Van Cleef & Arpels showed many surprises at SIHH 2016. One of the most amazing jewelry watches of the fair was in this booth: called the Bracelet Montre Rubis Secret, this “secret” watch gathers an amazing 115 rubies of the same color. It is a remarkable achievement considering that this kind of gemstone is hard to find. And the challenge is even harder when the color must match perfectly.

Van Cleef & Arpels also exhibited new technical developments for its watches. We very much appreciated the Lady Arpels Jour Nuit Fée Ondine for several reasons. The first is that the rotating dial constitutes a 24-hour display and not a 12-hour example, which is the usual kind that this brand makes. It so rare in a feminine watch that it deserves to be mentioned. This display has one objective: to coordinate with the sun or the moon on the large subdial at 12 o’clock. Finally, the plique-à-jour decoration on the bottom part of the dial is partially transparent.

Van Cleef & Arpels also justifiably received a lot of attention for its Lady Arpels Ronde des Papillons. A bird displays the hours while three different butterflies indicate the minutes, ,flying at different speeds one after the other.

Finally, Van Cleef & Arpels launched its first electrical complication using manually produced energy. Thanks to the piezoelectric effect and two blades made out of ceramic on brass combined with a regulator, diamonds on the dial are illuminated from the back when the wearer pushes a button. But patience will be necessary to see the final product; we were only able to film a fresh prototype.