Written by: Lisa Pearson

Parisian luxury watchmaker Breguet was established in 1775 by Abraham-Louis Breguet. The Breguet company is one of the eldest watch making institutions who are still in business and also pioneered numerous advances in the production of watches. The most notable technology invented by Breguet is the tourbillon which is an addition to the mechanics of a watch escapement.

Historically, Breguet garnered attention and praise by royalty such as Queen Marie Antoinette and King Louis XVI; although countless distinguished individuals donned a Breguet timepiece in their time. Louis XVI was known to commission the watchmaker to create several timepieces. According to historical legend, a secret admirer of Marie Antoinette commissioned Breguet to make a timepiece with every possible watch function available at the time to be created for her.

Unfortunately, the piece was finished 34 years after Marie Antoinette passed on thus the piece was never presented to her.  The piece did go on to become Breguet’s magnum opus, the Marie Antoinette; however, Breguet was not partial to Marie Antoinette. The Queen of Naples Caroline Murat was also a “preferred customer” of Breguet.

Marie Antoinette and the famed Grande Complication pocket watch she never got to see

Breguet was acquired by the Swatch Group in 1976 and their timepieces are now made in Vallée de Joux, Switzerland as a result. The acquisition did not change Breguet’s trailblazing yet classic timepieces. They continued to create classic watches with both modern and vintage looks along with their innovative watch making technology.

Notably, in January 2012 Breguet is honoring the Queen of Naples with an exposition convened in Geneva’s Cité du Temps as well as the 200^th anniversary of their first wristwatch. The exhibit will celebrate the 200th anniversary of the creation of the first wristwatch in horological history along with the 10^th anniversary of their Reine de Naples ladies’ watch collection which is in honor of Caroline Murat, the Queen of Naples.

The Breguet Reine de Naples watch

The Reine de Naples watch collection is an assortment of fashionale women’s watches that emulate the design of the first watch made for a queen, namely the Queen of Naples. The timepiece can be considered wearable art with its oval shape, subtle yet enchanting details, and various dials and accents. One can truly envision these pieces being worn by royalty and can appreciate all of the workmanship that went into creating each part of the watch.

The Breguet exhibition which will be running January 16^th-February 12^th, 2012, is said to coincide with the SIHH, the Salon International de la Haute Horlogerie, which is an exclusive fine watch event held in Geneva, Switzerland.