During this year’s Watches & Wonders, Hermès unveiled the Arceau L’heure de la lune, offering a unique vision of Earth’s satellite with the simultaneous display of moon phases in both northern and southern hemispheres. Two mobile counters gravitate on a lunar, Martian or Black Sahara meteorite dial. Simultaneously, mother-of-pearl moons are in step with an exclusive module, coupled with a Manufacture Hermès movement.
The Arceau L’heure de la lune watch offers an original interpretation of Hermès watchmaking expertise. Framed by a white gold or platinum case, the mechanics adopt a light role. Meteorite inlaid with mother-of-pearl form a cosmos in which satellite dials float above hemispherical moons. Intriguingly, the displays have swapped cardinal points, with the south above and the north below.
At 12 o’clock, Pegasus ,designed by Dimitri Rybaltchenko, adorns the moon. Entitled Pleine Lune (Full Moon), this portrayal of the winged horse hints at a passage between two worlds, where magic and reality merge. On the other side, at 6 o’clock, the view of the moon from the northern hemisphere provides a realistic depiction of its surface.
The mobile counters displaying the time and date turn to reveal the moon discs, while maintaining their horizontal orientation. Hermès developed this module and filed a patent. With a total thickness of just 4.2 mm, its 117 polished and bead-blasted components the module is part of the Manufacture Hermès H1837 movement: a technical challenge designed to preserve the slenderness of the overall mobile chassis, which sweeps around the dial in 59 days.
Within this space-time, metal, stars and rock seamlessly merge the watch exterior with the movement to form an unprecedented technical
and aesthetic display. The double moon here eclipses a traditional aperture-type display, instead covering the entire surface of the dial. The Arceau case with its asymmetrical lugs, designed by Henri d’Origny in 1978, becomes a lunar crater made of meteorite stone, while the lacquered dials gravitate like satellites.
Technical information:
Case:
Designed by Henri d’Origny in 1978
White gold case (68.2 g) | Platinum case (~89.79 g)
43 mm in diameter, 22 mm interhorn width
Sapphire crystal and case-back with anti-glare treatment Water-resistant to 3 bar
Dial:
Black Sahara meteorite dial | or Lunar meteorite dial | Martian meteorite dial
Crystal-effect silver-lacquered mobile counters | Crystal-effect gradient brown-lacquered mobile counters | White-lacquered mobile counters
Black transferred Arabic numerals | White transferred Arabic numerals
Moons in white natural mother-of-pearl
Southern moon: Pegasus transfer inspired by the Pleine Lune motif designed by Dimitri Rybaltchenko
Northern moon: lunar surface transfer
Blued hands
Movement:
Hermès Manufacture H1837 movement
Mechanical self-winding, Swiss made
Diameter: 26 mm (111⁄2’’’), thickness: 3.7 mm 193 components, 28 jewels
Frequency: 28,800 vph (4Hz)
Circular-grained and snailed baseplate, satin-brushed bridges and oscillating weight, signature “H” pattern
Module:
Exclusive “L’heure de la lune” module
Diameter: 38 mm (163⁄4’’’), thickness: 4.2 mm 117 components, 14 jewels
Polished and bead-blasted bridges
Functions:
Hours, minutes, date, double moon phase (display of moon phases seen from the northern and southern hemispheres)
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