A Fantastic Partnership between Bovet 1822 & Rolls-Royce

Photo: Rolls-Royce

The relation between time and cars has existed since the invention of motor vehicles. In the automotive realm, watches have long been useful for measuring speed across a distance or ensuring the driver always knows the actual time. Rolls-Royce and Bovet 1822 is thus a real partnership.

A Jiffy in Time

The watch in a Rolls-Royce vehicle regularly takes on a jewel-like prominence, typically serving as a little artwork for the customer to describe their request. This legendary centerpiece has been raised to unmatched artistic and technical heights for Rolls-Royce Boat Tail, the newly presented first of 3 coachbuilt designs. Every feature has been constructed to the customer’s precise specifications.

Rolls-Royce Automobiles and Swiss expert watch designers BOVET 1822 have jointly designed a pair of distinctive clocks regarding the Boat Tail and its users. Architects, engineers, and artisans from both premium houses collaborated on this huge project. It served as a stunning illustration of their common ideals of perfection, accuracy, tradition, craftsmanship, innovation, and thoroughness.

Furthermore, the watches are exclusive to the horological and automobile industries. Reversible and created in a pair—and lady’s man’s—they can be donned on the wrist, utilized as a table clock, necklace, or pocket watch. This is in addition to being prominently displayed in Boat Tail’s façade as the vehicle’s watch. They are also encased in BOVET 1822’s proprietary Amadeo case and have tourbillon movements installed to guarantee absolute accuracy.

Upholding Tradition

BOVET 1822 first gained fame for producing opulent pocket pieces for rich clients in China. But currently, it is known worldwide for its gorgeous watches with hand-polished dials, intricate etching, and well-finished transparent gears.

The clocks, made for the inaugural version of Boat Tail, feature specifically built 18K white golden casings, complementing face dials, and are completed with the inscriptions of the user couples. The face dials contain a similar Caleidolegno coating to the astern platform of Boat Tail. Moreover, the lady’s clock is ornately etched and covered with blue polish, while the gentleman’s is finely refined.

The dials are much more distinctive on the back side. The lady’s watch has a mother-of-pearl dial embellished with an elaborate miniature artwork of a flower bouquet. Likewise, the gentleman’s watch has an aventurine dial that depicts the celestial layout of the night sky above the location of his date of birth. This theme, which the owner personally selected and customized, is a classic BOVET 1822 pattern.

With wheels, mirrors, a door handle, as well as other fine features, the hand-etched Boat Tail artworks on both backside dials are bespoke creations. The crews at Rolls-Royce and BOVET 1822 successfully achieved an exact color complement between the finish on this miniature piece of art and the standard automobiles by joining forces together.

Two-sided watch with men’s and women’s versions – front face with off-centered Rolls Royce grille shaped dial. Photo: Bovet 1822

A closer collaboration was necessary to guarantee that the watches met the requirements of their special function as motorcar watches. In this case, there was a limitation on the overall permitted mass of the clocks, including their holders.

In manufacturing, weight is never a concern for a complicated timepiece. This demand was addressed by BOVET 1822 by developing a brand-new 44milimeter white gold casing. The watches and holders also needed to undergo vibration and impact security tests to automobile sector standards. This was the first time this was done on devices of this nature. In addition, the clocks’ design, manufacturing, carvings, tiny paintings, marquetry, customized movements, as well as casings consumed an average of 3,000 hours to produce. This is according to a conservative approximation.

The Impactful Tourbillon

The gravitational impact on a pocket piece’s important moving elements might reduce the timepiece’s precision if it’s left stationary in one place for any period. Luckily, this issue was resolved by watchmakers towards the end of the nineteenth century when they created the tourbillon. This tourbillon mounts the escapement and balancing disc in an enclosure that gently turns to counteract the gravity influence.

Typically, the user’s normal physical motions eliminate the necessity for the tourbillon in a watch. The tourbillon, nevertheless, particularly shines when that exact clock is kept vertical in an automobile dashboard for extended periods.

Bespoke one-minute tourbillon, manual winding, 284 components, exposed tourbillon escapement, 21,600vph (3hz). Photo: Bovet 1822

For its expertise in tourbillion watches, BOVET 1822 possesses a number of trademarks. Besides, it has won numerous honors, such as the Aiguille d’Or, the top prize in the watch industry. Additionally, it is the sole company in the watch sector that produces its spirals and regulatory mechanisms.

The tourbillon features pivots instead of the conventional ball bearings, a heftier balancing wheel, and an improved oscillating speed to help with accuracy. This reduces the possible effects of vehicle vibrations. Lastly, a handmade miniature Spirit of Ecstasy made of gold completes the tourbillon bridge.

Furthermore, instead of the 42 to 48 hours of the regular timepiece, the watches have a great 5-day power reserve to accommodate their use as automobile clocks.

System of the Dashboard Holder: Excellent Accuracy

BOVET 1822 designers and the Rolls-Royce Coach build creative team conceptualized the Rolls-Royce Boat Tail-specific holding system from scratch. Nevertheless, imperceptible shocks are present even after the amount of vibration in a Rolls-Royce was inherently lowered to the barest minimum. This extremely intricate mounting arrangement aims to shield the watches from these tiny shocks. Additionally, it ensures they run quietly, are simple to install and uninstall from the dashboard, and, most importantly, stays secure.

Bespoke timepiece on the dashboard. Photo: Bovet 1822

Typically, such difficulties were unheard of in the wristwatch and automobile industries. BOVET 1822 was committed to sticking with a strictly mechanical strategy to maintain its legacy of Swiss handmade creation. All the device’s moving components were kept external, thanks to the designers’ creative design, and the dashboard served as a stable mounting surface for the holder.

Furthermore, Rolls-Royce wanted to ensure that the holder could be adorned with a lovely carved and polished display board when it was not holding any of the watches. The dashboard thus contains a special drawer under the clock that is covered with similar leather as the seats of Boat Tail. Besides, it acts as a safeguarding container for the watches, straps, chains, and pendants when they aren’t in use.

Bottom Line

The coupling of Rolls-Royce with BOVET 1822 in such a configuration is ideal. Both businesses are dedicated to providing total customer pleasure. Moreover, they have a great deal in common, including the principles of excellence, accuracy, heritage, productivity, design art, handcrafted attention to detail, and creativity.

Generally, working together on such revolutionary watches and dashboard display systems has lifted the standards for both sectors.