On this day, June 26th in 1801, Abraham-Louis Breguet received the patent for his incredible horological creation, the tourbillon. While we could've brought you one of Breguet's tourbillons to remember him on this day, instead, we decided to bring you our hands-on of one of the latest watches released by Breguet. After holding the official title of chronometer maker to the French Royal Navy, Abraham-Louis Breguet tirelessly conceived and developed impressive timepieces that would leave an indelible imprint on watchmaking history and the Marine line pays homage to that spirit.
This year, Breguet continues to redesign this line through new creations and the Marine Alarme Musicale ref. 5547 is one of them. This new watch is available in three different variations including titanium with sunburst slate grey dial in gold, in 18K rose gold with silvered gold dial or in 18K white gold with blue dial in gold, all options available with leather or rubber strap.
Things to Know About this Watch
This beautiful 40 mm watch with dual time zone features an alarm mechanism with 24-hour indicator at 9 o'clock, second time zone subdial at 3 o'clock, date aperture at 6, an on/off alarm indicator at 12 o'clock and a power reserve indicator for the alarm mechanism between 10 and 11 o'clock.
The dial with the usual Breguet secret signatures and hand guilloché motif features applied Roman numerals and gold Breguet hands with superluminova. The dial is quite busy and the power reserve indicator for the alarm is really hard to read and in a somewhat awkward placement. While the 18K rose gold model as well as the titanium model feature a wave motif guilloché, the dial on the 18K white gold model is smooth with a chocolate brown sunburst finish.
A sports watch with a dial that could very well be fitted on a dress watch from the Breguet Classique line. The case features the signature elements of Breguet with the caseband fluting and the cursive 'B' signed crowns.
While the crown at 2 o'clock is used to wind and set the alarm mechanism, the crown at 4 o'clock is used to set the desired time for both time zones including the subdial at 3 o'clock. A pusher conveniently located on the caseband at 8 o'clock is utilized to turn the alarm mechanism on or to silence it on demand.
The watch is sold with either a rubber strap or a leather strap. While the alligator leather makes the watch look slightly less sporty, we feel that the rubber strap is perfectly suited for this watch with a marine nature.
The Movement
The new Breguet Marine Alarme Musicale ref. 5547 is powered by the 376-parts and 36-jewel automatic movement calibre 519F/1 which provides a power reserve of 45 hours while beating at a frequency of 28,800 vph. The oscillating weight was completely redesigned for the new models in the Marine collection to resemble the look of the bottom half of a ship's wheel —rudder.
On the Wrist & Pricing
On the wrist, the new Breguet Marine Alarme Musicale ref. 5547 wears true to its size and very nicely. For some reason the new models in the Breguet Marine collection remind us a little bit of the Ulysse Nardin Marine line, and that is not bad at all. At the end of the day this is a Breguet in the full extent of the name and no corners have been cut. A beautiful sporty watch with all the Breguet DNA and design cues we expect from a brand like this. At the end of the day without Abraham-Louis Breguet, we would have no tourbillons and many other horological innovations.
Sticker Price $40,900 USD for 18K white or rose gold and $28,600 USD for titanium. For more info on Breguet click here.
