‘Less is more’ is the new mantra of haute horlogerie as watchmakers focus on svelte silhouettes. FUNKE OSAE-BROWN says you can reward your hard work as a CEO as the year wraps up to a close with some of these limited edition pieces.

Franck Mullers’s Aeternitas Mega

Franck Mullers’s Aeternitas Mega 4 is a good wristwatch, and a good reward you can buy for a job well done in 2014. It is the most complicated wristwatch ever made in the world with a 36 complications, 1, 483 components and 99 jewels.

The Aeternitas Mega 4 exemplifies the pinnacle of success in the art of watchmaking in terms of complexity and complications. It is a grandiose work of art culminating in the design of the most complex wristwatch ever made in the world, thanks to the multifaceted skills of our watch-makers and constructors. This watch inspires countless emotions as an exceptional time piece and simply unique in the eyes of lovers of the art of fine mechanics and luxury watchmaking.

It is an extremely complex wristwatch with a basic movement that has a Cintrée Curvex shape. It’s an automatic movement with a micro-rotor placed at 6 o’clock and visible through the open-back. It has a grand tourbillon (14mm) with a balance wheel with adjustment screws in platinum and no index. It has a Breguet spiral and a Franck Muller conception escapement. The movement is equipped with a double barrel: the first barrel guarantees a power reserve of about three days; the second barrel provides energy for the Sonnerie. Each barrel has its own power reserve displayed on the dial.

Also, the Grande Sonnerie (Grand-strike) strikes the hours and the quarters automatically. The distinctive feature is that it chimes the same notes as the clock tower of the Westminster cathedral.
For instance, at 3.15, the owner of the watch will hear three low pitch sounds (din, din, din) followed by the first four notes of the Westminster chime. It comes with a perpetual calendar indicates the day, the date, the month and the moon phases. It takes into account the length of each month and doesn’t require any manual intervention. This mechanism also takes into account the leap years, but it needs to be adjusted three times in a row every 100 years.

On the lower side of the dial, two time zones with a 24 hour hand are placed on the left and on the right hand side of the tourbillon. It is possible to set the hour by pressing the push-pieces on the case. On the dial, the moon phases are displayed with the utmost precision. The error is of only 6.8 seconds per lunar month which represents a deviation of only one day every 1000 years, whereas in a traditional system the error is of one day every four years.

 
Happy Diamonds by Chopard

Whether demure or flamboyant, adventurous or aristocratic, glowing by day or shining by night, women are actively engaged in the present, moving ahead with no sense of nostalgia and simply delighting in the magic of living.
The Happy Diamonds Icons and Happy Sport are two sapphires watch crystals, surrounded by diamonds in free play flowing free form, illuminating giving a special glow to each second and lending a new dimension to the value of the passing of time…
From the exquisite design of the Happy Diamonds watches to the versatile character of the Happy Sport model, our collection of watches is a profound tribute to diamonds, the most precious stone in the world. Happy Diamonds is an innovative concept allowing diamonds to move freely thanks to a dial inserted between two sapphire watch crystals. Originally the first “Happy Diamond” was a model for men but it then inaugurated a new watch collection designed for women. As a female CEO this is a special gift you can buy this season to reward your hard work.

Chopard Superfast Chrono Porsche 919 Edition in steel

To celebrate Porsche’s return to Le Mans, Chopard manufactured a special Porsche 919 limited edition based on the Superfast Chrono bodywork. Its dial echoes various details of the Porsche 919 Hybrid, which will compete in the LMP1 Endurance World Championship. Stamped with the 919 logo at 9 o’clock, the silver color is reminiscent of the prestigious Porsche colour. The black and red touches perfectly match the hybrid race car. On the back, the “Porsche Motorsport Official Timing Partner” logo is proudly placed on the glass. The Chopard movement and its exclusive open-worked bridges can still be easily admired. This exceptional model is a limited and numbered series of 919.  It comes with a chronograph, flyback function and has hours and minutes, small seconds, date, chronograph seconds hand, 30-minute counter, 12-hour counter. It is a limited edition of 919 pieces available globally. Its movement is Chopard 03.05-M with self-winding mechanical movement.

Piccadilly Renaissance – Rose Gold

Piccadilly Renaissance is part of Backes and Strauss’ Piccadilly collection. It measures 33mm/40mm and comes in 18 carats Renaissance Rose Gold case set with two rows of Ideal-Cut diamond – open-back. The dial is available in different colours and diamond set dial is also possible (interior or exterior set dial). It has sword-shaped hands with superwhite luminova. There is one ideal-cut diamond located  in the crown. It has extra-thin mechanical movement
with manual winding. The bracelet is alligator leather strap  which is available in different colours.  It has a total carat of 33 mm: 137 Ideal-Cut diamonds – 1.22 carats and 40mm: 137 I deal-Cut diamonds – 2.45 carats.

