In the hushed world of fine watchmaking, certain complications transcend their mechanical purpose to become true signatures of craftsmanship. Among them, the tourbillon holds a place apart: it fascinates as much through its technical sophistication as through the poetry of its motion. Originally conceived to improve the rate stability of mechanical watches, it has become one of the most prestigious emblems of the watchmaker's art.
Such are the exceptional pieces that Maison Dubail has the privilege of presenting in its Parisian boutiques on the Place Vendôme and the Avenue des Champs-Élysées.
Invented in 1801 by Abraham-Louis Breguet, the tourbillon is a mechanism designed to offset the effects of gravity. At the time, wristwatches did not yet exist and men carried pocket watches, generally kept upright in a jacket pocket. When a watch is held in a vertical position, the balance wheel is subjected to gravity, which in turn causes variations in its rate.
To remedy this, the French watchmaker rethought the mechanics and devised a solution both simple and ingenious: the balance wheel and the escapement were mounted inside a rotating carriage turning on its own axis, generally once a minute, thereby exposing them to an even distribution of gravitational forces. By rotating the escapement and balance wheel together, the rate variations caused by gravity are offset.
The Big Pilot's Watch 43 Tourbillon Le Petit Prince by IWC Schaffhausen, presented at Dubail, is fitted with a flying minute tourbillon. Its design, inspired by The Little Prince, is a true ode to exploration and to the imagination.
The flying tourbillon, for its part, is an elegant variation offering a clearer view of the mechanism in action. In 1920, Alfred Helwig, then a teacher at the Glashütte School of Watchmaking, developed a version of the tourbillon without an upper bridge. Supported only by a ball bearing at one end, the carriage appears to float above the movement. It was not until 1985, however, that the watchmaker Vincent Calabrese built the first wristwatch with a flying tourbillon.
In 2020, Glashütte Original paid tribute to the work of Alfred Helwig with its Senator Alfred Helwig Tourbillon 1920, fitted with a flying tourbillon and limited to 25 pieces. To be discovered in the Dubail boutiques.
Created in 2004 by the French watchmaker Éric Coudray, the multi-axis tourbillon is another evolution of the traditional design. Unlike the latter, which offsets gravity through a single rotation, the multi-axis tourbillon combines rotations around several axes so as to pass through every possible position. Rate errors are corrected whatever the orientation of the watch. Each additional axis increases the complexity of the mechanism, and with it the craftsmanship required to produce it.
The Vanguard™ Revolution 3 by Franck Muller features a triple-axis tourbillon whose three carriages complete cycles of one hour, eight minutes and 60 seconds respectively. To be discovered in the Dubail boutiques.
Finally, despite a very close resemblance, the carrousel is often mistaken for the tourbillon. Both are complications intended to improve the accuracy of a watch, yet their construction differs considerably. Invented in 1892 by the Danish watchmaker Bahne Bonniksen, the carrousel houses its regulator not in a carriage held in a fixed position, but in a module that revolves around the main movement. This rotation, often slower, offers an aesthetic and technical alternative to the traditional tourbillon. Less widespread, the carrousel is prized for its originality and its artisanal complexity, making every watch that houses one a masterpiece of precision and design.
Introduced in 2001 by Ulysse Nardin, the Freak calibre is a watchmaking feat that dispenses with a dial and traditional hands altogether. The Freak X Rose Gold 43mm showcases the UN-230 calibre, whose oversized oscillator drives the flying carrousel characteristic of the concept. To be discovered in the Dubail boutiques.
More than two centuries after its invention, the tourbillon continues to fascinate enthusiasts and collectors alike. First imagined as an ingenious answer to the constraints of gravity, it has become over time an absolute symbol of watchmaking mastery. The tourbillon bears witness to that permanent quest for precision, and to the desire to push the limits of mechanics ever further. Beyond its function, it ultimately embodies what makes fine watchmaking so magical: turning an invisible technical feat into a living spectacle, meticulous and profoundly hypnotic.
Maison Dubail has the privilege of presenting these exceptional pieces in its Parisian boutiques: 21 Place Vendôme and 73 Avenue des Champs-Élysées. Enthusiasts and connoisseurs are invited to discover this craftsmanship at close hand, and with it the magic of time embodied in these genuine works of art.
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