Louis Moinet’s breathtaking new Geopolis Opal

“Have you ever seen a watch decorated with twelve opals in different shades? Probably never. Because this one is surely a first in the world of watches.”  Jean-Marie Schaller, Owner and Creative Director of Louis Moinet

Louis Moinet has just unveiled the Geopolis Opal, a piece unique timepiece that combines a radiant and artistic dial – onyx dial featuring twelve opal discs, and a grand complication movement – flying tourbillon.

Opal is a gemstone. Crystal opal was selected for the Geopolis Opal, as it is “a highly sought-after variant for its vibrant and hypnotic spectrum of colours.”

“The opal has a rich and varied history. It is an integral part of myths and legends the world over and has been described as the “light of the world.” In Indian mythology, for example, the Goddess of the Rainbow was turned into this beautiful gemstone to escape her suitors.”

Opals are fragile and exquisite, and they demand painstaking attention while cutting. Jean-Marie Schaller assigned this formidable task to his friend Daniel Haas, a prominent gem cutter. Each opal was meticulously hand cut and polished and transformed into discs 0.50 mm thick. Furthermore, Louis Moinet’s dial makers had the challenging task of arranging the opal discs in a precise sequence, so they create a rainbow effect.

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Functions and Complication

The Geopolis Opal’s functions and complication are:

– Central Hours and Minutes.

– Subdial at 6 o’clock with an off-centre tourbillon.

Dial

The Geopolis Opal’s dial is made of onyx, a deep black gemstone.

– Ten opal discs are placed on the dial to “form a spellbinding rainbow.”

– A large opal disc is placed on the centre of the dial.

– The twelfth opal disc is placed behind the tourbillon cage at 6 o’clock.

– The hour and minute hands are facetted and skeletonised and are coated with luminescent material (SLN).

Case

The Geopolis Opal’s case has the following features:

– It is made of 18K red gold. Its inner case is made of grade 5 titanium.

– Its case diameter is 40.70 mm.

– Its lug width is 20 mm.

– On its dial side it features a domed sapphire crystal.

– It features openworked lugs.

– It is water resistant up to 30 metres.

– It comes with a black alligator leather strap featuring a folding clasp. The stitching on the strap matches with the 18K red gold case.

Movement

The Geopolis Opal is powered by in-house manual winding calibre LM135.

– It features a flying tourbillon complication.

– It features two-barrel springs in a “volte-face” configuration, where one barrel is placed upside-down over the other barrel. “This allows them to deliver their energy simultaneously for a ninety-six hour power reserve.”

– It comprises of 26 jewels.

– It beats at a frequency of 28,800 vph or 4 Hz.

– It has a power reserve of 96 hours or 4 days.

Additional Details

Name: Geopolis Opal

Reference: LM-135.50.OP

Piece Unique.

Price: Upon Request.

Website: https://www.louismoinet.com/watches/geopolis-opal-lm-135-50-op/

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