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Watches and Wonders 2024: Chopard spreads its wings for new Alpine Eagle collection designs
BY Gloria Fung
April 17, 2024
Chopard draws on its high jewellery roots for its watchmaking as evident in its Watches and Wonders showing. Gloria Fung reports
A jeweller at heart, Chopard has been known to draw upon the know-how and passion it puts forth in its bejewelled creations and range of timepieces. Be it jewellery watches or timepieces that hone in on the house’s watchmaking capabilities, pieces from Chopard are often finished with the same refinement often reserved for high jewellery making.
At this year’s Watches and Wonders, Chopard displays exactly this, drastically transforming the aesthetics of a single design through a play on materials, gem sets and complications.
The Alpine Eagle is Chopard’s reissued hit that returned from the archives in 2019. Riding on the overall popularity of the stainless steel sports watch category, the Alpine Eagle was an instant success thanks to a design deeply rooted in that design ethos signature to sporty pieces from the 1980s.
Also see: Watches and Wonders 2024: Tudor brings new movement and precious iteration to its Black Bay lineup
This year, the alpine eagle sees new iterations that each touch on the unique know-how at Chopard. Introducing the use of grade 5 titanium and putting forth its gem-setting know-how completes these new expressions of the Alpine Eagle watches.
The Alpine Eagle 41 XP TT combines the utilitarian aesthetics of the design with an ultra-thin mechanism, which enhances the wearability and comfort of the design. The calibre L.U.C 96.17-S Is an openwork movement that measures just 3.3mm. The 41 mm case is created using grade 5 titanium, further enabling the lightweight design. The skeletonised design further enhances the aesthetics of the timepiece.
On the other end of the spectrum is a full-pave, high-shine rendition of the Alpine Eagle. The Alpine Eagle 41 XP Frozen Summit displays what the Chopard does best with diamonds. The 33 mm watch’s 18k white gold case and bracelet, along with the dial, are covered entirely in diamonds. This design is a glittering expression of the house’s ethos, bringing forth its exquisite technique in jewel-making and a feminine touch to an otherwise sporty reference.
A mix of baguette-cut diamonds around the bezel and solitaires on the case and bracelet further adds to the dynamics of the gem set. A self-winding Chopard 09.01-C self-winding calibre sets the piece in motion.
