Celebrating 30 years of living legacy and independent vision, Parmigiani Fleurier has released a stunning limited-edition time piece.
The 30th anniversary edition honours the work of founder, Michel Parmigiani, who has dedicated his life to understanding time, through history and renovation, before seeking to create it.
Part of the Objets D’Art Collection, the Carillon Tourbillon, stands among the most personal expressions of this legacy.
The piece draws on the memory of historic watches, the intelligence of chiming mechanisms, the patience of the ateliers, the precision of the constructors, the knowledge of the artisans and the endless pursuit of balance.
The Carillon Tourbillon is an atelier piece, limited to five examples, inspired by an early 19th-century Perrin Frères pocket watch, from the Sandoz Collection, restored by Parmigiani Fleurier in 2000. It is entirely conceived, developed, constructed, assembled and finished in-house.
The white gold case has been redesigned with vertical gadroons inspired by classical columns, a glass box sapphire crystal, visible hammers on the dial side and a handhammered Morning Blue dial.
One of its most recognisable features is the four serpentine gongs. Directly inspired by the Perrin Frères pocket watch, their long undulating curves embrace the architecture of the watch, giving it its visual identity.
The tourbillon and the power-reserve indicator are positioned on the reverse of the watch, where the movement opens fully to the eye. On the dial side, the reading remains clear, balanced, almost silent.
The chiming complication is staged with precision. On the dial side, the hammers are visible in both their function and their mechanical choreography, revealing the very instant in which time is about to become sound.
The calibre is composed of 456 components meticulously assembled by hand. Its construction is based on a highly sophisticated mechanical architecture built around two superimposed barrels, ensuring the transmission of power through the gear train and guaranteeing an exceptional 12-day power reserve.
The third barrel, dedicated to the striking mechanism, is automatically rewound when the striking slide is activated, and only when the minute repeater is engaged.
The four gongs compose a complete and nuanced chime: one low-pitched for the hours, one high-pitched for the minutes and two additional gongs, each with its own note, for the quarters.
Together, they create a four-note melody – distinctive, harmonious and immediately recognisable.
Produced in only five examples, the piece is conceived for transmission, for collections that look beyond the instant, for those who recognise in an horological creation not only an achievement but a culture.
Please visit parmigiani.com for more information.
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