Chanel launches its first unashamedly masculine watch.
Five years were needed to ensure the safe arrival of Monsieur de Chanel, the first unashamedly masculine watch to have been designed by the French maison. The model, which was unveiled in March of this year at Baselworld, is an edition limited to 300 pieces, 150 in “beige” gold (a lighter shade of yellow gold, which Coco Chanel was particularly fond of) and 150 in white gold, both 18 carat, and has since be launched on the market.
Characterised by its 170 components and fitted with the first in-house movement– Calibre 1 –, the Monsieur de Chanel boasts a manual-winding mechanism, which inclu des two complications within its 40-mm case: an instant jumping hour located within an octagonal aperture (recalling the Place Vendôme) and which can easily be confused with the calendar of a traditional watch, located in the lower part of the dial; and the retrograde minute with 240º display, enabling perfect reading, with a power reserve of three days. This is joined by a small second indicator, which appears in circular interplay with the minute hand.
With crystal glass and an ivorycoloured opaline dial, the case, with a thickness of 10.4 mm, features on its crown the most iconic symbol of the maison, the lion, synonym for the force of the Chanel spirit (this symbol can also be found on the buckle of the piece and has also been chosen a the seal for every in-house produced movement). Water resistant up to 30 metres, the Monsieur de Chanel also reveals on its rear some rubies, in addition to the symbol of the comet, in the lower left, other insignia of the maison.
The black alligator strap and the buckle in 18-carat gold add the final touch to this model, which perfectly combines contemporary design with the most traditional references to the fashion house.
