This Award-Winning Mechanical Exception Watch Worth the Price of a House

There are watches, and then there are works of art. Then, soaring above even those, are mechanical miracles that defy the limits of engineering, design, and imagination.

Enter the Récital 28 Prowess 1 by the House of BOVET, a timepiece so revolutionary it earned the coveted Mechanical Exception Prize and is valued at a jaw-dropping 702,650 CHF - enough to buy a house.

But the Récital 28 Prowess 1 is not just about its price tag or its accolades; it is a watch that rewrites the rules of timekeeping. With its groundbreaking innovations, exquisite craftsmanship, and astonishing beauty, it stands as a beacon of what is possible when genius meets artistry.

Cracking the Code of Daylight Saving Time

Imagine this: a world timer so accurate it knows what time it is everywhere on Earth, during every season, without the need for manual adjustments. It sounds impossible, doesn’t it? Until now, it was.

For centuries, world timer watches have been plagued by a fatal flaw: Daylight Saving Time (DST). While about 70 countries follow DST, the start and end dates vary globally, creating a nightmare for accurate world timekeeping. Collectors of luxury world timers have long had to choose between two compromises: set their watches for countries observing DST or those that don’t. Either way, they were wrong part of the year.

The Récital 28 Prowess 1 solves this problem in a way no watch ever has, using an ingenious system of rollers. Around the dial, 24 city rollers, each engraved with four distinct time zones (UTC, AST, EAS, and EWT), work in perfect harmony. By pressing the sapphire cabochon on the crown, all 24 rollers rotate simultaneously, aligning to reflect the correct time zones during any period of the year.

It is not just a technical breakthrough; it is a triumph of simplicity and elegance. For the first time in watchmaking history, the entire world is in sync—thanks to a wristwatch.

Engineering Excellence Meets Cosmic Elegance

While the world time mechanism steals the spotlight, the Récital 28 Prowess 1 is an all-encompassing showcase of horological excellence. Its 46.3mm Grade 5 Titanium case and aventurine dial are as functional as they are stunning. The aventurine finish evokes a starry night, adding an ethereal quality to the watch's terrestrial mastery.

At the heart of this masterpiece beats a manual-winding mechanical movement with a remarkable 10-day power reserve, ensuring precision for days on end. And at 12 o’clock, the double-sided flying tourbillon makes its grand statement. This isn’t just any tourbillon—it’s BOVET’s lightest and most advanced, weighing only 0.35 grams yet performing with unparalleled precision and visual drama.

A Perpetual Calendar Like No Other

The perpetual calendar of the Récital 28 Prowess 1 is another marvel. Using rollers instead of traditional displays, the calendar glides seamlessly through the days, months, and leap years. When the date transitions, the rollers perform a dazzling slot-machine-like rotation, a mechanical ballet that embodies BOVET’s commitment to both innovation and artistry.

Adding to its ingenuity, a patented Function Isolator protects the delicate perpetual calendar mechanism, ensuring that corrections cannot be made during unsafe periods. This kind of meticulous attention to detail elevates the Récital 28 Prowess 1 into the stratosphere of mechanical ingenuity.

Luxury in Every Detail

Every inch of the Récital 28 Prowess 1 reflects BOVET’s storied legacy of craftsmanship. Its 744 components are hand-finished, with techniques that push the boundaries of traditional watchmaking. The angle rentrant beveling, for example, requires a level of skill so rare that no machine can replicate it. Only a handful of artisans in the world can achieve the razor-sharp precision that defines this timepiece.

With only 60 pieces in existence—and a production rate of just eight per year—the Récital 28 Prowess 1 is one of the most exclusive watches ever made. Available in 18K Red Gold, 950 Platinum, or Grade 5 Titanium, it is a treasure coveted by collectors and connoisseurs alike.

The House of BOVET has long been synonymous with pushing the boundaries of multi-timezone watches. From dual time to triple time to world timers, they’ve mastered the art of global timekeeping. Yet with the Récital 28 Prowess 1, they have ascended to a new pinnacle.

As CEO Mr. Raffy so aptly put it:

“With the Récital 28 Prowess 1, we are solving the terrestrial time problem with a world timer that can be adjusted for all the variations in timekeeping around the world. With this timepiece, you will never be at a loss for what time it is anywhere in the world.”

To call the Récital 28 Prowess 1 a watch is to undersell its impact. It is an engineering triumph, a design revolution, and a symbol of human ingenuity. For the select few who can call it theirs, it is not just a timepiece but a legacy—a mechanical exception worth every bit of its astonishing price.

In a world where time waits for no one, the Récital 28 Prowess 1 ensures that you’re not just keeping up—you’re ahead.