Available in two 24-piece limited editions, it stages an encounter between a Manufacture Hermès flying tourbillon and the art of cloisonné enamel, revealing a motif inspired by a Hermès silk carré: Chevaux en camouflage.

The enamelling workshop is the scene of painstaking, meticulous hand-crafted process.

The artist-artisan begins by sketching on a sheet of paper the outlines of the horses, which will serve as the base for tiny gold wires. The canvas is a gold dial on which he delicately places the golden filaments, thereby marking out the surfaces to be enamelled.

Gold thread

Like a painter, he then prepares his palette of colours, a symphony of blue and brown shades, according to the specific version of the watch.

Using the tip of his brush, he applies the colours in light touches to create a play of light and depth effects. In the course of successive firings at around 800°C, the various subtle nuances gradually appear in all their subtle splendour, giving life to the mettlesome horses breaking into a gallop and framed by the white or rose gold case.

Enameling

This cavalcade of glass, gold and fire plays out above another stunning visual show – this time of a mechanical nature. The flying tourbillon of the Manufacture Hermès H1923 movement spins airily inside a carriage topped with a double H symbol evoking that of the lift in the historical boutique at 24, Faubourg Saint Honoré in Paris.

Enameling

Brilliantly orchestrating skills perpetuated by the human hand, the Arceau Lift Chevaux en camouflage stems from a combination of time-honoured watchmaking and cloisonné enamelling techniques. In keeping with the origins of Hermès, it is naturally fitted with a leather strap – complete, as one would expect, with finely crafted saddle stitching.