L/R Wrist: Xavier de Roquemaurel unveils the Czapek Antarctique Aventurine

The esoteric nature of watch collecting brings with it people from all walks of life. The common thread in the watch-collecting community is the passion for these little time-keeping machines on the wrist. In our watch collecting series L/R WRIST, we explore both wrists and what type of jewellery is paired on the other arm… and sometimes it ends up being two watches, or in this case, the same watch but in two sizes!

Czapek & Cie has just released its newest iteration of the Antarctique model.

This new release takes two sizes — 40.5mm and 38.5mm (Antarctique S) — and offers them up in a diamond and non-diamond version with a sparkling aventurine dial.

 

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While keeping its sporty appearance, the added complexity of the dial was made for more dressed-up occasions on top of everyday wear. “We released the Antarctique line in 2020 as the epitome of sporty elegance – and for us, the pared-down sophistication of its design makes it a natural platform for creativity,” says Xavier de Roquemaurel, CEO of Czapek & Cie. “At Czapek we like to dream with our feet on the ground and our heads in the stars, and the sparkle of these new dials expresses that idea in a delightful and surprising way.”

Joined by Roquemaurel at Oriental Watch Company, we were given an introduction to the special material. Roquemaurel explained that in the 17th century, a Murano glassmaker accidentally dropped some metal shavings into his glass that was cooling off. This mixture gave the glass a multicoloured sparkling appearance when it crystallised where he called it all’avventura, Italian for “by chance.” The dial beautifully captures the spirit of adventure that the watch brand represents, and even the watch model itself, as “Antarctica is the best place to see the stars,” exclaimed Roquemaurel.

What makes the diamond versions special is that an entirely new cut was created by GT Cadrans just for the invisible-set indexes. While a standard baguette cut stone has a minimum of 14 facets, the Czapek Flying Diamond version has 24 facets with 14 on the pavilion and 10 on the table for maximum light reflection.

This limited edition Czapek & Cie. Antarctique is composed of four references: Antarctique Polar Sky 40.5mm without diamonds (99 pieces), 38.5mm without diamonds (77 pieces), Antarctique Flying Diamonds 40.5mm with diamond indexes and optional diamond-set case and bracelet (8 pieces), and a 38.5mm version (18 pieces).