ExclusivePresenting Louis Moinet’s Blue Moon—The India-Exclusive Edition

Considered as the inventor of the modern-day chronograph, Louis Moinet created the first pocket chronograph in 1816, which was made solely to be used with astronomical equipment. It’s this intersection of two worlds that has inspired the Louis Moinet brand of watches—named after the famed 19th century horologist, sculptor and painter. In that spirit, Louis Moinet’s watches are categorised into two pillars—Cosmic Art and Mechanical Wonders. Their elaborate timepieces exude a neo-retro charm, and present an aesthetic that reflects steampunk design. Elements of industrial design are seen in both the pillars of the brand, but particularly in the Cosmic Art creations. In addition to the details in the design and the layered construction, the watches often include exotic materials such as fossils and meteorites, as seen in the Louis Moinet Moon, which features a fragment of an actual lunar meteorite.

Originally launched in 2019, the first limited edition in steel had a grey dial, in keeping with the colour of the moon’s surface. It was subsequently presented in gold, and then again in steel with a green dial. And now, the latest Blue Moon edition is in steel, with a blue dial. This limited edition of 12 pieces, each with a piece of the lunar meteorite that is found in all editions, is exclusively available in India.

This earlier edition in gold had a grey dial, in keeping with the colour of the moon’s surface

₹40,99,000

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This later edition in steel featured a green dial

₹17,77,000

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Louis Moinet Moon SHOP THE COLLECTION

Around The Moon—Inspiring The Moon Series

“The Moon and Mars creations (Mars is a companion series, featuring Martian rock instead of lunar meteorite) incorporate fragments of their respective heavenly bodies. To do so, we work with Luc Labenne, the most famous meteorite hunter in the world,” informs Jean-Marie Schaller, CEO of ateliers Louis Moinet. However, the original inspiration of the series can be attributed to the book, Around the Moon (1869), by Jules Verne. The book is a sequel to the author’s From the Earth to the Moon (1865). The two books tell a tale of a trip to the Moon, which was way ahead of its time even as science fiction. As we know, humankind actually made it to the Moon only 100 years later, with NASA’s Apollo 11 in 1969. And incidentally, Jules Verne is considered to be quite the hero of the steampunk world—a genre that really emerged through that Victorian era of fantastical imagination and designs that seem retro today, but were extremely futuristic for that time.

The original inspiration of the series can be attributed to the book, Around the Moon (1869), by Jules Verne. The Blue Moon also comes in a box that's been designed to look like this book

“The normal process of creating one watch—from a blank sheet to the final product—is about two years,” Schaller explains

“The inspiration comes from my childhood and the numerous books I read. As a boy, Tintin (The Adventures of Tintin) showed me there were no boundaries. I observed Mars and the Moon from a 100-year-old telescope, and that’s when I realised I was only a small part of this limitless world,” Schaller reminisces. And hence he decided to pursue the creation of these outer space-inspired watches. The inclusion of the elements from beyond the Earth’s atmosphere naturally makes these pieces even more exclusive. “Exclusivity is an important factor, because lunar and Martian meteorites sell for literally astronomical prices—they’re among the most expensive materials in the world,” Schaller elucidates. He explains that working with these materials presented its own set of challenges. “From creation to craftsmanship, there is a gap. For instance, cutting fragments of the Moon or Mars is a very delicate task, and mistakes are unthinkable since they are extremely rare finds. So, I only entrust Daniel Haas, my good friend and number one [specialist in the realm of semi-precious stones] in the world to execute this task.”

“Exclusivity is an important factor, because lunar and Martian meteorites sell for literally astronomical prices—they’re among the most expensive materials in the world,” Schaller elucidates. Seen here is the first edition of the Moon timepiece, from 2019

The Moon On The Dial—Meteorite And Surface

“The normal process of creating one watch—from a blank sheet to the final product—takes about two years. First of all, we have to source the extra-terrestrial material and make sure we have enough to craft the limited editions,” Schaller explains. “Then, we have to conduct trials to create the right emotion with a surprising design,” says Schaller. And the resulting design turned out to be an exhilarating expression of the Moon. In addition to the capsule containing the meteorite fragment at three o’clock, the central portion of the dial was designed to replicate the surface of the moon. This is not just as an artistic interpretation, but an expression that depicts a part of the Moon’s actual topography—featuring the famous craters Gassendi, Tycho and Cassini. Executed in brass to get the right results, the original edition was a very direct rendition of the moon’s surface in grey, while this new edition is more of a fantastical version, with its vivid, metallic blue hue.

In addition to the capsule containing the meteorite fragment at three o’clock, the central portion of the dial was designed to replicate the surface of the moon, depicting a part of the Moon’s actual topography—featuring the famous craters Gassendi, Tycho and Cassini

“Since we wanted to go beyond the existing standards, we had to invent a new construction for the case and the indexes. And when you look at them, they appear to be suspended mid-air,” Schaller states about the development stage of this series. “This was very challenging and took a lot of time to achieve. However, it was worth all the effort, as it gives an unparalleled three-dimensional depth to these creations.” The appearance of the elements being suspended is owing to the open-worked nature of the section from eight to 12 o’clock around the Moon centre, through which you can see the escapement of the watch, and other elements of the mechanism within. A few of the large indexes appear to be floating above this section, in addition to the skeletonised small seconds dial at nine o’clock.

Executed in brass to get the right results, the original edition was a very direct rendition of the moon’s surface in grey, while this new edition is more of a fantastical interpretation, with its vivid, metallic blue hue

The Moon—Inside And Out

The movement within is the LM45, which offers a power reserve of up to 48 hours. More of the movement can be seen on the reverse of the watch, through the exhibition caseback, which reveals the rotor in blue matching the dial, featuring a concentric Clous de Paris pattern. All this comes housed within Louis Moinet’s Neo case in 45.4mm steel, and water-resistant to 50m. Reflecting the skeletonising of the dial, the lugs are also open-worked. Affixing the case to the blue alligator leather strap, these lugs, as well as the riveted bezel of the case, lend themselves to the industrial design and the steampunk vibe of this exquisite watch.

The movement within is the LM45, which offers a power reserve of up to 48 hours. It can be seen through the exhibition caseback, which reveals the rotor in blue matching the dial, featuring a concentric Clous de Paris pattern

“These creations have received a great response all over the world. India is important in our strategy, as the market is well respected because of its high number of connoisseurs and watch lovers. We are also very happy with our partnership with Ethos [Watch Boutiques] because it is geared towards quality. It is very exciting for me to pursue our growth in this beautiful country,” says Schaller. And with this latest revelation from the Cosmic Art collection of the brand’s repertoire making its way exclusively to our shores, it’s quite evident that Louis Moinet’s presence in India will only grow stronger.