gongs crafted from gold to match the case.
Breguet’s new Classique Répétition Minutes 7637 is available now for HK$1,925,100.
All images courtesy of Breguet.
