Cover The Piaget Polo Minute Repeater
The Piaget Polo Minute Repeater
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The latest Piaget Polo Minute Repeater strikes a different note with its blend of ultra-thin watchmaking, openworked mechanics and acoustic performance
Minute repeaters have traditionally belonged to the more formal end of watchmaking, but Piaget is taking a slightly different route. Its latest Piaget Polo Minute Repeater places one of haute horlogerie’s most demanding complications inside the manufacture’s contemporary sports watch, complete with a partially openworked dial that leaves part of the mechanism on show.
Behind the new timepiece lies a long-standing expertise in ultra-thin watchmaking. Since the brand’s founder Georges-Édouard Piaget established his workshop in La Côte-aux-Fées in 1874, the manufacture has continually pushed the limits of thinness in its movements. That pursuit eventually extended to chiming watches, culminating in 2013 with what was then the world’s thinnest minute repeater, housed in the Piaget Polo Emperador. The latest creation brings the complication into the modern Piaget Polo collection, while retaining the relatively slim proportions for which Piaget is known.
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Above The Piaget Polo Minute Repeater
The Piaget Polo Minute Repeater
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At its heart is the automatic calibre 1290P, which is conceived, developed, finished and assembled entirely at Piaget’s historic La Côte-aux-Fées manufacture. Comprising 430 components, the complex movement requires weeks of hand-finishing and assembly. Its bridges are bevelled by hand, the mainplate boasts a subtle guilloché finish and the repeater hammers are mirror-polished. Automatic winding comes courtesy of a platinum micro-rotor, chosen for its winding efficiency and given a blue PVD treatment to complement the dial.
This craftsmanship is meant to be seen, with the mechanics forming an integral part of the watch’s design. The gold dial is partially openworked, revealing sections of the repeater mechanism, while retaining enough surface to give the watch a strong visual identity. Its blue upper section is decorated by hand with a radiating soleillé guilloché pattern, contrasted by a more understated opaline outer track. A meticulously crafted gold fillet winds across the dial, transitioning from a straight to a domed profile as it frames the exposed mechanics.
Another mechanical detail is in full view at 4 o’clock. A smoked blue sapphire ring bearing the inscription “La Côte-aux-Fées” sits above the inertia wheel that regulates the minute repeater. More than 150 hours went into developing the dial alone, with each finished piece requiring a further 50 hours of handwork.
Above Assembling the Piaget Polo Emperador Minute Repeater High Jewellery watch
Assembling the Piaget Polo Emperador Minute Repeater High Jewellery watch
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Of course, the real measure of any minute repeater comes when it is heard rather than seen. On demand, the complication sounds the time through its chiming mechanism.
Piaget has paid particular attention to the mechanics of the movement and resonance of the case. The result is a sound intensity of 64 decibels and three harmonic partials, with the hours struck at G-sharp and minutes at A-sharp, both in the fifth octave. A downward push of the slider at 9 o’clock activates the chiming mechanism and sets the sequence in motion.
Equally impressive is how Piaget has packaged the complication while keeping the case relatively slim. The commanding 48mm white gold case with a rhodium finish is only 9.3mm thick, preserving the Polo collection’s signature fluid shape-within-a-shape aesthetic. Water resistance is rated to 30 metres, no small achievement for a minute repeater given the acoustic considerations involved. A blue textured embossed calfskin strap with folding clasp completes the package, with an additional leather strap also supplied.
Above The Piaget Polo Emperador Minute Repeater High Jewellery watch
The Piaget Polo Emperador Minute Repeater High Jewellery watch
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Production will be suitably scarce. Piaget plans to make just five numbered pieces this year, although the watch is not officially a limited edition. The small production run is instead a reflection of the time and craftsmanship required to complete each piece. Following the perpetual calendar and flying tourbillon, the minute repeater is the latest in a series of grand complications Piaget has brought to the Piaget Polo line. It also showcases what the maison can achieve when technical ambition meets artisanal craft and just how far the idea of a contemporary sports watch can be pushed.
There is an even more lavish iteration for collectors who want a stronger expression of Piaget’s jewellery heritage. The Piaget Polo Emperador Minute Repeater High Jewellery watch features a fully openworked dial, revealing even more of the intricate mechanics within. The bezel is set with baguette-cut blue sapphires, while the case and crown flaunt baguette- and brilliant-cut diamonds. More than 70 hours of handcraft are devoted to the fully openworked dial alone. The result is an especially opulent take on the minute repeater that draws equally on Piaget’s dual expertise in watchmaking and jewellery.
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Images: Piaget
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