The Memoris Red Eclipse
to Louis Moinet, mounted on a hand-painted aventurine dial that matches
the universe depicted on the time disc. Sideralis comes in a 47.4mm grey gold
case – and in a limited edition of just 28 watches.
MEMORIS RED ECLIPSE - AN EXCEPTIONAL TIMEPIECE
“Memoris Red Eclipse” has now become Louis Moinet’s anthology timepiece,
celebrating the bicentenary of the invention of the chronograph – a very
limited edition of twelve fully hand-engraved watches. It was unveiled at an
astronomy event organized by Louis Moinet at the Neuchâtel Observatory
on the occasion of the eclipse of the moon. To crown it all, the timepiece was
also shortlisted for the prestigious Geneva Grand Prix d’Horlogerie, in the
Chronograph category.
MEMORIS RED ECLIPSE
This version features a bespoke case, fully hand-engraved and depicting the
theme of the lunar eclipse. All the movement’s finishes are also hand-crafted
using traditional fine watchmaking processes – a discipline to which Ateliers
Moinet now officially belongs, as per the Fondation de la Haute Horlogerie’s
latest White Paper.
The bevelling brings the mechanism to life on a mysterious starry back-
ground. This is crafted using a traditional rose engine – a tool which, despite
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being all of two hundred years old, has just found a new application, thanks
to Memoris. The unique process creates a spectacular effect that makes
the stars twinkle in myriad ways, depending on the angle at which they are
viewed. 2016 marked the Bicentenary of the invention of the chronograph
in 1816, by Louis Moinet himself. His Compteur de Tierces is unanimously
attested as the first chronograph in history, as well as being the pioneer of
high frequency, with 216,000 vibrations per hour. An event entitled “200
years in 24 hours” was organized at Neuchâtel Observatory to observe the
eclipse of the moon – and celebrate this special anniversary at the same time.
Neuchâtel Observatory is a major piece of cultural heritage. Originally
known as the Observatoire Astronomique et Chronométrique, it was built
in 1858, ten years after Louis Moinet published his now legendary Traité
d’Horlogerie. This venue, closely associated with the history of Louis Moinet
and chronometry, was specially booked for 24 hours for the occasion.
There, Louis Moinet unveiled a program retracing the origins and
development of the chronograph. And in tribute to the astronomical obser-
vations of Louis Moinet, “Red Eclipse” was officially unveiled. The pedigree
of “Red Eclipse” is denoted by a red moon in gold-leaf enamel on its oscil-
lating weight, together with hand-crafted engravings on its bridges and
bezel. “Red Eclipse expresses the very quintessence of our Memoris collec-
tion,” explains Schaller.