Abraham-Louis Breguet, an engineer with a keen sense of artistry, left behind extensive archival records that continue to inspire Mon- tres Breguet today, driving both technical innovation and model design.
Within the heritage left behind by the Maison’s founder lies the origin of the Marine Tourbillon 5577, a recent addition to Breguet’s Marine Collection. The collection honors the genius of a man whose insatiable curiosity for all things mechanical, backed by a solid scientific background, enabled him to excel in watchmaking and beyond.
Maritime expeditions were one area in which Breguet made significant contributions. Combining Breguet’s pioneering work in marine chronometers with his invention of the tourbillon, the Marine Tourbillon 5577 highlights two pivotal elements of the great man’s legacy.
HONORING ABRAHAM-LOUIS BREGUET’S MARITIME LEGACY
Breguet spent most of his career in France where he played a truly important role notably due to prestigious positions in the French Royal Navy. In 1814, he was appointed by royal decree to the Navy’s Bureau des Longitudes; a year later, King Louis XVIII made him chronometer-maker to the French Royal Navy. Explorer fleets relied for decades on timekeeping invented by Breguet. The Marine collection celebrates Breguet’s development of marine instruments that ensured the success of 19th-century maritime expeditions.
BREGUET’S GROUNDBREAKING TOURBILLON
Officially patented in 1801, the tourbillon is Abraham-Louis Breguet’s most daring invention. It was born from his decision to tackle Earth’s gravity, having observed that its pull affected the functioning and regularity of pocket watch movements.
Confronting a force of Nature is a bold endeavor for any man, not least a watchmaker, yet Breguet had confidence in his own ability to reinvent the world. He achieved this with a horological masterwork, the tourbillon, by installing the escapement inside a mobile carriage that performed a complete rotation every minute to ensure that any errors in timekeeping were consistently canceled out.
The Marine Tourbillon 5577 honors the tourbillon with a nod to its founder’s legacy of innovation and excellence.
A DESIGN ECHOING BREGUET’S ELEGANT NEO-CLASSICAL TASTE
Aesthetically, the watch with its pared-down, legible display of time stays true to Abraham-Louis Breguet’s preference for understated neo-classical elegance.
In both versions of the Marine Tourbillon 5577, the dial framed by an imposing 42.5mm case features a central sunburst design: slate-gray for the rose gold version and navy blue for the platinum model. Around it, an hours and minutes ring creates a pleasing matt contrast.
Within a deliberately subdued dial decoration, an off-center tourbillon draws attention, positioned at 5 o’clock and with its carriage performing a 60-second rotation. The chapter ring is also offset to highlight this mechanism. Luminescent hour-markers and open-tipped gold Breguet hands further contribute to the readability of the timepiece.
Self-winding Caliber 581 with its 330 components measures just 3mm thick thanks to the use of a peripheral rotor, making this timepiece with its imposing diameter more wearable. The movement’s finishing is visible through the sapphire case-back, with the barrel drum bearing a compass rose. Various decorations typical of the Marine line, including a straight ribbed motif, are also present. The balance beats at a frequency of 4 Hertz and the timepiece boasts an 80-hour power reserve.
Breguet’s commitment to innovation is vividly demonstrated in the timepieces created by the company. In the case of the Marine Tourbillon 5577, each model is fitted with a titanium carriage and a silicon balance spring, chosen for their resistance to corrosion, wear and magnetic fields.
This article is an excerpt from the upcoming GMT XXL World Magazine, debuting at Geneva Watch Days August 29th. Pre-order your copy here.
