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  • The watch comes in two different versions,

  • and the difference between the two is pretty much restricted

  • just to the case material.

  • The $460,000 version is in red gold,

  • and the more expensive

  • half million dollar version

  • is done in platinum.

  • Many of the most expensive watches are expensive because

  • they're set with precious stones, which,

  • of course, raises the price through the roof.

  • In the case of thecital 22 Grandcital,

  • however, the watch is as expensive as it is entirely

  • because of the amount of craftsmanship that goes into it

  • and the length of time that it takes

  • to produce the various effects

  • that make the watch what it is.

  • BOVET watches are inherently limited in production simply

  • because of the complexity that's associated

  • with making them.

  • This particular watch is a limited edition

  • of 60 pieces worldwide.

  • Those are going to roll out very slowly, simply because

  • they can't be made quickly.

  • It's just inherent in the nature of the watch.

  • The single decorative element that's probably

  • most strongly identified with BOVET today is the use

  • of extremely fine miniature painting, often in the form of,

  • what's called, cold enameling on the dials of their watches.

  • And thecital 22 Grandcital has a

  • really, really wonderful example of this particular craft.

  • The centerpiece of the watch is a hemisphere

  • representing the Earth as seen from above the North Pole.

  • There are many, many layers of enamel that have been,

  • that have been applied to the hemisphere in order

  • to achieve a wonderful kind of translucent effect

  • in which the clouds literally seem to float

  • above the oceans and continents.

  • The paints are actually luminous and very, very luminous,

  • and, when you turn the lights off, you are treated to a view

  • of the continents glowing up at you

  • that's just incredibly compelling.

  • This particular wristwatch is in a class of,

  • what are called, astronomical complications.

  • These are timepieces that show, often, the relative position

  • of the stars to an observer standing on Earth, or,

  • in this case, the relative position

  • of the sun and the moon relative

  • to an observer standing on Earth.

  • So the centerpiece is this revolving hand-painted depiction

  • of the upper hemisphere, the northern hemisphere

  • of the Earth.

  • Placed just below it, in the six o'clock position, is,

  • what's called, a tourbillon.

  • We can see the tourbillon rotating as we look at the watch,

  • and the position that it's in is identical to the position

  • that the sun would be in, relative to the Earth.

  • So it kind of stands in for, the tourbillon stands in

  • for the sun in this wristwatch.

  • Rotating around the Earth is a spherical depiction

  • of the moon divided into a sunlit hemisphere

  • and a dark hemisphere.

  • And you can read the phase of the moon from the position

  • of this little hemisphere as it rotates around the Earth.

  • The back of the watch is also loaded with information.

  • It's what's called the perpetual calendar.

  • Now, a perpetual calendar is a mechanical watch

  • which knows the difference between a leap year

  • and a non-leap year, and which also advances the date

  • correctly at the end of each month,

  • whether it's a 30-day month or a 31-day month.

  • The relative rarity of the watches and the amount

  • of handwork that goes into finishing the movement, the case,

  • and other aspects of the watch all adds up

  • to a tremendous, tremendous amount

  • of real old-school craftsmanship,

  • which simply doesn't come cheap.

  • At this level of watchmaking, you're really talking about

  • something that's designed to appeal to someone

  • with extremely specific tastes and with a budget to match.

  • There are 705 components in this wristwatch.

The watch comes in two different versions,

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