avre-Leuba has made a tourbillon watch for the first time in its 288-year history. The Favre Leuba Chief Tourbillon was developed in collaboration with master watchmaker Jean-François Mojon, who has previously worked with MB&F, Cyrus, Czapek, Hermès, Harry Winston and Trilobe on advanced movements.

Leaping into the haute horlogerie world of tourbillons is a significant advancement for Fabre-Leuba, which was brought back to life last year under the stewardship of Patrik Hoffmann, a former CEO of Ulysse Nardin. The brand was reborn with an offer of maximum bang for your buck Swiss-made watches within three core collections: Chief, Sea Sky, Deep Blue. Prices across 22 models in the 2024 catalogue range from CHF 2,200 to CHF 4,400.

The Chief Tourbillon brings a new complication and a new price point to the range. The 25-piece limited edition, costing CHF 24,800, also has a new textured dial made up of hour glasses, a symbol in Favre-Leuba’s logo.

“The dial is how a timepiece reveals its character,” says Patrik Hoffmann. With the Chief Tourbillon, Favre Leuba has developed a dial that honours the significance of this milestone. Designed exclusively for this model, it transcends conventional finishing techniques, emerging as a true original creation

At the heart of Favre Leuba’s identity is its iconic hourglass emblem, which finds its most distinct expression on the embossed dial of the Chief Tourbillon. This exquisite dial reveals an intriguing, three-dimensional design that boldly breaks with conventions. Its daring layout showcases a seemingly spontaneous yet harmonious arrangement of the legendary emblem, transforming the surface into a poetic dance of innovation.

Brought to life by the skilled hands of master craftspeople using specially engineered tools, the embossed Sablier dial undergoes multiple stages of precision stamping to achieve its distinctive layered depth and complexity. The intricate pattern invites the viewer to dwell on the myriad reflections.

But this bold creative approach goes beyond just form – it extends to depth. The pattern of triangles spreads across three distinct tiers, from the surface down to 0.30 mm below. The visual impact is immediate: A closer gaze unveils the artistry: each motif delicately crafted on three distinct levels, where fine sunburst triangles rise elegantly above the dial, while matte triangles rest gently below. The space between these two elements forms the foundation of the dial, creating a captivating interplay of light and texture.

The result is a dial that reacts dynamically to light, with precisely executed triangular motifs, depth-dependent finishes, and a radiance unique to each surface. This meticulous craftsmanship ensures that no two triangles catch the light in exactly the same way.

At the heart of the Chief Tourbillon beats the FL T01 movement (base: Chronode C502) – an established calibre that Jean-François Mojon has reworked from the ground up for Favre Leuba.

Chronode has succeeded in infusing the movement’s architecture with Favre Leuba’s DNA. The opposing sections of the tourbillon cage’s upper bridge evoke an hourglass, hinting at the brand’s emblem. This bridge also supports the rehaut of the small seconds dial, and at its center, the flame-blued small seconds – three functions merged into a component as complex to precision-engineer as it is to finish.

The tourbillon cage, measuring 14.85 mm in diameter, offers an expansive view of the movement in action. Attention to detail is taken to the extreme: the tourbillon bridge offers a horizontally brushed finish on its top surface, running in parallel to the 3 o’clock – 9 o’clock axis, while its outer edge, which carries the seconds track, features a circular-grain finish.

The caseback captivates with its own dedicated decoration: a spiral-relief hourglass set against a laser-engraved background that creates a refined satin-like texture. The blue screws pay tribute to Favre Leuba’s long-standing watchmaking traditions, reaching back to 1737.

“The Chief collection is the cornerstone of Favre Leuba’s renaissance,” says CEO Patrik Hoffmann. “Where the first Chief captivated with its cambered cushion case that gently softens at the four corners, the Chief Tourbillon opens a new chapter with the most intricate complication in our history. It demonstrates both our technical and aesthetic ambition, our exacting standards, and what we’re capable of delivering at an unmatched price point for this level of technical sophistication and finishing’.

“Throughout the region that is known as the cradle of Swiss watchmaking, Favre Leuba has long been one of the most storied and respected names and it has a fantastic history of own movements” says Jean-François Mojon, Founder & Owner of Chronode. “The opportunity to contribute to this new chapter in the brand’s history is truly an honour and a privilege.”

The Chief Tourbillon Sablier Dial is available as a Limited Edition of 25 pieces and retails at 24.800,- CHF.

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

Case

• Stainless steel, water resistant to 10 ATM, curved sapphire crystal with anti-reflective coating, sapphire caseback
• Diameter: 41 mm
• Thickness: 11.45 mm

Movement

• FL T01 (based on Chronode C502)
• Manual-winding tourbillon
• 60 hours power reserve
• 21,600 VPH (3 Hz)
• 23 jewels
• Geneva stripes, anthracite finish, blue screws, ratchet wheel engraved with Favre Leuba logo
• Functions: Hours, minutes, Tourbillon carriage (1 minute rotation)

Dial

• Three-level structure, 0.15mm raised circular sunray brushed triangles, matte triangles with a depth of 0.15mm and a foundational layer in the center of the two levels. 3D logo at the center; rhodium-plated polished indexes with Super-LumiNova C1 X1 blue; satin-brushed/sandblasted rhodium-plated hour and minute hands with Super-LumiNova C1 X1 blue; flame-blued small seconds hand

Bracelet/Strap

• Interchangeable; integrated brushed & polished steel bracelet with double-link construction and folding clasp; supplied with an additional black rubber strap with Favre Leuba pin buckle

Watchbox

• The Chief Tourbillon comes in a high-grade wooden box featuring an additional strap, medallion and loupe