Manda Luxe Timepieces

12/09/2025

Philippe Dufour is a near-mythical figure in high-end horology: a Swiss master watchmaker who hand-finishes every component, rejects mass production, and has created only a few models — each revered as a masterpiece of traditional craftsmanship.

The recent Phillips New York Watch Auction (XIII) underscored his legendary status, with two of his watches selling for millions — confirming that demand for his work remains extraordinarily strong even decades after they were made.

Key Features:
- Philippe Dufour Duality No. 1 — double-escapement white-gold wristwatch; sold for US$ 3,085,000.
- Philippe Dufour Simplicity 37 mm No. 1 — elegant time-only pink-gold watch; sold for ≈ US$ 1.2 million.

12/08/2025

Launched at Dubai Watch Week 2025, the Mattar Bin Lahej × Octo Finissimo pairs Bulgari’s ultra-thin titanium watchmaking with expressive Arabic calligraphy by Emirati artist Mattar Bin Lahej — transforming a record-breaking wristwatch into a cultural, wearable work of art. With only 70 pieces made and a price of €23,000, this edition merges minimalist technical mastery and regional artistic heritage in a subtle yet striking package.

Key details:
- Release & edition: Introduced in November 2025 at Dubai Watch Week; strictly limited to 70 pieces.
- Price: €23,000 retail.
- Case & dimensions: 40 mm diameter, just ~5 mm thick, sandblasted titanium case and integrated bracelet — exceptionally lightweight and slim.
- Dial / Design: No conventional dial markers — the face (and case/bracelet) is laser-engraved with Arabic calligraphy quoting words by Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, turning the watch into a canvas of cultural meaning.
- Movement: In-house calibre BVL 138 micro-rotor automatic, just 2.23 mm thick, running at 21,600 vph (3 Hz), with a 60-hour power reserve and hand-finished decoration.
- Caseback & finishing: Transparent caseback features the artist’s signature and the edition number; overall aesthetic blends the sharp geometric lines of Octo with flowing, organic calligraphy for a striking contrast.

https://www.hodinkee.com/articles/bulgari-mattar-bin-lahej-x-octo-finissimo

12/04/2025

Released in 2025 during Dubai Watch Week, the One Week Skeleton Rose Gold by Armin Strom revives the brand’s signature seven-day movement in a fully skeletonized form, but now encased in 18 kt rose gold — giving technical transparency a luxurious, warm aesthetic. At CHF 47,000 and limited to just 50 pieces worldwide, it brings together meticulous craftsmanship, mechanical clarity, and collectible scarcity in a compact, wearable format.

Key Features:
- Release & edition: Debuted late 2025 at Dubai Watch Week; strictly limited to 50 pieces.
- Price: CHF 47,000.
- Case & size: Solid 18 kt rose-gold, 41 mm diameter, 10.6 mm thick, lug-to-lug 44.35 mm. Sapphire crystal front and back; 100 m water resistance.
- Movement: In-house calibre ARM21-S, skeletonised, 194 components, manually wound, twin barrels delivering a 7-day (168 h) power reserve. 25,200 vph frequency; features a conical 3D power-reserve indicator.
- Design / dial: No traditional dial — the openwork exposes the movement across several visual planes for depth and technical drama.
- Finishing & assembly: Every component is hand-finished — bevelled edges, polished sinks and screws, Geneva stripes, circular graining; each watch assembled and checked twice.
- Strap: Black textile strap with rose-gold pin buckle, blending modern sportiness with precious-metal elegance.

A fully openworked evolution of Armin Strom One Week’s seven-day calibre, now rendered in solid rose gold and black.

12/03/2025

The Celestia Astronomical Grand Complication — first released in 2017 and reissued in 2025 for Vacheron Constantin’s 270th anniversary — is a double-sided astronomical masterpiece featuring 23 complications in a surprisingly slim case. The 514-component Calibre 3600 delivers triple time displays and a three-week power reserve, while the 2025 editions add 240 hours of hand engraving.

Ket Features:
- Released 2017; revived 2025
- Price around $1.1M (on request)
- 514-part Calibre 3600
- 21-day power reserve
- 23 astronomical complications
- Civil, solar, sidereal time
- 240 hours of engraving

12/03/2025

The Chopard L.U.C Grand Strike — unveiled at Dubai Watch Week 2025 — is the maison’s most technically ambitious wristwatch to date, designed from the ground up in-house. It pairs striking craftsmanship with dramatic aesthetics: the dial-less 43 mm white-gold case reveals 686 components, including hammers and sapphire-crystal gongs, that power a full chiming engine (grande sonnerie, petite sonnerie, and minute repeater) alongside a tourbillon. Certified by both Poinçon de Genève and COSC, and backed by over 11,000 hours of development and ten proprietary patents, the Grand Strike is a rare synthesis of tradition and innovation — and one of contemporary watchmaking’s boldest statements.

