BOVET 1822 FOR ONLY WATCH

article 31 Oct 2023

Time for Kindness, Time for Love

In each edition of ONLY WATCH, a color palette is given to guide the designers of the unique timepieces for the auction. This year’s color choices, a range of colors including blue, green, yellow, pink, and magenta, celebrates the 10th edition of ONLY WATCH, a perfect choice for a world that needs more compassion, understanding, and tolerance.

BOVET selected magenta as the primary color because of what it represents –- kindness, harmony, support, and love.

The award-winning Orbis Mundi was chosen by BOVET as the base for this year’s ONLY WATCH unique piece because of its universal time display, and for how travel brings the world together, expanding horizons, fostering understanding, and increasing compassion.

The dial of the Orbis Mundi is guilloché, covered with seven layers of vibrant magenta lacquer, each one applied by hand, then dried before the application of the next layer. When all seven layers are in place, the dial is fired in the oven and then polished.

The Orbis Mundi

Thanks to BOVET’s engineering expertise, it is easy to set, using only the crown to both set the time and the 24 world cities. Turn the crown counter-clockwise to set the hours and minutes, and clockwise to set the unique 24 world time zone dial.

Exquisitely finished, the Orbis Mundi stands out for its ease of use and emblematic Fleurier case, a true symbol of two centuries of watchmaking excellence. The ergonomic 42mm red gold case provides optimal comfort no matter the size of the wearer’s wrist, thanks to its slim profile (11.25mm) and its iconic real-sapphire-cabochon-topped crown and BOVET bow at 12 o’clock.

In addition to clear and easily readable hours and minutes, this timepiece opens up the dial to display the in-house BOVET balance wheel and regulating organ, with its three-arm rotating second hand and a 20-second dial at 6 o’clock. On the right side of the world-time dial, is the power reserve indicator, highlighting the incredible and very useful seven days of power reserve with one single barrel.

The sapphire glass of the screw-down back lets collectors appreciate every detail of this finely finished manual-wind manufacture movement, polished, angled, and decorated like the House of BOVET’s high complications, thanks to the work of the in-house artisans. The House of BOVET is one of the few completely integrated manufactures in the watchmaking industry. BOVET produces more than 95% of the components that go into its timepieces, and as a result the House uses the term “Swiss Handcrafted” instead of “Swiss Made,” as the Swiss Made barrier, 60%, is too low.

The Orbis Mundi endeavors to bring the world closer together, and the hope of this special unique piece for ONLY WATCH is that the world will come together to rally behind and support this worthy cause.