The Tourbillon stemmed from a necessity keenly felt in the 18th century: namely, to overcome the lack of accuracy caused by the vertical position of pocket watches placed in gentlemen’s waistcoats or jackets. The challenge was taken up by Abraham-Louis Breguet, who on 26 June 1801 filed a patent for the creation of the first tourbillon. Ever since, this complication has remained one of the most greatly appreciated by devotees of fine watchmaking, since it reveals the heart of the watch.
The fusée-chain tourbillon transmission device housed in the new Breguet Tradition Tourbillon 7047 serves to optimise the regularity of the watch’s operation by guaranteeing its constant torque, whatever its winding level is.
When the barrel is fully wound, it delivers its maximum force. The chain then acts on the top of the fusée and therefore on its smallest circumference. As the chain unwinds, its torque decreases yet acts in parallel on the widest part of the fusée – its base – thus ensuring the constant force of the energy is delivered.
Resolutely contemporary while displaying the House’s emblematic codes, the new Tourbillon 7047 picks up the signatures of the Manufacture Breguet: namely the “Clous de Paris” guilloché pattern on its off-centre gold dial, the traditional Roman numerals, and the open-tipped hands. Like the watches that inspired it, its dial is secured by three screws.
At the heart of its 41 mm, platinum case beats Calibre 569, a rhodium-plated hand-wound movement housing 542 components. It is equipped with an inverted in-line lever escapement featuring horns made of silicon, as too is the Breguet balance-spring. This material has many properties since, in addition to being resistant to corrosion and wear, it is insensitive to the influence of magnetic fields and improves the chronometry (timekeeping precision) of the timepiece. Finally, the balance of the Tradition Tourbillon 7047 oscillates at a frequency of 2.5 Hz and has a 50-hour power reserve. It is priced at EUR 194,100 or CHF 185,300.
Breguet Tradition Tourbillon 7047 Features
- Case: Platinum
- Diameter: 41 mm
- Thickness: 16 mm
- Dial: Off-centred blue dial in hand-guilloché gold
- Movement: hand-wound
- Functions: Hours, minutes, fusée tourbillon
- Balance-spring: Breguet type, in silicon
- Carriage: Titanium
- Water resistance: 3 bar (30 m)
- Calibre: 569
- Frequency: 2,5 Hz
- Power reserve: 50 hours
- Components: 542
- Strap: Midnight blue alligator leather
