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WOTY 2014: Christophe Claret Maestoso

Highly Commended. Innovative Watches of the Year 2014.

While incredibly accurate, detent escapements are famously fragile; being susceptible to the knocks and scraps of everyday life.

It was long thought to be verging on the impossible to install such a regulator in a wristwatch. But in 2011, Danish master watchmakers Urban Jurgensen & Sonner announced the P8, proving it could be done.

Never one to shy away from a horological challenge, Christophe Claret set about joining the most exclusive club in watch-making and this year at Basel revealed the Maestoso, a grade 5 titanium detent protected by a number of ingenious, patented solutions and paired with a constant force system to ensure absolute accuracy.

Four mainspring barrels keep the escapement’s spherical balance spring in motion for just 80 hours, giving an indication of how much energy the system requires. The movement is one of those captivating, three-dimensional micro landscapes that demands attention thanks to Charles X-style stepped bridges.

James Buttery

Editor of WatchPro, the WatchPro Hot 100 and The Luxury Report.

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