5 of the world’s most covetable métiers d’art watches: from Cartier’s The Crash Tigrée and Hermès’ timepiece inspired by its Les Folies du Ciel silk scarf, to Van Cleef & Arpels’ Lady Duo de Lions

Feb 2 , 2023

Vacheron Constantin’s Les Cabinotiers Minute Repeater Tourbillon Flying Dutchman. Photo: Vacheron Constantin

French for ‘masters of art’, métiers d’art timepieces are among the most unique in the world thanks to their technical and artistic brilliance, often featuring beautiful scenes on their dials

Cartier, Hermès, Van Cleef & Arpels, Vacheron Constantin and Jaquet Droz have created 5 such pieces, featuring all manner of mechanical automata and miniature paintings

A technical tour-de-force from luxury’s most famous houses, métiers d’art watches take attention to detail to the next level – so much so that only a handful of brands are willing to invest in their production. Here are some of the most recent resulting masterpieces, where art meets horology.

1. Hermès

The charming Hermès Arceau Les Folies Du Ciel watch. Photo: Hermès

Inspired by Loïc Dubigeon’s 1984 Les Folies du Ciel silk scarf, the Arceau Les Folies du Ciel honours aerostatics with its mother-of-pearl dial featuring two neoralite hot air balloons attached to a bird-shaped gondola. Price upon request.

2. Jacquet Droz

The Bird Repeater got an update in late 2021 on the occasion of Pierre Jaquet Droz’s 300th birthday. Photo: Jaquet Droz

To mark the 300th anniversary of the birth of founder Pierre Jaquet-Droz in 2021, the brand introduced a new rendition of The Bird Repeater. The highlight is a mechanical automaton that animates the dial with its pair of birds, a hatching egg and a river in the background. Price upon request.

3. Cartier

The high impact Cartier Crash Tigrée watch harks back to the 1930s. Photo: Cartier