While Daniel Roth is remembered for the early output of his eponymous, and path-breaking independent brand, he had lived many lives as a watchmaker before that. Steeped from a young age in the craft, the third-generation watchmaker from Nice worked at Audemars Piguet before being recruited to restore the Breguet name to its former glory. He obliged and shaped the aesthetics and architecture, with the modern brand still guided by the vernacular he established. Even today, he remains a proponent of the style under the banner of Jean Daniel Nicolas, an entirely independent mark he runs with his wife and son. Together, they produce, finish, and decorate no more than three watches a year. More recently, the watchmaker has been producing just one piece a year.
This example, with a shaped case, is at once entirely novel and also vaguely reminiscent of the double ellipse of Daniel Roth watches. This example is notable as the first example of a shaped case Jean Daniel Nicolas to appear on the market.
Forged from platinum, it is 42mm long and 32mm wide. However, given its irregular shape, the dimensions only tell part of the story. The rounded bezel follows the form of the midcase, matching its eight corners precisely. These corners have a soft, flowing quality to them. The bezel around the midcase is also similarly detailed.
The midcase has a rounded, almost tubular form, with a cinched central portion lending the watch its signature violin form. The midcase is the widest point of the case, with both the bezels on the dial and movement side terraced in from it. This serves to minimise the profile of the case. The inward curves on the top and bottom portions of the case serve a similar function. The lugs, short and flat on top, with the same rounded profile as the midcase, extend only marginally beyond the 42mm length of the case. The result is a relatively compact lug-to-lug distance. The 20mm lugs are outfitted with curved spring bars. The watch comes with a platinum pin buckle that is a sculptural work, oversized and robust.
The time telling aspect of the dial is restricted to the northern half and this part ebbs and flows with the form of the shaped case. On the outermost reach runs a chemin de fer track of minutes. This is followed by a full chapter of Roman hours. The centre of the dial is adorned with engine turning in a clous de Paris style, a nod to the aesthetic Roth established at Breguet as well as the watches from the early years of the Daniel Roth brand. The chapters and guilloché centre are delineated with sauté piqué rims.
The centre of the dial also hosts the arc that charts the 60 hours of reserve. It is a marine chronometer-style indicator that displays hours since the movement was last fully wound by means of an almost inconspicuous grey pointer hand. Time is told by heat-blued hands. The hour hand has a prominent pointer-style tip.
Immediately below this dial lies an angular iteration of the bat-shaped tourbillon bridge that is a visual signature of Jean Daniel Nicolas. It is expertly black polished on top. Closer examination will further the appreciation of the time and skill that have gone into shaping the beautiful inward angles, even in parts that would be inaccessible by all but the most miniature of hand tools. The angles and bevelled edges are sharp and precise and the curves, flowing, evidence of manual craft developed over a long career.
Sitting seemingly far beneath the dial, pivoting on a jewelled axis attached to the bridge, is the two-minute tourbillon. It has an open form and twin pointers arranged in a fan-style layout – each of these pointers alternately tracks 60 seconds on a semi-circular scale. The base of the hand-made tourbillon cage is also mirror-polished, further amplifying the depth of the calibre. Peeking from the ‘wings’ of the bat-shaped bridge is the German silver base of the calibre, engraved on which is the maker’s mark ‘JDN’ as well as the serial number, both in a surrealist font, obviously hand engraved.
The view of the manual-wind calibre through the display caseback is marked by the German silver bridge whose form meets the shape of the case perfectly. It is finished with shallow Côtes de Genève appearing in a series of waves. The movement features twin barrels and a Breguet overcoil balance spring in a balance that beats at 18,000 beats per hour. On the bridge is visible hand-engraved details such as the maker’s mark and the time it takes the tourbillon to complete a full rotation.
The watch has an impressive wooden presentation box and outer box. The form of this violin case Jean Daniel Nicolas marks it apart even within the rarefied catalogue of pieces that Roth has personally created.
If sold within the United Kingdom, this Jean Daniel Nicolas Two-Minute Tourbillon will be subject to 20% VAT