Recently I paid a brief visit to one of the smaller Independent brands; ‘Manufacture Royale’.
Now you may think; again another new watch brand? Well yes and no. Manufacture Royale was in fact already established in 1770. The extravagante brand has been re-born in 2010, is now in the safe hands of Alexis Gouten, Marc Guten and David Gouten and specialises in exclusive and exceptional creations. Complicated haute horlogerie for those who dare to wear something different.
At least that comes to mind when the Androgyne collection, with its eye catching cases, is given a closer look.
What looks like a traditional round case, turns out to be combination of square and round, because of the unique construction of the lugs. Each lug exist of two parts where one piece is attached to the case and the other part works as a hinge. Besides the fact that it gives the watch a unique character, it makes the Androgyne sit very well on the wrist.
The case is 43mm, but does wear a little smaller. The back of the case is sapphire, to make inspection of the very well finished caliber possible. The Androgyne Series is available in white or pink gold, steel and there is even a DLC coated version.
Completely different, much more down to earth and easier to wear for a larger audience, is the 1770 series.
Here we have a stunning Flying Tourbillon housed in a 43mm round case, in asymmetrical and very modern setting at 7 o’clock. One of the hottest watch designers Eric Giroud, who was also responsible for the designs of for instance the C3H5N309 (Urwerk/MB&F), Harry Winston’s Opus No. 9 and No. 11 and many others, signed for the design of the 1770 models.
Manufacture Royale devises, produces and decorates all its movements in the finest Swiss watchmaking tradition and the new MR03 calibre is no exception. The more complex and refined flying tourbillon is connected to the movement at just one point and the escapement embraces the ultimate innovation with a pallet fork and escape wheel in silicon. Silicon, quite a new material in watchmaking, makes an important contribution to the movement’s performance. The Tourbillon makes one revolution in 60 seconds
Power reserve of the mechanical MR03 wound caliber is up to a hefty 108 hours or four and a half days. When we turn the watch around, the movement shows, through the sapphire crystal, the hand finished Côtes de Genève, that are 2.4mm wide.
The 1770 comes in a 43mm steel, or pink gold case, there are several dial options to choose from and stunning diamond- or baguette set versions are available.
The 1770 collection is available from SwFr 48’000.- SwFr 130’000.-
(From the Steel version to the rose gold set with baguette-cut diamonds).
The Androgyne collection from SwFr 42’900.- SwFr 90’000.-
(from the steel version to the rose or yellow gold set with brilliant-cut diamonds).
