Apotheosis Temporis – a new milestone in watchmaking history
By Mike Hanlon
22:00 August 25, 2005 PDT

Apotheosis Temporis – a new milestone in watchmaking history
Image Gallery (10 images)There aren’t too many technology companies that can claim 270 years of continuous trading, research and development. To celebrate the 270thanniversary of the creation of the brand, master watchmaker Blancpain is unveiling an exceptional set of eight examples of the art of horology. The history of watchmaking is studded with a certain number of momentous events that have left an indelible imprint on the world of timekeeping. Produced in a strictly limited edition of eight, the Apotheosis Temporis set encompasses the full wealth of know-how patiently accumulated over the years by the Manufacture in Le Brassus. It is also a tribute to all the watchmakers who, over the centuries, have contributed to perpetuating these traditional professions. Eight timepieces, eight demonstrations of know-how, testifying to Blancpain’s total mastery in the field of horological complications. United for the first time within a splendid collector’s set, these complications present the complete range of mechanical, technical and human genius which takes the finest demonstrations of the art of watchmaking to new peaks of accomplishment.
To celebrate the 270th anniversary of the company’s creation by Jehan-Jacques Blancpain, the Manufacture in Le Brassus wished to pay a truly dazzling tribute to the founder and indeed to all the master-craftsmen who have contributed over the centuries to perpetuating the art of watchmaking. By bringing together an original combination of eight major complications within an exceptional collector’s set, Blancpain is placing a new milestone along the path of watchmaking history.
Apotheosis Temporis is destined to make its mark on time. Representing a summary of patiently acquired know-how, a representative array of the most extreme complications and a vivid reflection of Blancpain’s incomparable technical maestria, Apotheosis Temporis is the very quintessence of contemporary Haute Horlogerie.
A masterful canvas
While the Manufacture Blancpain had already distinguished itself by presenting six major complications of the watchmaking art in the form of hand-wound wristwatches, Apotheosis Temporis embodies a new assertion of the dynamic forces driving the company today, of its ongoing development at the very peak of the watchmaking pyramid, of its perpetual quest for innovation and of its determination to constantly push the limits. The eight mechanical selfwinding watches making up the Apotheosis Temporis bear eloquent testimony to these sterling qualities.
The Ultra-slim, Time Zone, Moon phase Calendar, Perpetual Calendar with Correctors Hidden under the Lugs, Single push-button Chronograph with Split-seconds, Tourbillon, Equation Marchante Pure and Minute Repeater models all express touches of watchmaking genius which, like an impressionist painting, converge to compose a remarkable and masterful canvas. No major complication is missing from this line-up:
Apotheosis Temporis reveals the eight pillars of the temple of contemporary Haute Horlogerie.
The heart of these prestigious timepieces beats to the rhythm of exceptional movements, perfectly reflected by their outward beauty. Blancpain has chosen the pure, restrained lines of the Villeret collection to express the power of the object and to forcefully reveal the characteristics inherent to each of the complications.
The cases of the eight creations making up the Apotheosis Temporis are crafted in 950 platinum and house a subtle matt black dial with white gold applied hour-markers. Waterresistant to 30 metres (apart from the Minute Repeater), these cases have a diameter of 38 mm and are fitted with a sapphire crystal that is glareproofed both sides and a sapphire case-back with anti-glare treatment on the inside. The latter enables one to admire the decorations (“Côtes de Genève”, circular graining, bevelling, polishing and engraving) entirely performed by hand, like all Blancpain movements, in keeping with the noblest traditions of Haute Horlogerie. The eight timepieces also feature a platinum oscillating weight that differs from one model to the next but is made exclusively for the Apotheosis Temporis.
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Gary Noel
- November 22, 2009 @ 06:20 UTC