Blancpain One Minute Flying Carrousel Lands In London

Blancpain Villeret One Minute Flying Carrousel

 

Designed to counteract the perturbations induced by gravity on the accuracy of watches, the carrousel is a rare and fascinating complication.  Blancpain revived this device and incorporated it into a wristwatch for the first time.

 

Like the tourbillon, the carrousel counteracts and neutralises the effects of deceleration and acceleration of the balance wheel caused by gravitational attraction of the Earth.  The balance wheel and escapement, the regulating organs of a watch, are influenced by gravity when they are positioned vertically.  But when rotated by a tourbillon or a carrousel, they pass through all vertical  positions in succession, cancelling out these inaccuracies.

tourbillon consists of a rotating carriage; a carrousel, in contrast, consists of a platform on which the balance wheel and its bridge go round like a wooden horse on a merry-go-round, the reason for its name.

 

Blancpain has achieved a world first by reviving this complication, almost forgotten for more than a century, and using it in a wristwatch.  Incidentally, the carrousel from the Manufacture of Le Brassus is the first to have a carriage that completes one revolution in exactly one minute.

 

To allow the owner to admire this ingenious system, the carrousel is visible through an opening in the dial at 12 o’clock.  A refined presentation shows off this elegant mechanism, one of whose bridges takes the form of a hand displaying the seconds.

 

Limited Edition 22 of only 88 pieces is now available and fits harmoniously within Blancpain’s classical Villeret collection.  The piece is powered by the manufacture’s exclusive self-winding 228 movement, featuring 5-day power reserve. Models within the Villeret line express the timeless values of traditional watchmaking with their understated refined design. Key Villeret signature elements have been woven into this timepiece with its Platinum 40 mm case, stamped flinqué opaline dial with applied Roman numerals, and a clear sapphire caseback offering a view of the finishing of movement and its oscillating weight. Completing the ensemble is a black alligator strap with folding buckle.

 

Blancpain Villeret One Minute Flying Carrousel Platinum, RRP £93,000, is available now from Blancpain Bond Street.