Jaquet Droz first began to sell luxury watches around the world in the 1700’s.   The firm continues  its line of Grand Seconde sports watches with the Jaquet Droz Sports Watch Tourbillon. At first glance, it seems little different than their other Grand Seconde watches, but it has many subtle qualities added to it that make it a more exciting piece. A delightful blend of red-gold, black, and touches of silver and white, this beautiful watch is so luxurious you could almost forget it is a sports watch.

The black dial has the usual figure eight, laid out in red gold. The company favors this design because some of its customers in China believe that it is a lucky number. On this timepiece, the brand has taken the figure eight a step further by adding an open view of the tourbillon in the top portion, where one of its bridges doubles as a second hand. The bottom part of the eight contains the hour and minute hands, as usual. The tips of the skeleton hands are luminescent, making it more legible in the dark. Two small plates of red gold the same material flank its figure eight. The fluted bezel and the crown are the same color, but don’t worry. The reddish color of this watch is not at all overdone. The watch glass and the back of the large, 45 millimeter case, are both made of sapphire crystal, and the clear back allows you to observe the workings of the mechanisms inside. On the flat side of the crown there are two stars, a symbol commonly used by the firm. A steel bracelet strengthens the alligator skin strap (or, in some models, black rubber).

The in-house movement of this watch is the 25JD-S. The power reserve can last up to seven days, which is quite an accomplishment considering that it has a rather unsophisticated barrel. Some of the parts, including the rotor, are just a little bit unorthodox, but a close look at the plate and the bridges reveals that they are patterned with classic Cotes de Geneva. Though this timepiece doesn’t have any extraordinary innovations in its style or its machinery, it is still a testimony to Jaquet Droz’s long history in Haute Horlogerie.

Fans of the previous Grand Seconde watches will want to add this lovely piece to their collections for sure. Although it isn’t a flashy watch at all, there is much here to be loved.