Key highlights:
- Combines grande sonnerie, petite sonnerie, minute repeater and a flying tourbillon — all in one watch.
- Uses a sapphire-crystal monobloc construction: the gongs and crystal are machined from a single block for maximized resonance and clarity.
- Open-worked dial exposes the striking mechanism and tourbillon — turning the watch into a “mechanical theatre.”
- Powered by calibre L.U.C 08.03-L with dual mainsprings: ~70 h power reserve for timekeeping, ~12 h for chiming in grande-sonnerie mode.
- Extremely limited output: only a few (≈ 2–3) pieces are expected to be made per year, underlining its exclusivity.



https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-LnjvOdK094

12/03/2025

A very unique vintage AP timepiece! The piece comes in a small 33mm case size made of 18K yellow gold.



https://www.luxurybazaar.com/product/audemars-piguet-ferrari-yellow-gold-watch-14677ba/

12/02/2025

This 2025 Les Cabinotiers “La Quête — Epic Odyssey” collection comprises eight one of a kind Métiers d’Art watches created for Vacheron’s 270th anniversary. Each piece features sculpted mythological scenes—like Heracles and Greek heroes—executed in hand engraving, micro sculpture, and enameling, requiring up to 450 hours of artisan work. With the automatic Calibre 1120 AT and a wandering hours display, these watches blend horological sophistication with artistic storytelling; pricing is available on request due to their bespoke nature.

Key Features:
• Release: 2025, as part of the 270th anniversary “La Quête” series.
• Quantity: Eight unique, one off pieces in the Epic Odyssey sub collection.
• Artistry: Rich bas relief engravings, cloisonné enamel, and micro sculpted figurines of mythic heroes.
• Production Time: Up to ~450 hours of hand craftsmanship per watch.
• Movement: Automatic calibre 1120 AT with a satellite hours (wandering hours) module.
• Case Material: 18k white or pink gold, engraved and polished by hand.
• Availability / Price: Bespoke pièces uniques, sold by special order; price upon request.



https://timeandtidewatches.com/vacheron-constantin-les-cabinotiers-la-quete-epic-odyssey-in-depth/

12/02/2025

A modern tribute unveiled in 2025 for Breguet’s 250th anniversary, the Classique 7225 pairs historical inspiration with radical chronometric innovation. It features a 10 Hz hand-wound movement and a patented magnetic-pivot balance to minimize friction and boost precision to ±1 second/day. Housed in a 41 mm 18K Breguet gold case with “Quai de l’Horloge” guilloché, it also includes twin seconds counters and a clever phenakistoscope-style animation on the silicon escape wheel.

Key Features:
- Movement: Calibre 74SC, manual-winding, 361 parts, 10 Hz (72,000 vph).
- Precision: Magnetic pivot system centers the balance using micro-magnets; certified ±1 s/day.
- Animation: Escape wheel shows “1775” and “2025” in morphing effect at 20 frames/sec.
- Design: 41 mm 18K gold case, guilloché “Quai de l’Horloge” motif; blue Breguet hands.
- Seconds: Two sub-seconds dials: continuous at 2 o’clock, “observation” flyback at 10 o’clock via pusher.
- Power Reserve: 60 hours.
- Price: ~CHF 75,000 (approx US$99,000).



https://www.breguet.com/250/en/classique-7225/

12/01/2025

The Anyday, launched in 2025, is Krayon’s first “mechanical planner” — a watch that shows the full month at a glance using a clever dual-cam system that moves the date and day — all in a compact, elegant 39 mm white-gold case. It houses a hand-wound C032 calibre with 378 components, a 72-hour power reserve, and intuitive midnight jumps. Priced at CHF 88,000, it’s produced in very limited numbers (max ~45 per year), delivering rare mechanical elegance with practical simplicity.

Key Features:
- Case: 39 mm × 9.5 mm, in 18k white gold with sapphire crystal.
- Movement: In-house manual-wind C032, 378 parts, 46 jewels, 3 Hz, 72-hour power reserve.
- Calendar System: Two cams — one builds energy over 24 hours to advance the day, the other drives a monthly cam that jumps the date in one thousandth of a second.
- Dial: Guilloché central section with Krayon “Y” motif; peripheral day and date ring; weekday color-coded for weekends.
- Adjustment: Annual correction needed 5x/year for months with fewer than 31 days via the crown. T
- Water Resistance: 30 m / 3 ATM.
- Production: Limited to about 45 watches per year.



https://www.ablogtowatch.com/hands-on-krayon-anyday-watch/

12/01/2025

Vacheron Constantin’s 2025 Les Cabinotiers collection showcases bespoke, ultra-complicated “one-off” watches, underlining the brand’s artistic and technical mastery. Revealed during their 270th-anniversary celebrations, these watches include a double-sided, 24-complication Grand Complication, a bi-axis Armillary tourbillon, and high-jewelry pieces, each crafted in Métiers d’Art techniques like engraving, enameling, and gem-setting. They are not numbered editions — these are bespoke or very limited pieces, made “by request only” for VIP clients, and thus no standard retail pricing is published.

