The Breguet 3857 "250th anniversary" is an interesting watch in the recent history of Breguet.
Actually, it is a turning point to understand the aesthetic codes of the vintage Breguet.
15 years ago, the watchmakers needed some courage to create neo-vintage pieces; here, it is a success.
To celebrate the 250th anniversary of the birth of Abraham-Louis, in 1747 at Neuchatel, Breguet presented this 3857 in 1997.
To touch this watch is a great moment of happiness for a young enthusiast; indeed, it is this kind of pieces featured in the watchmaking magazines that made us fantasize, at the beginning of the 2000's, before the horologic web.
And here is the glossy picture converted into 3D and sound!
Because this Breguet features a minute-repeater with a sound as clear as a bell; but it also includes a tourbillon and a perpetual calendar.
This plethora of grand complications is enclosed in a surprisingly balanced watchcase, which doesn't look too thick when it is worn (40mm for about 15mm in thickness).
The dial is of course a tribute to the vintage Breguet: the strength of the 3857 is not only the tourbillon's carriage, but it is above all the superb finish of the retrograde date aperture and the "asymmetrical" finishes of the diverse sub-dials.
Final bid at Sotheby's on May 15, 2012: 245,000chf.
It may sound like a lot of money, but it is finally not much for this level of complication and of magic.
For example, one could compare this watch to the already mythical Patek 5208, which features an equivalent level of complication, for three times the price...
