News: Louis Moinet Presents the Qatar Tourbillon at Doha. A Timepiece with Two Fragments of the Only Meteroite Ever Found in Qatar.

Louis Moinet presents the Qatar Tourbillon at the 10th edition of the Doha Jewellery and Watches Exhibition. This new timepiece in an exceptional 18K white gold case measuring 47 mm in diameter, composed of 59 different components and equipped with the Louis Moinet signature crown guard features the essence of this wonderful Middle Eastern country with a hand-engraved applique around the periphery of the dial, depicting sand dunes and two Qatari bent swords. It also features the oldest known fossil on earth, a three-billion-year-old red stromatolite, which is found in the center of the dial, between the tourbillon at 6 o’clock and the visible mainspring at 12 o’clock.

In addition to the ultra special fossil located on the center of the dial, the watch features two fragments of the one and only meteorite ever been found in Qatar and acquired by Louis Moinet to be turned into horological art. The meteorite was discovered in the middle of the desert on May 10th of 2010 by Luc Labenne, the highly-regarded internationally renowned meteorite hunter. This unique meteorite Chondrite type H5-W4-S2 was discovered after a ten-day hunt with ten hunters and three vehicles. According to the Meteoritical Society, the meteorite’s official name is Qatar 001 and it originated from the asteroid belt situated between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter from where it traveled more than 260 million kilometers before landing in the area of Jariyan al Batnah in Qatar.

The view through the Qatar Tourbillon display-back is almost as spectacular as the dial side, with the ‘octopus spring’ of the winding and setting mechanism taking the center stage. This ingenious component is effectively three springs in one —pull-out piece spring, lever spring and click spring— all radiating from the center like the swirling legs of an octopus. The movement plate is engraved with Louis Moinet's “Côtes du Jura” motif. The watch is equipped with a gorgeous dark blue hand-sewn Louisiana alligator leather strap with 18K white gold & black titanium folding clasp with Louis Moinet logo. The Qatar Tourbillon is available in an exclusive limited edition of only 12 pieces.

 

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Technical Specifications of the Louis Moinet Qatar Tourbillon

Dial: Hand-engraved dial depicting two bent swords and sand dunes set with Qatar meteorite 001 with exclusive tourbillon escapement, central hour and minutes.

Movement: Manual wound with “octopus” spring, 19 jewels, power reserve of 72 hours, 21,600 vph, tourbillon cage with one full rotation every 60 seconds, side lever escapement, “Côtes du Jura” decoration and blued steel screws.

 Water Resistance: 30 meters

Case back: Display case back secured with 6 screws, engraved with individual number and Louis Moinet markings.

Crystals: Sapphire crystal with anti-reflective treatment.

Limited Edition of 12 pieces

 

Reference No. LM-14.70.21