Glashutte Original Lady Serenade Tourbillon Watch

The Glashutte Original Lady Serenade Tourbillon watch is a magnificent object of art and beauty. Uniting the craft of the master jeweler with the hallowed skills of the most prestigious watchmaking executions, this Glashutte Original watch speaks with equal fluency to those enraptured with haute joaillerie and haute horlogerie.

The case of the Glashutte Original Lady Serenade Tourbillon is crafted from 18K white gold, and measures 36mm from side to side. This white gold case serves as an expansive canvas for spectacular diamond-setting; 132 round brilliant diamonds amounting to 0.78 carats (tw) adorn the case flanks and lugs. An additional 52 round brilliants encircle the bezel, and a single diamond adorns the faceted white gold crown. The incredible dial sparkles like the sun, illuminated by the magnificence of 180 diamonds whose total weight is 0.87 carat. Only the center of the dial is left uncovered; the lower half of the figure-8 pattern bears the elegant off-centered time display with its svelte lancine blued hands, while the upper half displays the magnificent flying one-minute tourbillon. This tourbillon, whose design may be credited to the legendary German master watchmaker Alfred Helwig, features a balance wheel borne on two diamonds, and a traditional Breguet balance spring. The balance wheel ticks back and forth 21,600 times each hour, and is outfitted with 18 solid gold weighted screws. The tourbillon carriage which bears it turns continually, completing a single revolution each minute.

The Glashutte Original Lady Serenade Tourbillon watch is animated by the beautiful Caliber 41-04 movement. Designed and manufactured by Glashutte, this manually wound caliber is refined according to the dictates of the traditional German high watchmaking craft. Steel parts are all polished, and edges are painstakingly beveled by a patient artisan until they catch the light perfectly. The three quarter plate shimmers with a ribbed finish, and jewels are supported in gold chatons which are secured to the plate by blued steel screws.

The winding wheels are also gorgeous, featuring a distinctive double sunburst pattern. Of course, the star of this movement is the magnificent tourbillon complication described above. One of the most intricate and difficult of watchmaking complications, the tourbillon demands supreme dexterity, and a great understanding of the intricacies of these complex escapements. The so-called "flying tourbillon", the kind which this watch features, is particularly beautiful and prestigious; it is borne from underneath, rather than across a bridge. Because of this, such a tourbillon appears to float in space--a true work of mechanical art. The charmingly feminine details extend to the subtle elements which join the Glashutte Original Lady Serenade Tourbillon watch to its owner's wrist.

The strap is crafted from fine Louisiana alligator, or a luxurious satin that is embroidered with a delicate floral pattern. A white gold buckle set with 22 round brilliant diamonds completes this breathtaking work of horological art.