Launched by Montblanc replica at the Salon International de la Haute Horlogerie 2015, the Heritage Chronometrie Collection includes a few special editions inspired to the expeditions and pioneering spirit of the famous Portuguese explorer Vasco da Gama.
On occasion of the Replica Watches & Wonders 2015 exhibition (Hong Kong 30 September – 3 October), Montblanc is presenting the new Heritage Chronométrie Dual Time Vasco da Gama, a limited edition timepiece offering a dual time zone indication based on a new technology which enables the watch to display both the wearer’s home time zone and a second time zone, or local time, simultaneously.
The 41 mm stainless steel case has a thickness of 9.9 mm and it is built into three parts (bezel, middle and back) with the possibility to have the bezel either in steel or in 18K rose gold.
Developed in-house at Villeret by Montblanc’s replica watchmakers, the MB 29.19 automatic calibre beats at 28,800 vph with a power reserve of 42 hours and can be viewed through a transparent case back displaying a drawing of the São Gabriel, Vasco da Gama’s flagship, together with the signature of the explorer.
The home time and that of a second time-zone can be displayed together on the main dial: the central gold-plated hand shows local time while the blued one marks the home time. The 24-hour sub dial at 12 o’clock, indicating whether the home time is during the day or night, is decorated with a disk that depicts the night sky – complete with the three guiding stars of the Southern Cross constellation – as seen in the Southern Hemisphere.
The gold-plated hand can be easily set by a simple adjustment of the winding crown. The hand advances by hourly step without affecting the position of the blued hand.
During this operation, the gold-plated hand is mechanically isolated from the movement so that any adjustment made to it does not affect the operation of the other hands. This way, the fake Omega watches continues to function precisely displaying the right time. The hour hand indicating the second time zone can be hidden from view when it is not required via the crown.
The small seconds counter at 6 o’clock is enriched by a miniature map of the world created with a milling technology which gives the globe a three-dimensional look.
The dial featuring a sunburst pattern with eleven faceted rose-gold-plated indexes is completed by the date indication at 3 o’clock which displays the date in the local time and moves backward or forward accordingly with the time zone selected.
The Montblanc Heritage Chronométrie Dual Time Vasco da Gama watch is limited to 238 pieces, in a reference to the “Cape Point Peak” lighthouse, which was built at 238 meters above sea level at the Cape of Good Hope, around which Vasco da Gama first sailed in late November 1497.
The new Breitling replica watches is fitted with a black alligator-skin strap equipped with a stainless steel triple-folding clasp.