From celestial orbits to global travels, the latest iterations of Hermès’ Arceau L’heure de la lune and Arceau Le temps voyageur redefine timekeeping with poetic complications, exquisite materials and masterful craftsmanship
Hermès has long approached watchmaking as an invitation to journey, transforming time into an experience that extends beyond mere measurement. Through creations like the Arceau L’heure de la lune and Arceau Le temps voyageur, the maison offers a poetic escape that bridges the celestial and terrestrial realms, where time becomes a playmate rather than a constraint.
First introduced in 2019, the Arceau L’heure de la lune has returned in three striking new versions, presented as a 12-piece limited-edition set. This timepiece continues to defy convention with its singular complication: two mobile counters displaying the time and date orbit the dial over a span of 59 days, revealing the moon phases for both hemispheres. This intricate choreography is made possible by an exclusive 117-component Hermès module, a testament to the brand’s technical prowess.
Each of the three new interpretations showcases a two-tone aesthetic, blending materials in unexpected ways to create a harmonious interplay of textures and contrasts. The first, crafted in white gold and blue titanium, features a dial adorned with an actual fragment of lunar rock. The second pairs rose gold with titanium and incorporates a piece of Vesta, one of the largest known asteroids. The third, a combination of white and rose gold, is set with a fragment of the Erg Chech meteorite, a magmatic remnant of a long-vanished celestial body. These astronomical elements imbue each timepiece with a tangible link to the universe, reinforcing the watch’s ethereal narrative.
Adding to the depth of its design, a Pegasus drawn from Dimitri Rybaltchenko’s Full Moon motif graces one of the moon discs, a nod to Hermès’ world of storytelling and imagination. Each watch is paired with a matt alligator leather strap, crafted in-house leveraging the maison’s renowned leatherworking expertise: abyss blue for the white gold and blue titanium model, and graphite for the other two.
Hermès’ philosophy of time as a journey is further embodied in the Arceau Le temps voyageur, which debuted in 2022 and now returns in white and rose gold variations. This travel-inspired timepiece features a circular disc displaying 24 time zones, with home time indicated at 12 o’clock and a mobile counter tracking local time. The mechanism, driven by an exclusive 122-component module integrated into the Manufacture Hermès H1837 self-winding movement, seamlessly blends technical ingenuity with artistic craftsmanship.
For this latest evolution, the maison has focused on enhancing the dial’s visual depth. The continents depicted on the watch face are drawn from the Planisphère d’un monde équestre motif designed by Jérôme Colliard, adding a rich visual narrative that enhances the watch’s storytelling element and sense of discovery. In the 41 mm white gold version, the grey-blue lacquered dial is complemented by a navy-blue city disc and blue-varnished openworked hands, matched with an abyss blue alligator strap. The 38 mm rose gold iteration is adorned with 78 diamonds and features a natural mother-of-pearl dial. Rose gold edging highlights the contours of the champagne-toned continents, cities, and city aperture, while rose gold leaf-shaped hands complete the refined composition, accompanied by a pearl grey alligator strap.
With these new interpretations of the Arceau L’heure de la lune and Arceau Le temps voyageur, Hermès once again demonstrates its ability to push the boundaries of traditional watchmaking, transforming timekeeping into an artistic and emotional pursuit that captivates and inspires. Whether exploring the heavens or traversing the globe, these watches serve as elegant companions on a journey where time is not measured but experienced.
TEXT Joezer Mandagi