The ‘Mains d’Art’ honour the Mexican Day of the Dead tradition through a one-of-a-kind interpretation of the minute repeater watch from Chopard Manufacture
It has become an annual tradition for Chopard Manufacture to honour Mexican culture with a timepiece specially dedicated to the Day of the Dead festivities. This year, a one-of-a-kind L.U.C Full Strike minute repeater model appears adorned with Mexican motifs.
The L.U.C Full Strike ‘Día de los Muertos’ is crafted in ethical 18-carat white gold, with an entirely hand-engraved case topped by a bezel set with baguette-cut sapphires and framing a dial with the iconic Calavera skull symbol. It is also equipped with L.U.C Calibre 08.01-L, through which Chopard Manufacture has been demonstrating its perfect mastery of the minute repeater mechanism since 2016.
Its sapphire gongs produce a sound that is unique in the world, boasting a purity and clarity hailed in 2017 by the Aiguille d’Or best-in-show prize at the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève. The combination of this regal horological complication with such an advanced and original design is a first, embodying a degree of excellence rewarded by the extremely prestigious Poinçon de Genève quality hallmark.
Chopard is once again dedicating a one-of-a-kind Haute Horlogerie timepiece to the major Mexican watchmaking exhibition, SIAR. The Day of the Dead is a popular, joyful celebration brimming with life and sound perfectly echoed in the L.U.C Full Strike model, as the music of this festival is matched by the melody of a minute repeater unique in its kind.
This execution, imbued with a wealth of symbolism and respect for tradition, brings an additional layer of inventiveness and exclusivity to the L.U.C Full Strike timepiece in an artful blend of form and substance. The all-Mexican personality of the timepiece is immediately visible on its exceptional dial, which ingeniously transforms the movement’s visible elements into graphic elements.
The minute repeater hammers become an eye; the inertia regulator defining the cadence of the strike incorporates the Calavera’s moustache and adds to its asymmetry; and the concentric power-reserve indicator forms the second eye. The bezel set with baguette-cut sapphires surrounds this skull and crossbones with a blue halo, while the hand-engraved ethical 18-carat white gold case sets the finishing touch to this creation dedicated to the Day of the Dead which above all celebrates life, memory and eternity.
