"With this launch, we wish to open a new chapter in the Maison's watchmaking history by creating a watch with solid technical qualities and Louis Vuitton's unmistakable style": the words of Jean Arnault, LV Watch Director, summarise the identity of the new Tambour, the fruit of the expertise of La Fabrique du Temps, the brand's manufacture that has shaped its grand complications. Completely revamped, Louis Vuitton's most emblematic timepiece has been updated in style to rightfully enter the sport-elegance category, which has been experiencing a new youthfulness in recent years.
"After twenty years of bold watch design based on the famous case, and with the same quest for modernity, refinement and functionality that have been hallmarks of the Maison for over 160 years, Louis Vuitton achieves an unprecedented level of savoir-faire on every single element of the new watch'. The new Tambour, offered in two versions in steel with a blue or silver-plated dial, is a timepiece that retains the stylistic traits that have always characterised it but reworks them in a new identity as a modern, elegant and sporty watch.
The round case with flared sides and the 12 letters of the Louis Vuitton name around the bezel remain distinctive features but the watch is refined and reshaped in volume and proportions. First and foremost, with a 40 mm diameter, but also with a remodelled thickness of 8.3 mm to make it more compact and slimmer: a genderless specimen to all intents and purposes.
The sandblasted bezel with polished edges, reduced to a minimum to leave more space for the dial, bears the 12 letters of the brand name in a more discreet manner, no longer engraved but embossed and polished, always referring to the position of the hours.
While sharing the style of the previous Tambour in the alternation of baton hour markers and Arabic numerals, the dial of the new model is sharper and more clearly delineated. Made on several levels and with different types of finishing, it creates a three-dimensionality that is not only aesthetically appealing but also functional: the applied hour markers in relief make it easier to read. Absolute novelty is the introduction of an integrated bracelet, with rounded links alternating polished and brushed finishes, which increases comfort on the wrist.
The new LFT023 calibre with small seconds is the first proprietary three-hand automatic movement developed by La Fabrique du Temps in collaboration with Le Cercle des Horlogers. The micro-rotor is made of 22-carat gold and decorated with the LV logo forming a repeated motif. It is certified by the Geneva Observatory, which operates under the auspices of Timelab, and boasts an accuracy of -4/+6 seconds per day.
Price19,500 euro.
