To celebrate the 175th anniversary of its foundation, the Geneva-based House presents the Quai des Bergues Sursum Corda. It is a unique piece created to showcase the beauty of craftsmanship and at the same time the spirit of resilience required in these difficult times, characterised by the pandemic caused by the coronavirus. The watch is derived from the Quai des Bergues collection in reference to the gold case and movement used. The dial of the Sursum Corda (the base of which, in a special gold alloy, was made by Preecinox in La Chaux-de-Fonds) represents the best of the crafts, with a cloisonné enamel map of the globe in the centre, surrounded by a satin-finished white gold ring bearing the inscription 'hearts on high' (Latin for 'sursum corda') in five languages, namely the aforementioned Latin, English, and the three languages spoken in the Swiss cantons, namely French, German and Italian. More externally, there is another ring for the hour circle, set on a background with a hand-engraved wave motif. The central cloisonné enamel map was made by Donzé Cadrans, the continents are represented in a blue/grey shade and are framed by a thin white gold wire only 0.1 mm thick. Finally, the engravings on the dial's outermost ring were executed by master engraver Michele Rothen, based on a design by Adrian Buchmann. Other special features on the dial (which took more than 40 hours to complete), such as the small seconds sub-dial, the inscriptions on the ring adjacent to the continents and the hour markers, were made by Metalem. The watch is powered by the hand-wound Czapek SXH calibre, which guarantees a power reserve of no less than 7 days. Speaking about this exceptional timepiece, Czapek & Cie. CEO Xavier de Roquemaurel said: "The Sursum Corda took more than a year to develop, and features the most complex dial we have ever produced. It was exciting to coordinate the three workshops involved, which are less than 300 metres apart. Everything was created in the Le Locle area, highlighting the strengths of the Swiss high-end watchmaking community.
