Having founded his eponymous watch Micro-Manufacture in 2004, Count Jérôme de Witt, a descendent of Napoleon Bonaparte, can draw upon his noble heritage in order to create a portfolio rich with watchmaking traditions. By using authentic rose-engine lathes from the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries to produce guillochage for their in-house dials, DeWitt affirm their commitment to authentic aesthetic decoration.

Although this piece is a superb example of DeWitt’s ability to create a precious and exclusive jewellery wristwatch, it also underscores their Haute Horlogerie skills, through the inclusion of innovative mechanisms.

In the pursuit of accuracy, generations of watchmakers have had to face up to the same quandary – the reality that a timekeeper’s precision will ultimately depend on the unchanging release of energy from its power source.  On a wristwatch the frustration lies in the fluctuation of energy transferred from the mainspring, which like any wound spring will lose some of its “momentum” as it uncoils.

Integrated within their Academia Tourbillon Force Constante White Gold Jewellery model, Manufacture DeWitt have developed a solution to an issue which has puzzled generations of watchmakers.  They have developed an additional Constant-Force mechanism, created to ensure that the power will not fluctuate as the mainspring becomes unwound.

Right from the moment that this watch has been fully wound up until the end of its reserve of power, the energy will be supplied in precise and regular impulses, regardless of how much tension is remaining in the mainspring.

Such a complex innovation deserves to be showcased, and in an opening at 8 o’clock on the dial of this timepiece the wearer is offered a full look-see into the little four-armed devise which completes 6 revolutions per minute and which also features its own balance-spring.  This impressive micro-technology enables an unwavering supply of energy to be delivered, ensuring accuracy.

A similar opening at 5 o’clock provides a vista into the mechanisms of the tourbillon.

The white gold dial has been meticulously hand-decorated with a sunburst guilloché finish.  At the 12 o’clock location blackened open-worked sword-shaped hands indicate the hours and minutes on a perfectly proportioned subdial.

The 43mm 18-carat white gold case of the watch has been set with a scintillating array of 337 round diamonds, totalling 2.80cts.  Set around its bezel and rim, on its crown and on the profile of the “Imperial Columns” on the case side, they shimmer with intensity from every angle.

Inside, the DeWitt mechanical hand-winding movement beats at 21,600vph and it retains a power reserve of 72 hours.  The superlative hand-finishing can be appreciated through the sapphire case back.

This exclusive limited edition piece comes presented on a white alligator leather strap with 18-carat white gold triple folding clasp featuring the DeWitt signature “W” motif.