Some watches tell a story. Others immortalise a memory. With the Petite Heure Minute Or Rouge “Golden Road”, Jaquet Droz takes a new step by inviting collectors to transform their own life journey into a unique watchmaking creation. More than an exceptional piece, the La Chaux-de-Fonds manufacture unveils a wholly new concept in which topography becomes an artistic language, blending artistic crafts, emotion and absolute personalisation.
The fruit of a collaboration with the Supercar Owners Circle (SOC), this creation opens up a still-unexplored territory in the world of high watchmaking: that of three-dimensional cartography applied to the dial of a watch.
On this page
- A watch inspired by the finest roads of the Swiss Alps
- Topography becomes an artistic craft
- A spectacular relief beneath the sapphire crystal
- Every collector becomes the creator of their own watch
- A demonstration of the expertise of the Jaquet Droz artisans
- A new definition of the unique piece
- Frequently asked questions
A watch inspired by the finest roads of the Swiss Alps
The idea was born through the exchanges between the artisans of Jaquet Droz and the members of the Supercar Owners Circle, a circle bringing together some of the greatest collectors of prestige cars in the world. Every year, these enthusiasts gather in the Swiss Alps to drive along mythical roads, notably the Oberalp and Furka passes, during an event where automotive performance, grandiose landscapes and mechanical passion come together.
These winding roads, snaking between verdant valleys and summits rising above 2,000 metres in altitude, inspired the manufacture’s artisans. Rather than offering a simple representation of them, they imagined their true watchmaking transposition.
Thus was born “Golden Road”, a miniature road sculpted directly into the dial.
Topography becomes an artistic craft
Here Jaquet Droz pushes back the boundaries of traditional decoration.
The dial of the 41-millimetre Petite Heure Minute becomes a genuine relief map. Valleys, passes, slopes and mountains take shape through patient handwork carried out directly in a gold base.
The famous road driven by the members of the Supercar Owners Circle stretches between four and nine o’clock in the form of a sculpted ribbon whose reliefs play constantly with the light. Each curve evokes the technical hairpin bends of these Alpine passes where the finest automobiles move through a spectacular setting.
Around this road, the artisans bring the landscape to life through a particularly refined combination of gold sculpting and cloisonné enamel. The shades of green and white recall the forests, meadows and mountainous reliefs that surround this emblematic route.
A spectacular relief beneath the sapphire crystal
One of the feats of this creation lies in its extraordinary three-dimensional effect.
Making the most of the height available beneath the sapphire crystal, the master artisans sculpt each mountain directly into stacked blocks of gold, reproducing the contour lines of Swiss topographic surveys.
The result is striking. The eye no longer discovers a simple dial, but a genuine miniature landscape whose reliefs seem to emerge naturally from the watch.
This approach also pays tribute to a tradition deeply rooted in Switzerland. As early as the 19th century, the country was a pioneer in the development of modern topographic maps, a scientific precision that Jaquet Droz reinterprets today with the codes of high watchmaking.
Every collector becomes the creator of their own watch
The most remarkable innovation, however, does not lie solely in the making of this first piece.
With the Topographie concept, Jaquet Droz now invites each collector to design their own landscape.
The Golden Road route is only a starting point. Tomorrow, it will be possible to immortalise a personal itinerary, an Atlantic sailing crossing, a flight path, the route of a marathon, the relief of a region dear to the owner, or even the mountains that shaped their childhood.
Each watch thus becomes a miniature autobiography, shaped according to the memories and emotions of its future owner.
Rarely has personalisation reached such a level of intimacy in the world of watchmaking.
A demonstration of the expertise of the Jaquet Droz artisans
For nearly three centuries, Jaquet Droz has cultivated a singular approach in which artistic crafts occupy a central place.
Enamel, engraving, sculpture, miniature painting and marquetry are all disciplines that allow the manufacture to transform each of its timepieces into a genuine work of art.
The Golden Road fits perfectly within this tradition. Each relief is sculpted by hand, each detail is worked individually so as to play with shadows and reflections, while the cloisonné enamel brings depth, light and realism to the landscape.
No piece can be identical to another, making each creation an absolutely unique object.
A new definition of the unique piece
In a world where personalisation is often limited to the choice of materials or colours, Jaquet Droz offers an infinitely more personal approach.
The watch no longer celebrates only a skill or a technical feat. It tells an intimate story, that of its owner.
This philosophy, summed up by the signature “Create your own. As unique as you are”, perfectly conveys the manufacture’s intention: to allow each collector to wear not only an exceptional watch, but also a fragment of their own existence.
With the Petite Heure Minute Or Rouge Golden Road, Jaquet Droz thus opens a wholly new path in high watchmaking. A path where time is no longer content merely to be measured, but becomes the witness of a life journey engraved in gold, sculpted by hand and destined to be passed down through the generations.
Frequently asked questions
It is a Petite Heure Minute Or Rouge whose 41 mm gold dial is hand-sculpted into a three-dimensional relief map of an Alpine mountain road. It was created in collaboration with the Supercar Owners Circle and turns topography into a genuine watchmaking art.
The mythical Swiss Alpine roads — notably the Oberalp and Furka passes — that Supercar Owners Circle members drive together each year. The winding route is sculpted across the dial between four and nine o’clock as a ribbon of gold whose curves echo those hairpin bends.
Master artisans sculpt each mountain directly into stacked blocks of gold, reproducing the contour lines of Swiss topographic surveys under the sapphire crystal, then combine this with cloisonné enamel in greens and whites for the forests, meadows and peaks. It is a tribute to Switzerland’s pioneering role in modern topographic mapping.
Golden Road is only a starting point. With Topographie, each collector can turn their own journey into a dial — a personal route, an Atlantic sailing crossing, a flight path, a marathon course, a cherished region or the mountains of their childhood — making every watch a unique miniature autobiography.
Summed up by the signature “Create your own. As unique as you are”, the watch no longer simply measures time but carries a fragment of its owner’s life, sculpted by hand in gold and meant to be passed down through generations.
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