Best of SIHH 2015

At the 2015 SIHH (Salon International de la Haute Horlogerie) in Geneva in January, each of the 16 elite brands exhibiting at the invite-only fair present their new creations. Here is a taste of what was introduced at the fair.

CARTIER

The new Clé de Cartier is a new full collection from Cartier, with a distinctive shaped case: a circle within an oval. The watch retains all the codes of Cartier, including railroad-style chapter ring, Roman numerals and flinqué inner dial. The crown resembles a key, hence the name (clé is French for key). To wind and set the watch, it is first turned, as a key would be. It contains a new movement, the automatic Caliber 1847 MC with a dual-direction winding system and a 42-hour power reserve. The watch is being issued in gold, with a pavé version, pictured here.

IWC

The IWC Portugieser Annual Calendar automatically calculates the number of days of the month. It contains the IWC automatic Caliber 52850 with two barrels for a 7-day power reserve. It is unlimited in three versions: steel with blue or silver dial (pictured) and rose gold. In addition to the month, date and day windows – ordered in the American style – it displays a power reserve indicator and a small seconds subdial.

JAEGER-LECOULTRE

The dial of the Jaeger- LeCoultre Master Calendar
is made of meteorite, which has a matrix and is therefore unique on each dial. It contains Caliber 866, with a 43-hour power reserve. Functions include hours, minutes, seconds, day, date, month and moon phases. The 39 mm case is steel.

PANERAI

The Radiomir 1940 Equation of Time 8 Days contains the Panerai Caliber P.2002E, with three spring barrels for an impressive power reserve
of eight days. Functions include equation of time, small seconds at 9 o’clock and a discreet month indicator at 3 o’clock, next to which is a date window. The case is made of AISI 316L stainless steel, an alloy that is particularly resistant to corrosion. The watch is water resistant to 100 meters.

BAUME & MERCIER

The Baume & Mercier Clifton Big Date and Power Reserve
is a classic dress watch, with stainless steel case and applied gold Arabic numerals. It is inspired by a 1950s model from the company’s museum collection. The new Clifton contains a Swiss-made automatic movement with a module for the large date display and a power reserve indicator. The caseback is open to reveal a decorated movement, including a rotor engraved with the Greek letter Phi, the brand’s logo.

A. LANGE & SOHNE

The Lange One is A. Lange & Sohne’s most iconic timepiece, instantly recognizable for its asymmetrical dial with outsize date display and prominently positioned power reserve indicator. Introduced in 1994, and now with 15 models in the collection, the essential look and technicalities have not been altered since then. Until now. It now has a slightly narrower bezel, which opens up more space on the dial, without changing the 38.5 mm case size. It’s been given a new, technically evolved movement, the manually wound Caliber L121.1, and a twin mainspring barrel with a power reserve of 72 hours.

Source: Besler, Carol. “Best of SIHH 2015- A few stars of the 2015 Salon International de la Haute Horlogerie in Geneva.”CHRONOS Watch Magazine, 29 April 2015. Web. 14 May 2015.