While many watch brands offer tourbillon timepieces, Breguet is the true heir and custodian of the revolutionary mechanism invented by its founder 220 years ago.
A native of Neuchâtel, Abraham-Louis Breguet left his hometown for a watchmaking apprenticeship in Paris. In 1775, he opened a workshop in Ile de la Cité, where his timepieces attracted aristocratic clientele.
He fled Paris because of the French Revolution, and returned in 1795 to rebuild his business. The master horologer established an international reputation and distinguished himself with his inventions, starting with the tourbillon patented on June 26, 1801.
Tradition Tourbillon Fusée 7047 with its tourbillon carriage, inspired by the first sketches by Abraham-Louis Breguet.
In late June, the eponymous brand celebrated 220 years of the tourbillon -- an engineering feat that neutralises the effects of gravity and assures the precision of mechanical timepieces.
During his lifetime, Abraham-Louis Breguet created 35 tourbillon watches, and fewer than 10 of them are known to survive. They include the tourbillon precision pocket watch No 1188, No 1176 and No 2567 from the early 19th century.
A member of the Swatch Group since 1999, Breguet is based in Switzerland's Vallée de Joux -- the cradle of high-end mechanical watchmaking.
Historical tourbillon pocket watch No 1176 sold by Abraham-Louis Breguet in 1809.
The tourbillon has perpetuated in Breguet's 21st century models, of which seven were highlighted as mechanical masterpieces on the occasion of its 220th anniversary.
Introduced in 2007, Classique Tourbillon Messidor 5335 boasts a tourbillon seemingly floating in space with no visible link to the rest of the movement. The key to achieving this mysterious construction lies in a novel and patented solution, with the tourbillon mounted between two sapphire plates while its carriage is attached to a third sapphire plate.
Launched in the following year, the barrel-shaped Héritage Tourbillon 5497 is powered by a manual winding movement. Breguet's watchmakers had to overcome a series of significant challenges to create the movement that perfectly fits the tonneau case. The architecture of the piece puts the tourbillon in perspective while its bridge acts as the 6 o'clock marker on the dial.
Classique Double Tourbillon 5345 Quai de L'Horloge with two mechanical hearts beating independently from one another.
The Tradition Tourbillon Fusée 7047, released in 2010, features a silicon balance spring, a patented anti-shock protection, and a carriage, whose geometry is directly inspired by the founder's first sketches.
In the last decade, Breguet incorporated the tourbillon in slim models such as Classique Tourbillon Extra-Thin Automatic 5367, whose movement is only 3mm thick, and Classique Tourbillon Extra-Thin Squelette 5395 with a fully-skeletonised movement.
The heritage transcends on other Grande Complications such as Marine Tourbillon Équation Marchante 5887, which combines the tourbillon with a perpetual calendar and the running equation of time complications.
Barrel-shaped Héritage Tourbillon 5497 with the movement's contours identical to those of the case.
A twin tourbillon spins in the latest Grande Complication, Classique Double Tourbillon 5345 Quai de L'Horloge, unveiled last year. Driven by their own barrel, the two mechanical hearts beat independently from one another.
Like a delicately chased sculpture, the entire movement pivots around its axis to the rhythm of one revolution every 12 hours. The movement's astute construction is covered by several patents that demonstrate Breguet's innovative spirit in evolving the time-honoured tourbillon.
Grande Complication Marine Tourbillon Équation Marchante 5887.
