ReviewTenacious Tantalum: Presenting The New H. Moser & Cie. Endeavour Perpetual Calendar Tantalum Blue Enamel

As we step into March, it seems appropriate to talk about one of the most classic and complex astronomical complications in the watch world—the perpetual calendar. For the uninitiated, a perpetual calendar complication in a watch is one which tracks and provides the date, day, month, and usually even moon phases of the year, while automatically adjusting to the cycles of leap years. H. Moser & Cie. have been masters of this complication since the launch of the Perpetual 1 in 2006, and the many Endeavour Perpetual Calendar timepieces that followed. This year, the independent watchmaker unveils the Moser & Cie. Endeavour Perpetual Calendar Tantalum Blue Enamel.

Minimalism Accurate For 100 Years

A perpetual calendar complication is one of the most complex types of astronomical displays available—not only does it take into account indications such as time, date, day of the week, or the month, but also manages to track different lengths of the months on a four-year cycle. This means that the complication ensures that it takes into account the number of days in a year, including the changes in February for a leap year, and will automatically and accurately adjust to the right date, for a 100-year cycle.

In shades of anthracite and blue, the H. Moser & Cie. Endeavour Perpetual Calendar Tantalum Blue Enamel marks the first time tantalum has been used in the collection

Due to the complex mechanism involved, a perpetual calendar watch, albeit a classic, has always had a rather busy dial. This is the rule every watch brand has followed for a long time, until designers at H. Moser & Cie. got rid of all the sub-dials and display counters—except for the date—to bring us a new, minimalistic and elegant perpetual calendar timepiece: the Endeavour Perpetual Calendar. This new timepiece presented one of the most aesthetically-complicated complications into a minimalistic, no-fuss design that put other busy perpetual calendar watches to shame.

At 42mm-wide and 13.1mm thick, the H. Moser & Cie. Endeavour Perpetual Calendar Tantalum Blue Enamel is comfortable on the wrist giving off a dressy look

Over the years, H. Moser & Cie. has unveiled many Endeavour Perpetual Calendar timepieces, in various case materials and dial options, each following the same design philosophy of minimalism and elegance. This year, just when we thought the brand could not make a perpetual calendar more minimalist than the 2021 Endeavour Perpetual Calendar Funky Blue, the brand present a new variant—the Endeavour Perpetual Calendar in a tantalum case and with a blue enamelled dial. Here is a look at the watch in detail.

The Rare And Stable New Tantalum Case

Tantalum is a very rare material which was discovered in 1802 by Swede Anders Gustav Ekeberg. When it comes in contact with air, Tantalum develops a fine layer of oxidation which helps protect the metal from corrosion and other aggressive factors. It is a highly dense and extremely strong metal with a unique hue. Due to its strong and durable character, the material has a melting point of around 3000°C and requires advanced metallurgical expertise to machine. Moser & Cie. successfully created their first Tantalum case for the Endeavour Perpetual Calendar Tantalum Blue Enamel watch, with the help of ancestral and modern watchmaking techniques. The result is an exceptionally stable case structure (42mm in diameter, with a thickness of 13.1mm) in a dark grey colour with a blue-ish reflection that does not tarnish. 

Despite the minimalistic aesthetic, the dial offers a rather large date window, small seconds, and a power reserve indicator

Working inside the timepiece is the award-winning hand-wound HMC 800 movement, beating at 18,000vph

Edouard Meylan, CEO of H. Moser & Cie., explains why they chose this material: “When I was 18, my parents gave me my first Haute Horology watch, which was made from tantalum. Ever since then, I have dreamed of introducing this metal at H. Moser & Cie., in spite of the challenges it poses. It took more than two years of testing before we were able to polish the surfaces of our case, a feat that few have been able to match, with most preferring to sandblast or satin-finish tantalum.” The overall aesthetic of the case offers a marvellous reflection of light, with different shades of anthracite grey and metallic blue hues reflected off the metal. 

A Bare And Beautiful Blue Abyss

This unique colour dynamic is further enhanced with the presence of a Grand Feu enamel dial in ‘Abyss Blue’. To achieve the signature fumé effect, the translucent Grand Feu enamel dial is fired 12 times in total, naturally involving careful work and an almost-limitless patience. Cementing the brand’s minimalistic philosophy, the dial does not feature the brand logo, and all indices except for those at 12 and six o’clock are removed. The only elements present are the small arrow that indicates the month along with the central timekeeping hands, a rather large date window at three o’clock with the ‘Flash Calendar’ function, small seconds at six, and a power reserve indicator at nine o’clock. Furthermore, the stainless steel crown at three allows for easy setting of the time and date.

H. Moser & Cie. successfully created their first exceptionally stable Tantalum case in a dark grey colour with a blue-ish reflection that does not tarnish

₹78,00,000

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The new blue Grand Feu enamel dial features a combination of four translucent layers of coloured enamel

The master enameller washes, crushes and applies each of these blue-colour pigments to the dial base to produce the desired shadow effect

After fired in twelve stages, the engrained gold base called "Abyss Blue" showcases a seamless pattern that looks like it has been hammered repeatedly

Cementing the brand’s minimalistic philosophy, the dial does not feature the brand logo, and all indices except for those at 12 and six o’clock are removed

₹78,00,000

Check Our Selling Price

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Despite what can be seen on the surface of the watch, under the hood, the timepiece encases a complex array of mechanical mastery with a multi-dimensional sophistication. It holds the award-winning hand-wound HMC 800 movement, beating at 18,000vph. This hand-finished and decorated movement is fitted with an interchangeable Moser escapement, with the pallet fork and escapement wheel made from gold. The presence of a double barrel allows the watch to clock in an impressive power reserve of seven days.

Adding the final magnificent touch to the tantalising new H. Moser & Cie. Endeavour Perpetual Calendar Tantalum Blue Enamel is the hand-stitched gray kudu leather strap, with a steel folding clasp.