Spotlight On SIHH

The Salon International de la Haute Horlogerie Geneve (SIHH) is almost upon us. We lookat some of the Pre-SIHH 2019 watches recently launched, for a taste of what's to come.

1 TORIC CHRONOMETRE GUILLOCHE DIAL

Parmigiani Fleurier's new timepiece is more about aesthetics than timekeeping. As its name suggests, the Toric Chronometre Guilloche Dial is especially about the look of its dial, which is the work of hand guilloche - a rare artisanal technique "in which the material is engraved to produce a repeating decorative pattern". The concentric pattern on the dial of this timepiece evokes the arrangement of the scales on a pine tree - one of the Golden Ratio seen in the natural world. "The decoration is so captivating because it is based on the Golden Ratio," says Parmigiani's founder Michel Parmigiani.

"Within it, you see the Fibonacci spiral, reproducing a harmony that is everywhere in nature." The Golden Ratio is a mathematical ratio. When used in design, it fosters organic and natural looking compositions that are aesthetically pleasing.

2 LAUREATO PERPETUAL CALENDAR

Girard-Perregaux's latest sporty watch has all the basics of a good wristwatch - stylish, comfortable to wear, accuracy, simple to read and easy to adjust. "Easy to adjust" is most welcome particularly for this timepiece, a complicated perpetual calendar which, in addition to the hours and minutes, indicates the day, date, month and the current year, whether leap or not.

The perpetual calendar is able to follow the irregular cycle that governs the length of months - 28 or 29 days in February, 30 or 31 days for the rest of the 11 months. A single push-button at 8 o'clock controls the day cycle. The crown sets the day, month and type of year. The perpetual calendar requires only one manual correction every 100 years. The watch is simple to read, but may initially take some getting used to. The windows for the days, date and month on the dial are not displayed where they usually are in a perpetual calendar timepiece; instead you find the days at 9 o'clock, the date between 2 and 3 o'clock, the month at 6 o'clock and the nature of the current year just above it. The break with conventional aesthetic order is dictated by a new automatic movement built in-house.

3 MASTER ULTRA THIN MOON PHASE

Other than a super-slim white gold case, this model rolled out by Jaeger-LeCoultre also highlights the rare arts of guilloche and enamelling - artistic techniques that require delicate and subtle work, typically done by hand with the help of machines. The guilloche enamel exterior of the watch is a testament to precision and sophistication. Limited to 100 pieces, the timepiece features a new hand-guilloche blue enamel dial, new hour-markers, a polished moon and a new engraved counter. The new moon phase setting has been redesigned with painstaking attention to detail. A Jaeger- LeCoultre automatic movement, which has a 70-hour power reserve, powers the watch.

4 LIBRE

Cartier plays with colours in its new Libre collection which boasts three timepieces: Tank Chinoise Red Watch; Diagonale Watch; and Baignoire Allongee Celadon Watch. The first model, for example, is a 1921 timepiece that's restyled and decked in diamonds and rubies to pair with a colour imbued with strong symbolism in China: red for passion and vitality.