Backes and Strauss Regent Diamond Jubilee limited Edition

The Regent Diamond Jubilee numbered just 60 pieces. It was designed to celebrate the Queen of England, Queen Elizabeth’s 59 years on the throne. Measuring 32X38mm and 40X47mm, it comes in 18 carat white gold casehand set with one or two rows of ideal cut diamonds. It also has an open back of sapphire glass, engraved “Queen’s Diamond Jubliee”. On the side of each case is engraved “1952-2012” and each piece has a year from Her Majesty’s reign as the serial number engraved on the back.
The dialcomesin royal purple base of lacquered English roses set with Royal Cypher and a diamond set numerals, LX (60) at 12 O’clock. It is a collectors’ item because of its rarity. It has sword-shaped hands with super white luminova. It comes with a crown which is an ideal-Cut round diamond “The Jewel in the Crown”. It has a mechanical movement with automatic winding Rotor with platinum segment and it displays hours, minutes and seconds. In addition comes with royal purple alligator strap with an 18 carat white gold Ardillon Diamond set buckle. It is water resistant to 30 meters.

Franck Muller Giga Tourbillon collection

The new Giga Tourbillon is an exceptional model with an extremely accurate development by a very dedicated team. Franck Muller’s research and development department has once again shown extraordinary expertise and vision by carrying out such a remarkable technical achievement.
Due to the large tourbillon, much more power is required in the watch. Here, it is powered by four barrels. The barrels are first paired in series to double the operating reserve; they are then assembled parallel to one another so that the power of the movement is doubled.   The barrels, with a diameter of 16 mm, are 4mm wider than the traditional ones resulting in the almost constant force needed to operate the Giga Tourbillon.
Another special feature is that this exceptional movement has been reversed, with the bridges placed on the dial side, the hour setting and winding section located at the base and the hour hand uniquely positioned on top of the minute hand.
In order to ensure a nine-day operating reserve, displayed at midday, (traditional winding by the crown), the Giga Tourbillon has been designed to feature four barrels, in comparison to traditional tourbillons which generally are powered by only one or two barrels.
As the name implies, the special feature of the Giga is the very large 20mm diameter Tourbillon occupying half of the watch. A skeleton version which combines aesthetics and rigidity reveals a highly technical mechanism with perfectly balanced style.

Also, Franck Black Croco collection includes statement pieces which you cannot help but acquire. Elegant, sporty and innovative, the Black Croco is a harmonious piece. The case and even the dial seem to be an extension of the black croco strap, thus creating a disconcerting uniformity.

Designed as part of the beautiful Cintrée Curvex line with harmonious curved contours, it is perfectly suited to the wrist of the modern man whose values naturally tend towards elegance and originality. This black version with a PVD treatment is special because the dial and case are machined to create the appearance of scales in relief identical to the emblematic croco strap used extensively by the brand. This touch of originality reinforces the typically sporty look of a collection which is an ongoing success story.
 
Corum’s Admiral’s Cup AC-One 45 Squelette

Corum’s Admiral’s Cup AC-One 45 Squelette offers a full immersion into the heart of its intricate horological workings. The airy architecture of a finely open worked mechanism, together with the transparency of remarkably modern date disk and the lightness of the titanium clothing the case with its iconic lines, all contribute to earning this new model a place of its own within the world of fine watchmaking.

Right from its launch in 1960, the Admiral’s Cup asserted itself as a frontrunner in the field of design with its powerful style emphatically defined by a twelve-sided bezel unlike any other. It was the kind of model destined to find its way through the decades with the tranquil assurance of those that have their finger firmly on the pulse of time and are able to anticipate trends. Ever since, it has consistently surprised observers by its ability to show up in consistently avant-garde compositions.

The new Admiral’s Cup AC-One 45 Squelette is no exception. At the heart of its grade 5 titanium case beats a high-precision (28,800 vph) mechanism: automatic Calibre CO 9000. For the first time, this movement with its 42-hour power reserve appears in an entirely open worked architecture that draws all eyes to explore the heart of its intricate gear trains with their resolutely contemporary finish.

Its power of attraction is further heightened by the absence of a dial, while a highly original transparent date disk bearing fully visible numerals lends an even more modern touch to the overall effect.
While their base is applied on an anthracite-coloured dial, the Superluminova-enhanced hour markers are extended to the point where they appear to be levitating around the rim of the date disk. This play on contrasts and depth effects is accentuated by the galvanic-treated inner bezel ring, duly framed by the Admiral’s Cup iconic nautical pennants.

The generously sized 45mm grade 5 titanium case with its layered construction is topped by its famous twelve-sided bezel, while black PVD inlays are strategically placed between the various elements to create an even more powerful effect.

While the titanium features alternating polished surfaces and satin-brushed side plates, the sapphire crystal bears the metallised Corum logo. The equally transparent case back offers its own perspective on the CO 9000 movement, and particularly on the finely open worked, Corum-personalised oscillating weight. Alongside its remarkable style, the case also boasts impressive water resistance to 300 meters. An extremely elegant black crocodile strap fitted with a grade 5 titanium folding clasp sets the perfect finishing touch to this new Admiral’s Cup AC-One 45 squelette.