Seiko Presage SPB069 Blue Enamel Limited Edition

I just received this notice of a new Seiko Presage with hand-made enamel dial on a 40.5 mm watch, auto movement with date, 1500 copies at 1150 euro on strap with deployant buckle. What else can I say but

I want one!

Cazalea



This winter, a new Presage creation inspired by the sky at night and Japan’s fascination with the moon will be released. It combines Seiko’s mechanical watchmaking and Japanese craftsmanship in the form of enamel, expressed for the first time in a rich blue dial. The golden crescent moon on the reverse end of the second hand moves gracefully across the blue dial, just as the moon moves across the night sky.

Japan and the moon. A lasting fascination.

From time immemorial, Japan has been fascinated by the moon, and during the Heian period (794-1185), the nation’s reverence for the moon’s beauty found expression in the creation of a ceremony at which the Japanese nobility would gather in the open air when the moon was at its height and recite poetry that extolled the beauty of the full moon, especially when reflected in the water of lakes, rivers and the sea. These ’Tsukimi’ ceremonies would often be accompanied by orchestral music, the eating of traditional foods and the drinking of sake, Japan’s rice wine. It is a tradition that has lasted until today and is still widely observed throughout Japan.

The design

The heritage of Seiko and the Japan’s love of the moon are both expressed in the design. The shape of the hour markers is drawn from Seiko’s first pocket watch, the ‘Time Keeper’, made in 1895. The crescent shaped tip of the second hand is in a gold color powder, giving it a special texture that resembles the surface of the moon and the crescent shape is also to be seen on the sapphire case back, affixed by vapor deposition. The crocodile strap is in deep blue to match the dial and has a delicate sheen that subtly reflects the light, just like the dial. All these elements combine to create a watch that has classical authority in its design but also a humanity and warmth that draws in the eye. It demands to be picked up, examined up close and experienced to the full.



Blue enamel and the craftsmanship of Mitsuru Yokozawa

The blue enamel dial is the work of the enamel craftsman Mitsuru Yokozawa and his team, who made the white enamel dials that have been so widely admired in other Presage creations. Because the surface of a watch dial is so small and as it is viewed at such close distances, the depth and evenness of the enamel has to be exact. Only by controlling every stage of the process and even adjusting the composition of the enamel in line with atmospheric conditions can a truly perfect dial be created. The creation of every Presage dial is supervised by Yokozawa and every single one is inspected by his experienced eye. With the creation of this new blue dial, he has achieved an even more impressive feat of craftsmanship. As the viscosity of blue enamel is much higher, the skill required to achieve prefect evenness is all the greater.

A limited edition of 1,500

This remarkable watch incorporates the 6R15 caliber with a 50 hour power reserve and a high level of torque that is a joy to experience when the specially sculpted crown is turned. The sapphire crystal is dual-curved so that the dial can be seen without distortion from any angle. The hour markers are painted ten times to lift them in relief from the dial and the tips of the hands are curved by skilled craftsmen and women so that they follow the contours of the curved crystals and so minimise the depth of the watch. It is offered as a limited edition of 1,500 and will be available in December at Seiko’s elite retail partners in selected markets and worldwide in early 2018.