Introducing the Louis Erard Excellence Émail Grand Feu Small Seconds
Wednesday - 17 March 2021
Louis Erard collaborates with a rare dial enameller to create the Excellence Émail Grand Feu Small Seconds watch, limited to just 99 pieces worldwide.
Independent Swiss watchmaker, Louis Erard has evolved and excelled its highly esteemed Excellence watch collection over the last few years, mainly by collaborating with various designers like Eric Gourd, Vianney Halter and Alain Siberstein to reinterpret the regulator in a more contemporary way. Now, it releases the first Grand Feu enamel dial to the Excellence watch collection. The new 42mm Louis Erard Excellence Émail Grand Feu Small Seconds watch draws upon the expertise of Donzé Cadrans to achieve the handmade enamel dial. The new limited edition watch of just 99 pieces boasts an accessible price tag and imparts a purist look on the wrist – qualities that will appeal to experienced and new collectors of Louis Erard watches alike.
The Grand Feu dial – a fine artform
During the autumn of 2020, Louis Erard added its first Petite Seconds watch to the revered Excellence watch collection. This time-only dial paved the way for the new limited-to-99-pieces Louis Erard Excellence Émail Grand Feu Small Seconds watch. The original Excellence Petite Seconde watch marked the brand’s first dipping of its toes into the art of traditional ceramic dials and featured the iconic Louis Erard blued steel hands inspired by the “magical blue hour” (the point in the day at which the sun dips below the horizon, painting the sky with a deep blue hue). Furthermore, the design of the hands runs much deeper than their colour alone. Their style is inspired by the fir trees that blanket the Swiss Jura Mountains of which Louis Erard watches are all conceptualised, designed and finalised.
Sharing an almost identical spec with last year’s Excellence Petite Seconde watch, the new limited edition Louis Erard Excellence Email Grand Feu Small Seconds watch boasts a dial executed in a centuries-old decorative art form, which it entrusts Donzé Cadrans to achieve. Louis Erard didn’t just happen upon this collaboration with the master enameller, however. It is one of the very few remaining workshops to specialise in this time-honoured technique. With only a handful of dial enamellers available in Europe, Louis Erard has taken great care in seeking out the ideal specialist for the job. Donzé Cadrans is currently owned by Ulysse and has grown a reputation for enamelling dials for many a prestigious watch brand over the years.
The Louis Erard Excellence Émail Grand Feu Small Seconds watch has an indulgent creamy coloured dial achieved by the Grand Feu technique – also known as the “great fire” technique. The process uses a copper base sprayed with alcohol and an enamel powder sprinkled on top. This combination is then fired in a kiln reaching up to temperatures that exceed 800°C, producing the perfect thickness for working upon. Until the dial of the Petite Seconds dial has cooled, the conscientious task of attaining the exact dial colouring cannot begin. Printing with enamel power can then be ascertained before another session in the kiln is required. The alluring warm creamy tones of the Louis Erard Excellence Émail Grand Feu Small Seconds watch is home to blue Roman numeral hour markers, accompanied by a railway minutes track. The dial also features a small second sub-counter at 6 o’clock with indices presented in darker beige and blue tones.
Other key features of the Louis Erard Excellence Émail Grand Feu Small Seconds watch
With a running time of 38 hours once fully wound, the power reserve of the Louis Erard Excellence Émail Grand Feu Small Seconds watch can be utilised for occasions where you may want to alternate the watch with another favourite whilst it keeps perfect accuracy. That said, the timepiece has such a wearable and universally classic dial that (apart from the absence of a date feature) you need not want for much else in terms of a daily wearing wristwatch. Providing this 38-hour power reserve is the Sellita SW261-1 automatic movement, which boasts a special open-worked oscillating weight. The movement comprises 31 jewels and beats to the rhythm of 28,800 vibrations per hour. This performance can be admired through the back of the watch’s case, equipped with an anti-reflective piece of sapphire crystal glass.
The 42mm stainless steel case of the new limited edition Louis Erard Petite Seconds watch features a large knurled crown with spruce and fir tree-inspired engravings etched into its surface. This design feature, similar to that of the blued steel hands on the dial, is reminiscent of the fir trees gracing the slopes of the Jura Mountains and those that border the village of Le Noirmont.
A stylish coffee-coloured nubuck calf leather strap adorned with tone-on-tone stitching down the sides completes the authentic and refined look of this new Louis Erard Excellence Émail Grand Feu Small Seconds watch. Securing with a stainless steel pin buckle, the timepiece is classically built but exquisitely finished to celebrate the importance of prolonging traditional watchmaking techniques in the heart of Swiss Jura. You can place an order for your very own edition of the Excellence Émail Grand Feu watch today by calling our sales team on 01335 453453 or emailing us at help@jurawatches.co.uk.
Technical Specifications of the Louis Erard Excellence Émail Grand Feu Limited Edition watch
- Case: 42mm stainless steel / height: 12.25mm / domed anti reflective sapphire crystal glass / sapphire crystal glass caseback / 50-meter water resistant / fir tree-engraved knurled crown
- Dial: Beige Grand Feu enamel dial developed by Donzé Cadrans / blued steel fir tree-inspired hands / small seconds sub-dial at 6 o’clock
- Movement: Sellita SW261-1 automatic / 28,800 v.p.h / 38-hour power reserve / open worked oscillating weight / 31 jewels
- Strap: Coffee nubuck calf leather strap / tone-on-tone stitching / stainless steel pin buckle fastening
- Availability: Limited to 99 pieces worldwide
- Price: £3,400
