Czapek Place Vendôme – Tourbillon suspendu Ici et Ailleurs

Named Place Vendôme, after the famous square in Paris where François Czapek, spiritus rector of the brand, opened a boutique in the mid-nineteenth century, the first line of watches in the collection features a one-minute suspended tourbillon. It comes together with a second time zone for today’s world travelers, a day/night disk, and a classic power reserve indictor.
Even with the new functionalities, lovers of the brand will easily recognize the watch’s unusual look with the two subdials at 7:30 and 4:30. On the Place Vendôme, a third has been added at 12 o’clock to display the time. The first series, which will come in a limited edition of ten pieces in platinum and fifteen in rose gold, was named “Lumières.” It refers to both the reflections flashing off the beveled edges of the bridges visible on dial side as well as to the Age of Enlightenment. The Place Vendôme “Lumières” is driven by the proprietary, manually wound SXH2 movement beating at 21,600 vph (3 Hz). The single barrel spring delivers a solid 60 hours of power. The 34.8-millimeter diameter is relatively large, but the height of 9.8 millimeters allows the watch to be discreet and elegant in spite of the many functions. The traditional satin-brushed bridges and openworked ratchet are back again. In the back of the watch is an inscription: Tourbillon suspendu – Ici et Ailleurs, a reference to the second time zone, a gift to global travelers that Czapek himself never knew.