Van Cleef & Arpels Looks Skyward
Van Cleef & Arpels continues its exploration of celestial timekeeping with new and signature creations from its Poetic Complications collection, bringing together mechanical watchmaking, precious materials and métiers d’art inspired by the movement of the cosmos.
At the center of the collection is the new Midnight Jour Nuit Phase de Lune, a 42 mm self-winding mechanical watch that combines two complications within a single case. Its Jour Nuit display tracks the passage between day and night, while an astronomical complication indicates the current phase of the Moon and can also be activated on demand. Moon-phase displays have been part of Van Cleef & Arpels’ watchmaking history since 1929.
Crafted in 18-karat white and yellow gold with mother-of-pearl, the watch uses the Sun and Moon to translate the passage of time into a celestial scene. The Midnight Jour Nuit Phase de Lune is priced at approximately $173,988.
The Lady Jour Nuit, priced at approximately $110,005, continues the astronomical theme in a 33 mm case. A rotating 24-hour disc depicts the Sun and Moon moving across the dial, with a guilloché yellow-gold sun marking the daytime hours before giving way to a diamond-set moon and starry sky. Murano aventurine glass creates depth across the dial, complemented by white and yellow gold, diamonds and mother-of-pearl.
The collection also includes the Lady Arpels Planétarium, priced at approximately $318,790. The 38 mm watch presents an interpretation of the solar system through a self-winding mechanical movement depicting the Sun alongside Mercury, Venus and Earth, with the Moon orbiting Earth. The model combines white and rose gold with aventurine, diamonds, mother-of-pearl, turquoise and enamel.
Together, the watches reflect Van Cleef & Arpels’ longstanding approach to astronomical watchmaking, using mechanical complications not simply to measure time, but to represent the movements of the sky on the wrist.
Explore the Poetic Complications collection at www.vancleefarpels.com.