HARRY WINSTON’S HISTOIRE DE TOURBILLON SERIES
A series of wristwatches featuring the most exotic of tourbillons as well as avant-garde time displays, the Histoire de Tourbillon was conceived by Harry Winston as an adventure into the art of the tourbillon, starting with the first edition in 2009. From multiple tourbillons in a single watch to multi-axis tourbillons, the Histoire de Tourbillon series has done it – packaged in extraordinarily imposing watchcases made of exotic materials like zalium, a lightweight zirconium alloy. All these outrageous ideas came from the most eminent of creators: the Histoire de Tourbillon movements are engineered by Complitime, the sister company of tourbillon specialist Greubel Forsey. By nature of its complexity, a Histoire de Tourbillon wristwatch is unusually rare – only 20 examples of each edition are made.
Histoire de Tourbillon 1
Introduced in 2009, the Histoire de Tourbillon 1 set the tone for the rest of the series. It was equipped with a pair of tourbillons, each inclined at 25 degrees and spinning at a rapid rate of 36-seconds per rotation (compared to the more common 60-second rotation). Mounted on an empty plane under the sapphire crystal, the tourbillons provide an engagingly visual method of compensating for the effects of gravity, regardless of the position of the wrist. More about the complexity of the movement than time-telling, the Histoire de Tourbillon 1 had only a single hand on the front, showing the hours and the minutes, approximately. Over on the back three sub-dials indicated the time to the second.
Histoire de Tourbillon 2
Equipped with a single tourbillon rotating on two axes, the Histoire de Tourbillon 2 was fitted with eight individual sapphire crystals to accommodate the several subdials and segmented displays that house the movement and time indication. The bi-axial tourbillon sits at nine o’clock, performing a dance with its outer carriage completing a rotation every two minutes, while the inner carriage turns at 40 seconds per revolution. To the right of the tourbillon sits the hour sub-dial, along with a day and night indicator, while the minutes are shown on a smaller display at six o’clock.
Histoire de Tourbillon 3
The most radically shaped watch of the series, the Histoire de Tourbillon 3 was presented in an oblong white gold and Zalium case measuring 65mm in diameter. This massive case was necessary to accommodate the twin tourbillon regulators in the movement: one a bi-axial tourbillon like that found on the Histoire de Tourbilllon 2, and the other a single axis tourbillon with a rapid 36 second rate of revolution. Hours and minutes are displayed separately on the top right of the case, with the power reserve indicated by a disk set with baguette-cut blue sapphires and citrines, a nod to Harry Winston’s heritage as a jeweler.
Histoire de Tourbillon 4
The first ever tri-axial tourbillon found in a Harry Winston wristwatch, the tourbillon inside the Histoire de Tourbillon 4 is equipped with three concentric cages. Each is set at different angles, and rotates at different speeds: 45 seconds for the innermost, 75 seconds for the intermediate and a leisurely 300 seconds for the outermost cage. In another first, the movement of the timepiece has its base plate and bridges machined from titanium for lightness and corrosion resistance. The time display has the hours at two o’clock and minutes at nine.
Histoire de Tourbillon 5
Equipped with a tri-axial tourbillon just like the one found in the iteration that precededs it, the Histoire de Tourbillon 5 concentrates instead on revamping the aesthetics of the movement. The tourbillon sits at nine o’clock under a large sapphire dome, with the hours and minutes symmetrically arranged to its right. Made of German silver, the movement bridges have been open-worked, while the discs of the time display are skeletonised, revealing the gears and wheels below. The Histoire de Tourbillon 5 also enjoys the distinction of being the first, and so far only, edition of the series to have a rose gold case. At 47mm in diameter, it remains no less impressive than its peers.
Histoire de Tourbillon 6
The most complicated timepiece of the series, the Histoire de Tourbillon 6 is powered by a movement comprised of a whopping 683 components. That complexity is driven by function, for the sixth edition of the Histoire de Tourbillon not only tells the time, but also records it with the hour and minute counter at three o’clock. Equipped with a regulating organ of its own, the hour and minute counter can be started with the blue ceramic pusher at two o’clock. Once started, the conrrusel, a rotating oscillator at one o’clock, instantly begins turning, making two revolutions every minute while serving to regulate the hour and minute counter. Besides elapsed time, the counter can also serve as a second time zone display since its hands can be set independently via the crown at three o’clock. At eight o’clock is a tri-axial tourbillon like that found in earlier editions of the Histoire de Tourbillon.
