Charles Zuber Illuminates Watchmaking With The Perfos Karl And Perfos Diamonds
5 min read
Charles Zuber in collaboration with Cédric Johner has launched a skeletonized watch, the luminous Perfos Karl expressing the watchmaker’s fine work with its hand-hewn movement. Revealed at the Watches and Wonders 2023, the timepiece’s slender, powerful build and its multiple facets captivate the wearer and serve as a playground for contrasts and a whole array of nuances.
Elevating its watchmaking prowess to a notch above the ordinary, the brand launched in November 2022 with the announcement of its inceptive timepiece designed by the famous designer Eric Giroud: the Perfos is revealed in an intriguing skeletonized version at the Watches and Wonders. The components of the 01 calibers, an exclusive Manufacture micro-rotor movement illuminated from the front and the bottom, giving the timepiece its befitting attribute to the name which translates to “through the light” in Greek.
The latest chapter of Charles Zuber Perfos
The perpetual striving for excellence at Charles Zuber is a state of mind encapsulated perfectly by the collaboration with Cédric Johner for the skeletonized version of the movement. Synonymous with the spirit of the brand, the Perfos Karl is limited to 8 pieces of 39mm in 18-carat pink gold. The timepiece is set with 84 saffron orange baguette-cut sapphires, totaling 2.42 carats, while each movement component has been entirely worked by hand.
The warm hues of the precious stones adorning the timepiece give it a distinct appearance and the glimpses of mechanical anatomy in all its chamfered, satin-finished, and polished-angled beauty testify to the watchmaking process of the brand. The Perfos Karl is powered by the automatic winding 01 calibers which feature a bidirectional oscillating micro-mass in platinum set with 39 brilliant-cut orange sapphires for self-winding competence.
Myriad components of the 164 parts and 33 jeweled movements have been reworked by hand to achieve the level of skeletonization that set the benchmark in aesthetics and attention to detail.
The Perfos Karl features an intensely metallic-hued dial with a galvanic deposit of satin-finished, hand-sunlit ruthenium revealing the inner workings of the watch. The dial is surrounded at its center by a halo of 36 baguette-cut orange sapphires. A hand-finished shiny black alligator strap yields comfortable wear.
On the dial side, a sapphire crystal serving as the watch’s dial features 60 small colored triangular pink gold appliques along the 60 minutes shaped in arc-like sun rays.
A horological homage to “Karl”
Born on 29 January 1932 in Kriens in the canton of Lucerne in Switzerland, Zuber’s first name was Karl (Charles in German). It was only later, in 1952, after his return from the army, that Karl Zuber decided to become a goldsmith and moved from his hometown to Geneva. He quickly obtained the title of Swiss Master Jeweller and devoted himself to his passion.
He learned French as he wants to integrate as quickly as possible and decides to give a French tone to his first name. Hence Karl Zuber became Charles Zuber. With the latest creation launched at Watches and Wonders 2023 and stamped “KARL”, the Charles Zuber brand celebrates its iconic designer.
Cédric Johner: cutting, shaping, reducing, embellishing.
After devoting more than three decades of exploration in the watchmaking world, Cédric Johner still has that spark that drives him to integrate invention and innovation into his art. He is the guardian of the traditional work of the material. His modesty would almost make us forget that he is one of the last master watchmakers to follow this artisanal protocol.
The latest iteration of the Perfos - A 36mm watch set with diamonds
Charles Zuber’s latest revelation expresses the subtle and elegant harms of neo-Swiss luxury. Introducing the Perfos “Diamonds” - an elegant and sophisticated watch that embodies the epitome of understated luxury.
This 36mm watch has a steel case, with an added touch of brilliance thanks to a bezel that is fully encrusted with 60 diamonds totaling 1.23 carats.
The watch features a sophisticated dial which is its chief prestige and the prime expression of aesthetics on this timepiece. Set against a black background with grey rhodium-plated hour markers, it takes extreme precision to create each triangular groove from a mother blank, the first dial base, onto which a second plate is then placed, delicately cut by laser.
Each opening coincides perfectly with each of the sixty indexes. Its strap is made of shiny black alligator leather, matching the color of the dial in a striking balance of contemporary aesthetics.
The Charles Zuber Perfos ‘Diamonds’ is priced at 9’900CHF.