Key Features:
• Release: Announced in 2025 as part of VC’s 270th anniversary.
• Exclusivity: One-off or extremely limited — made to order through the bespoke Les Cabinotiers atelier.
• Technical highlight (Cosmica Duo): 24 complications on a double-sided 47 mm white-gold case, powered by calibre 2756-B1 with 1,003 components.
• Technical highlight (Armillary Tourbillon): Bi-axis flying tourbillon, instantaneous retrograde system, based on calibre 1990; 450 hours of engraving for the dial and case.
• Artistry (Moon Dust): High jewelry version set with 200 baguette-cut and 165 brilliant-cut diamonds, engraved scenes of the Moon and planets.
• Artistry (Celestia ‘Ptolemy’ & ‘Copernicus’): 23 astronomical complications, six barrels for a 3-week power reserve, celestial charts, and dry-point engraving.
• Availability / Price: Only available by request through Les Cabinotiers; not publicly priced.

From high art crafts of enameling, engraving, and gemsetting, to a new 24 complication double-sided watch from Vacheron Constantin, the brand pulls absolutely no punches this year.

11/30/2025

The RM 63-02, first launched in 2015, now comes in a gorgeous red-gold/titanium limited edition (100 pieces) launched in October 25. It is a sophisticated world-time watch built around Richard Mille’s in-house CRMA4 automatic caliber. Rather than using a crown or pusher, it employs a rotating bezel to set the time zone, making it intuitive and travel-friendly.

The case is crafted from grade-5 titanium, measuring 47 mm, and housing a skeletonized dial with a 24-hour fl**ge distinguishing day and night. The newer edition carries a price of about USD 283,000, showcasing both luxury and mechanical innovation.

Key Features:
- Release & Editions: Originally released in 2015; new red-gold/titanium version in 2025
- Limited Production: 100-piece red-gold/titanium edition
- Case & Materials: 47 mm round case in grade-5 titanium, satin-finished and polished
- Movement: CRMA4 automatic, with hours, minutes, oversize date, function selector, and universal 24-hour display
- Power Reserve: Approximately 50 hours
- Bezel Mechanism: Rotating bezel directly controls time-zone selection via a planetary differential, making it easy to set local time
- Price: ~USD 127,000 on secondary market for titanium; red-gold/titanium limited edition is ~USD 283,000
- Aesthetic & Technical Highlights: Skeleton dial; bridges and baseplate in electro-plasma-treated titanium; function selector at 4 o’clock; ease-of-use world time in a sporty RM design

The bezel-set worldtimer returns in pink.

11/30/2025

A reimagining of Grossmann’s first in-house tourbillon (Calibre 103.0 from 2013), these two limited editions released in 2025 pair technical mastery with contrasting finishes — ultra-modern titanium vs. artisanal hand-hammered tremblage. Both house the same 245-part, manually wound movement with a 16 mm three-minute flying tourbillon, 72-hour power reserve, and Grossmann’s patented stop-second and pusher winding mechanism.
• Release & Editions: Launched in 2025.
• Materials / Quantity: Titanium version (12 pieces), Tremblage version in white gold (8 pieces).
• Price: Titanium is €165,700; Tremblage is €207,900.
• Aesthetic (Titanium): 44.5 mm three-part titanium case, hand-guilloché “grain d’orge” silver dial, brown-violet annealed hands.
• Aesthetic (Tremblage): 18k white-gold case with salmon-toned hand-hammered (tremblage) dial for a soft, matte texture.
• Movement: In-house Calibre 103.0; 245 components, 30 jewels, 18,000 vph, 72-hour reserve, flying three-minute tourbillon.
• Technical Highlights: Human-hair brush stop-seconds, manual winder with a pusher, oversized 16 mm tourbillon cage, Glashütte finishing and hand engraving

https://monochrome-watches.com/titanium-or-tremblage-new-versions-of-the-moritz-grossmann-tourbillon-price-introducing/

Timeless German watchmaking, handcrafted in Glashütte, reinterpreted through modern materials and the artistry of detail.