The latest collaboration between Louis Vuitton and an artisanal watchmaker, on this occasion, De Bethune, takes form as the LVDB-03 Louis Varius Project. Denis Flageollet, known for his horological pyrotechnics, has created a high-complication timepiece that combines a GMT wristwatch with a mechanically synchronised sympathique master clock. As such, this project represents one of the most technically ambitious in contemporary watchmaking.
Combining the visual codes of both maisons, the LVDB-03 GMT Louis Varius wristwatch is housed in a 45mm Tambour Taiko case crafted from thermally blued titanium with platinum lugs and crown. The polished, sandblasted and satin-brushed finished case consists of 53 components and is water-resistant to 30 meters.
Left, merging of styles – the blued Louis Vuitton Tambour Taiko case and De Bethune’s star chart dial, three-dimensional moonphase and calendar.
Right, the proprietary De Bethune DB2507LV movement with its titanium balance wheel escapement.
Limited to 10 pieces, the watch beats at the pace of De Bethune calibre DB2507LV, featuring a manual-winding movement with 404 components and 40 jewels, together with a five-day power reserve via a double self-regulating barrel system. The proprietary calibre features the in-house titanium balance wheel with white gold weights, a flat terminal curve balance spring, a silicon escape wheel, and De Bethune’s triple shock-absorption system. Decoration on the mainplate is microlight Côtes de Bethune hand-finishing.
The dial is constructed from blued titanium with hand-set white gold pins forming a starry sky motif, with “LV” displayed as a celestial pattern. The spherical day/night display in rose gold and flame-blued steel completes one full rotation every 24 hours. The watch also features a GMT dual time zone, 24-hour second time zone disc, jumping date, and the patented sympathique synchronisation interface.
The LVDB-03 Sympathique Louis Varius Clock features a blued titanium dial with gold leaf decoration,
crowned by a hand-engraved 5N rose gold dome of the Hercules constellation,
crafted by Michèle Rothen after François Schuiten’s illustrations.
The sympathique function enables automatic winding and time-resetting of the LVDB-03 GMT wristwatch when docked into the clock. De Bethune’s patented “Advanced Mechanical Synchronization” reinterprets the historic sympathique mechanism originally developed by Abraham-Louis Breguet. Breguet invented this symbiotic mechanism between watch and clock over 230 years ago to improve timekeeping, the name being chosen to reflect the harmony (“sympathy”) between the two, aimed to eliminate daily manual adjustments.
The LVDB-03 clock is powered by the De Bethune calibre DB5006, a manual key-wound titanium mechanism comprising 763 components and an 11-day power reserve, with a constant-force remontoir d’égalité. The cradle for docking the watch is revealed by removing the rose gold engraved dome in the centre of the clock’s dial. Over nine to 12 hours, the clock fully winds the wristwatch and resets it every two hours, ensuring synchronisation within a ±7-minute tolerance. Unlike historical systems, this modern implementation allows docking without removing the strap.
Left, the LVDB-03 GMT Louis Varius in its titanium Louis Vuitton trunk with blued titanium corners.
Right, the construction of the Louis Vuitton trunk for the LVDB-03 Sympathique Louis Varius Clock.
Weighing approximately 10kg and mounted on a titanium base with meteorite marquetry, the clock features adjustable positioning inspired by marine chronometers of the past. Both watch and sympathique clock come in their own polished titanium Louis Vuitton trunk with blued titanium hardware and palladium accents, finished internally with premium leather and Alcantara. Titanium is rarely used in traditional Louis Vuitton trunk-making because of it is complex to machine and finish to the required high standards of the Maison.
Only two clocks are being made, accompanied by two further units of the wristwatch (LVDB-03 Sympathique Louis Varius, €4,000,000).
Each of the 10 wristwatches, LVDB-03 GMT Louis Varius, are priced at €375,000.
Author: Andrew Hildreth
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