The Alpine Eagle collection of sporty-chic timepieces welcomes a new model honouring the longstanding partnership between Chopard and Seddiqi. Issued in a 25-piece limited edition, this exclusive 41 mm-diameter model is adorned with a dial whose hue and texture evoke the slate stone characteristic of the Alpine biotope. Crafted in Chopard’s exclusive ultra-sturdy, exceptionally bright Lucent Steel™ alloy, it beats to the rhythm of the Chopard 01.15-C movement whose chronometer certification testifies to its high-precision adjustment. The Alpine Eagle 41 Darshan model is named after the eagle that in 2015 achieved the highest bird flight ever recorded from a man-made structure.
A highly symbolic timepiece
Darshan, a term evoking direct visual contact with a divine being or spiritual master, was the name chosen by Jacques-Olivier Travers for one of the eagles in his wildlife park. In 2015, Darshan honoured both his name and his breeder when – spreading his wings to swoop down from the top of the Burj Khalifa in Dubai – he broke the record for the highest bird flight from a man-made structure. A few years later, Jacques-Olivier Travers and Chopard’s Co-President Karl-Friedrich Scheufele jointly founded the Alpine Eagle Foundation, which now runs innovative, multi-disciplinary environmental projects designed to raise public awareness of the importance, beauty and fragility of the Alpine biotope.
It is this story of achieving and excelling that is told by this new timepiece in the Alpine Eagle collection – itself designed from the outset for contemporary eagles: those men whose vision inspires and uplifts. Issued in an exclusive 25-piece limited series in Lucent Steel™ – Chopard’s exclusive alloy produced with a recycling rate of at least 80% and endowed with advanced properties – it pays tribute to the sovereign beauty and ascent of the eagle soaring across the splendid landscapes of the Alps.
A dial inspired by Nature
Endowed with a pure, sleek aesthetic inspired by Nature, the Alpine Eagle collection stands out through the passing seasons with its textured dials in deep colours. With the Alpine Eagle 41 Darshan model, it welcomes a new dial variation featuring finishing and colour details recreating the slate stone emblematic of Alpine landscapes.
On this elegant display, the hours, minutes and seconds are indicated by gilded hour-markers and hands enhanced with Super-LumiNova® Grade X1, offering a legible contrast that is optimal by both day and night, as befits a sporty-chic timepiece.
The mechanical precision of the Chopard 01.15-C movement
True to the Manufacture’s commitment to certified precision, the Chopard 01.15-C self-winding movement beating at the heart of this model – and visible through a transparent sapphire crystal case-back – is developed in its own watchmaking workshops and certified by the Official Swiss Chronometer Testing Institute. The word “Chronometer” embossed on the dial is a reminder of this label of precision and excellence.
When fully wound, the mechanism provides 60 hours of power reserve. Constantly seeking to attain the highest standards of accuracy, the watchmakers have also equipped this movement with a stop-seconds function enabling the wearer to set the time to the exact second.
The Alpine Eagle collection
Envisioned by three generations of gentlemen in the Scheufele family, the Alpine Eagle collection is a modern reinterpretation of the St. Moritz watch, the first horological creation designed by Chopard’s now Co-President, Karl-Friedrich Scheufele, in the late 1970s.
Featuring a round case with raised stylised flanks, a crown engraved with a compass rose, a bezel with eight functional indexed screws, a textured dial with deep colours and luminescent indications, along with an integrated metal bracelet, Alpine Eagle is synonymous with refined and resolutely contemporary elegance.
Its independence and the integration of its various professions enable Chopard to carry out all the collection’s production and assembly stages – from movement to bracelet along with the components and case – within its in-house watchmaking workshops.
