3350, Tourbillon, A Series, Yellow Gold

When Jacques and Pierre Chaumet took the reins of Breguet, they rested their ambitions of reviving the most storied name in horology on the ability of a young Daniel Roth and François Bodet. Roth’s contributions in particular went on to define the watchmaking ethos of the brand, but are perhaps most obviously evident in the Tourbillon. This is Roth’s signature calibre, not only because it was developed by him in partnership with Lemania, but as it was invented by none other than AL Breguet. This is an early A Series Tourbillon, which apart from being crafted in these early years stands out for its subtle champagne tone and lack of any additional distracting text on the guilloché.

Roth worked closely with Nouvelle Lemania to create this tourbillon calibre, in this time Breguet and Roth together worked closely with Lemania to develop new ébauches. The design of this calibre came directly from Roth and took 3 years of R&D, with Lemania prototyping and then producing it. This calibre remained the basis of his work as an independent years later. Calibre 558 is the pinnacle of Roth’s time with Breguet, a case where the movement makes the watch. 

The brushed dial tracks are off-center, surrounded by barleycorn guilloché, and on separate tracks for minute and hours. Seconds are counted on a 20-second mounted bridge, which one of the three tourbillon carousel hands passes through every 20 seconds. It’s also worth noting that one of these hands has an arrow tip. The dial is opened for a tourbillon carousel which is beautifully finished including multiple interior angles and black polishing, centered in a backdrop of an hand engraved gold base plate. The hand engraved floral motif is echoed on the caseback, where the decorated base plate dominates the experience. The words ‘Brevet du 7, Messidor an 9’ nod to the date of the French Republican Calendar when Breguet patented the tourbillon (1801). This is all cased at 36mm in a tradition coin-edge case reminiscent of AL Breguet’s pocket watch style. The lugs set 18mm apart are soldered and minimal. Only in these earliest A Series do we see this champagne tone which this example clearly exhibits. 

For collectors the 3350’s appeal is layered. It is desirable because it is beautiful and technically satisfying, yes, but its story—that of building Breguet as a brand using the brand’s own roots. The aesthetic of the 3350 defined this period of the brand perfectly, walking the line between AL Breguet’s traditional designs and the technical, innovative edge Roth added to the legacy. 

This 3350 presents in excellent vintage condition. Its case is, in all likelihood, never refinished in any way. The lugs are extremely strong, as is the coin-edge. There is an extremely light oxidation patina developing between the lugs and its hallmarks are extremely crisp. The dial sports a very light patina visible, notably in two spots to the right had side of the dial guilloché, in the tone of champagne and edges. The calibre 558 is running well in specification on our timing equipment. It comes with its original early font Breguet deployant clasp.

This example is modelled on an average-sized 7-inch wrist.