BOVET 1822 unveils stunning third chapter of a trilogy of celestial timepieces

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In a magnificent cosmic meeting of the Sun, Earth and Moon, BOVET’s Récital 22 Grand Récital is a masterpiece of contemporary Haute Horlogerie destined for 60 of the most discerning connoisseurs in the world.

A grand astronomic trilogy
Pascal Raffy, the passionate and visionary owner of the independent Swiss Maison, rocked the watchmaking world with the launch of the Récital 18 Shooting Star tourbillon that combines its movement with a registered design asymmetrical case in 2016.  A year later, he and the Maison’s artisans innovated further with the Récital 20 Astérium featuring an intuitive display of astronomical indications in the same unique case and architecture as its predecessor.

As the third chapter of this poetic watchmaking narrative of celestial timepieces, the Maison combines three major heavenly bodies that put on a brilliant astronomical show in its latest galactic iteration.

Positively cosmic in its level of complexity, the multiple-patented Récital 22 Grand Récital is presented in a Tellerium-Orrery, an astronomic complication which shows the dance between the Sun, Earth, and Moon.  

The Sun is represented by a flying tourbillon positioned at 6 o’clock.  Raised above the surface of the movement, the tourbillon carriage is surrounded by a titanium carriage bridge, with a hand-crafted three-dimensional depiction of the fiery sun riding on it to subtly frame the timepiece’s celestial decoration.  The tourbillon rotates every 60 seconds, with an indicator fixed directly to the carriage wheel to count off the seconds in 20-second increments.

The Earth, positioned at 12 o’clock, is represented by an alluring three-dimensional hemisphere that rotates anti-clockwise every 24 hours, with the hour displayed by a three-dimensional titanium hand situated between the tourbillon and the globe.  And this is where BOVET’s visual mastery comes to the fore.  The intricately engraved and painstakingly hand-painted map of Earth, as seen from a vantage point above the North Pole, comes complete with oceans, mountains, deserts, and forests in luminous enamel paint for an enthralling display in the dark.  The realism of the hemisphere is further enhanced by swirling clouds and air currents that seem to float in the atmosphere.
 

Meanwhile, orbiting the Earth map is a tiny moon in a black and white sphere that circles once every 29.53 days, exactly corresponding to the Moon’s synodic period. This patented high precision mechanism powers the moon and moon phase display and will only be out one day in 122 years. 

An ingenious caseback
While the dial side of the Récital 22 Grand Récital is full of interest and drama, the caseback is no less arresting. BOVET’s ingenuity continues on the caseback that comes with a full perpetual calendar dominated by a bridge decorated with circular Côtes de Genève and centred around the tourbillon’s axis. Various apertures open onto the hour, day, month, and leap year indicators, as well as the patented, double-sided glass date disk, driven by a patented retrograde mechanism with a micrometric rack.

On the back of the incredibly complicated in-house made calibre 17DM03-TEL are engraved the words “Pour servir ponctuels gentilshommes” (to serve a punctual gentleman), “Faictes de mains de maistres” (made by masterful hands), and “Ce par quoy attestons longue valeur” (and thus [we] attest long-lasting value), which neatly sum up the brilliant mechanical subtleties of this masterpiece.
 

A commanding presence
The exceptional astronomic timepiece commands an equally impressive presence.  The design starts with a unique case shape that resembles the writing desks of yesteryear. The round case is asymmetrically thick with a wedge-style shape that is slightly tilted towards the wearer of the watch, offering a more ergonomic view of the celestial dial. Though sizable, the 46mm case is imminently wearable and comfortable on the wrist.
 

Custom made for connoisseurs 
Such is the scale of the artisanal and artistic craftsmanship that only 60 pieces of the Récital 22 Grand Récital will be produced.  To make each one unique, BOVET is offering each collector the option of choosing the orientation of the world map so that his or own chosen location would be positioned on the earth/sun axis when the timepiece displays midday.  The customisation also makes it possible to determine where it is currently nighttime in the world in the black and white colouring of the ring surrounding the Earth.

The collector can also choose from a red gold or platinum case and other personalisation to make the timepiece more distinctive. 

To check out the Récital 22 Grand Récital’s astronomic show, visit Prince Jewellery & Watch at G/F and 1/F, 12A Peking Road, Tsim Sha Tsui, Kowloon where it will be on exhibition from now until July 8.