Emmanuel Bouchet is one of the youngest independent watch brands, having only released its first timepiece, the Complication One, in 2015. However, its founder, Emmanuel Bouchet, is no stranger to watchmaking and high horology. For readers familiar with Harry Winston’s epic Opus series, Bouchet was actually the genius behind the highly inventive Opus 12 (hands-on here) from 2012, which displays time using a system of spinning indicators. To mark the annual Dubai Watch Week, Emmanuel Bouchet has teamed up with one of the world’s leading watch retailers, Dubai-based Ahmed Seddiqi & Sons, to release the limited-edition Emmanuel Bouchet Complication One Ahmed Seddiqi & Sons Boutique Edition watch.
Emmanuel Bouchet plays around with different finishes and colors for various versions of the Complication One watch, such as those that we reviewed here or yet more flavors that we more recently saw hands-on here. Obviously, the Emmanuel Bouchet Complication One Ahmed Seddiqi & Sons Boutique Edition will be available only through Ahmed Seddiqi & Sons, and specifically the boutique at the Dubai Mall. But more than that, it also has some unique design flourishes that make it stand out among the other Emmanuel Bouchet Complication One watches.
Case size remains unchanged at a beefy 44mm, but the case is made out of titanium in the Emmanuel Bouchet Complication One Ahmed Seddiqi & Sons Boutique Edition watch. As we all know, titanium is very strong and light, but more importantly, it has a unique gray hue that is unlike any other metal. To complement the gray titanium case, the Complication One Ahmed Seddiqi & Sons Boutique Edition also has a gray dial and a gray alligator strap.
And for a bit of color and pizzazz, the Swiss anchor, which is visible on the dial, is given a green lacquer. This color combination is a first and will be exclusive to the Emmanuel Bouchet Complication One Ahmed Seddiqi & Sons Boutique Edition. Green, of course, is a prominent color in the Middle East and the United Arab Emirates with a number of cultural associations. It has been an obvious color choice in other regionally themed special-edition watches such as this MB&F LM1 M.A.D. Dubai Limited Edition watch, also for Seddiqi.
Mechanically, the Emmanuel Bouchet Complication One Ahmed Seddiqi & Sons Boutique Edition watch is identical to the regular Complication One watches. Powering it is the hand-wound caliber EB-1963 which consists of 485 parts and its twin mainspring barrels give it a power reserve of 72 hours. A unique aspect of the caliber EB-1963 is that it beats at a leisurely 2.5Hz, or 18,000bph. It was a deliberate decision, according to the brand, as it pays homage to traditional watchmaking. Furthermore, the slower beat rate allows owners to gaze at the movement and escapement in greater detail.
Time is displayed in a rather unorthodox fashion, with multiple sapphire discs forming subdials at 12, 4, and 8 o’clock. At 12 o’clock is the running seconds subdial, and underneath it is a day and night indicator. At 8 o’clock, we have the hours subdial, and at 4 o’clock, the minutes subdial. In short, I guess you can call it a unique take on the traditional regulateur-type watches. And in the center, we can view the double escape wheel and anchor.
The hour and minute readings are unique in that the hands all snap into position as opposed to sweeping slowly over time as on most watches. The most unusual part is the way the minutes are displayed, with the shorter, stockier hand indicating the tens of minutes, while the longer hand shows the exact minute. That means that the full 0-9 scale of the subdial is only used by the longer hand, while the shorter hand will snap back to zero after five. It’s actually easier to read than it sounds, with the image below displaying the time 1:46, for example.
The Emmanuel Bouchet Complication One Ahmed Seddiqi & Sons Boutique Edition watch will only be available for purchase at Ahmed Seddiqi & Sons boutique at Dubai Mall and makes a great souvenir from your UAE trip or as a gift for that special sultan in your life at a local price of 499,800 AED, or US$120,000. emmanuelbouchet.com
