Watch, or cutaway diagram
By Julien Moreau, Geneva ยท
I have never quite decided whether the Tradition is a watch or an exploded drawing that someone forgot to put back together. Breguet launched the line in 2005, taking its cue from the souscription watches Abraham-Louis sold by subscription in the 1790s, simple pieces built to be affordable (by the standards of the Directoire, anyway). The modern idea is to turn the movement inside out: bridges, barrel and the pare-chute shock protection that Breguet himself invented sit on the dial side, with the time pushed into an off-centre dial at the top.
In rose gold, 40 mm by 11.65 mm, with the hand-wound 507DR and 50 hours of reserve, it is a lovely object to stare at in a quiet room. It is not a lovely object to read in a hurry. And at thirty-three to thirty-five thousand dollars, I would only suggest it to someone who already owns a proper dress watch and wants a second one to talk about. Thirty metres, naturellement.