Montblanc Collection Villeret Vintage 1858 Chronographe

  From Montblanc comes a new release, the Montblanc Collection Villeret Vintage 1858 Chronographe.

The first Montblanc watch collection was unveiled in 1997 and this has evolved into an elegant and appealing portfolio of mens and ladies models.  Ambitions to be respected within the industry as a serious watch brand gained momentum when Montblanc’s parent company the Richemount Luxury Group also acquired Minerva, a manufacture acclaimed for its chronograph movements.  The combination of the uncompromising quality synonymous with the Montblanc brand together with the ingenious Minerva movements resulted in the birth of the Montblanc Villeret 1858 Collection, named in honour of the founding date of Minerva.

The latest piece, the Villeret Vintage 1858 Chronographe is evocative of earlier chronographs with true retro styling. The beautifully clean grand feu enamel dial with blued steel hands features two timing devices: a telemetre scale for measuring distances based on the speed of sound located on the outer dial edge (perhaps familiar to enthusiasts of military pieces when this was once used as a crude type of range finder) and a tachymetre scale which due to lack of space is seductively curled in the centre of the dial in an intriguing snail-like spiral.

The technical yet refined piece features the Minerva 16-29 Calibre manual wind column wheel chronograph movement which has a crown operated monopusher for the chronograph allowing the 43.5mm wide case to maintain an uncluttered classically rounded shape.

Previous pieces in this collection have been limited releases of 1, 8 or 58 pieces - a further tribute to the year Minerva was founded and the Vintage 1858 Chronographe is no exception - 58 pieces will be released in 18ct red gold with white enamel dial presented on  a brown alligator straps with a further 58 released in 18ct white gold with black enamel dial presented on a black alligator strap.