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W&W 2023: Hermès Arceau Petite Lune (Live Pics)

Fitted with a dial in aventurine on mother-of-pearl comes the new Hermès Arceau Petite Lune. This new watch highlights the horological expertise of Hermès and adds a new iteration to the Arceau collection. Cased in 18K white gold with a bezel set with 70 diamonds, the dial features planets in aragonite, opal, and fresh water mother-of-pearl with five diamonds. Born from the imagination of Henri d’Origny in 1978, the Arceau watch combines understatement and creativity. Its round 38 mm white gold case rests on a stirrup, creating a timeless yet singular shape.

An astral world sculpted in aventurine, mother-of-pearl, aragonite, and opal appears framed by a halo of diamonds is a play on materials and textures and invites contemplation of distant planets. Relief and depth effects are the results of meticulous artisanal work that involves refining aventurine until it becomes translucent and associating it with Tahitian mother-of-pearl, whose iridescent shimmer evokes the Northern Lights. The moon phase aperture is located near the center pinion and towards the 10 o’clock position.

As if about to stage an eclipse from the dial, a generous freshwater mother-of-pearl moon faces the luminescence of a planet made of aragonite. In the distance, an opaline star shines amid a constellation of diamonds, bright stars in the night sky. This dreamlike interpretation of the solar system beats to the rhythm of the Manufacture Hermès H1837 automatic movement and the Petite Lune module, driving displays of the hours and minutes, as well as the moon phases between 10 and 11 o’clock.

The new Hermès Arceau Petite Lune is delivered on a shiny blue sapphire alligator strap crafted in the Hermès Horloger workshops. This strap sets the perfect finishing touch to the Arceau Petite Lune watch. On the wrist, the Arceau Petite Lune wears slightly smaller than its actual size but is quite nice. Despite the beautiful work on the dial, we feel that the watch is priced slightly higher than it should be.

Sticker Price $47,350 USD. For more info on Hermès click here.