Breguet's New "Tradition" Collection

In 2026, Maison Breguet further invigorates its "Tradition" collection, a historical cornerstone of the manufacture. The "Tradition" collection embodies Breguet's DNA through its unconventional style of concentrating all the maison's design codes on the movement, revealed on the dial side. It reflects the brand's heritage, what founder Breguet left for posterity, and the path he envisioned for the future.

These models, with their updated specifications, move closer to a more contemporary Breguet style. Notable changes include the transition from Roman to Arabic numerals on some models, the addition of new movement finishes alongside traditional Grand Feu enamel dials, and new straps.

Revisiting a Signature Collection

Launched in 2005, the "Tradition" collection has become a reference point for watch collectors over the past two decades. It embodies two objectives pursued by Abraham-Louis Breguet: to create exceptional movements while simultaneously achieving perfect aesthetic harmony.

The "Tradition" model fuses these two quests into a unique and coherent whole, showcasing everything on the dial side. The exceptionally balanced and symmetrical movement structure forms one of its fundamental identities. In fact, the caliber is inverted, revealing the watch's mechanisms, which are usually hidden on the case back, on the front. At first glance, all elements of the movement are visible, offering an immediate understanding of Breguet's superior qualities: clear techniques, simple and legible mechanism layout, exquisite finishing, ingenious displays, and exceptional mastery.

The off-center dial, placed at the top of the watch, draws direct inspiration from the "Montre à Tact." The movement structure is entirely similar, inheriting the architecture of this emblematic historical timepiece by Breguet. The "Montre à Tact" was conceived by Abraham-Louis Breguet around 1795 and began sales in 1799. This watch itself carries forward the design of the "Subscription" model, conceived several years earlier.

The new "Tradition" for 2026 lays the groundwork for driving the collection in a more contemporary direction. Paradoxically, this is achieved by following a historical approach, faithfully reflecting the vision of watchmaker Abraham-Louis Breguet. His aim was to continuously evolve his watchmaking techniques and designs, integrating them with his era while always maintaining a cutting-edge position. The new "Tradition" pieces, leveraging historical know-how and state-of-the-art technology, are imbued with a distinct contemporary sensibility throughout.

With these new models, Breguet clearly reincorporates the philosophy of founder Abraham-Louis Breguet. Through this, it meets the expectations of 21st-century watch collectors seeking timepieces that match their generation's tastes and lifestyles.

Tradition 7037

The "Tradition 7037" makes a personal statement despite its simple exterior. It features a 38mm white gold case, two hands for hours and minutes, and a retrograde small seconds display indicating its reliable operation through a 50-hour power reserve.

This highly refined selection of specifications allows the dial periphery to remain spacious, preserving its pure expression without being obstructed by any complications. While the components are arranged in exquisite harmony, the manufacture's true mastery is evident in the finishing work. In the "Tradition 7037," the entire movement is colored blue for the first time, with a grained mainplate, sandblasted bridges, and a barrel cover engraved with a snail pattern by hand guilloché. All these parts are hand-finished.

However, the most noteworthy element is the dial at 12 o'clock. Made from white gold, it replaces the usual guilloché dial, is finished in white Grand Feu enamel, and notably, its Roman numerals have been replaced with Arabic numerals.

The manufacture's historians draw attention to the choice of Arabic numerals. While they bring a distinctly modern aesthetic to the "Tradition 7037" dial, Breguet had already adopted Arabic numerals as early as 1799, a highly innovative choice for the time. The new "Tradition 7037" strengthens the bond between watchmaker Breguet and the current manufacture. After more than 250 years, their shared sense of modernity is expressed in the identical choice of the Arabic Breguet numerals. The numerals designed by Abraham-Louis Breguet in 1783 came to be used by many other watchmakers, representing an invention that truly benefited the entire watch industry.

Directly in the Spirit of Breguet

This approach is similarly applied to the watch's reverse side. The semi-circular rotor proudly displayed by the movement is directly inspired by a design conceived by Abraham-Louis Breguet himself. In developing such a rotor, watchmaker Breguet again broke with convention in two ways.

Firstly, regarding the foundation of the self-winding watch itself, which was already established. While there had been attempts by other watchmakers and mechanicians regarding the concept of automatic winding mechanisms before this, Breguet's "No. 1/8/82," believed to have been produced before 1780, is undoubtedly the oldest surviving self-winding watch. This timepiece is currently housed in the Breguet Museum on Place Vendôme.

Secondly, the use of platinum for this rotor. Towards the end of the 18th century, platinum was a revolutionary material. Its manufacturing process was discovered around 1780. Abraham-Louis Breguet, constantly seeking innovative technical solutions to optimize rotor function, understood that platinum, being 30% denser than gold and 2.5 times heavier than steel, would provide significantly better winding for his "Perpetual" automatic watches. The Breguet manufacture returns to this material, celebrating his foresight, which was ahead of its time, and its still unparalleled modernity. Platinum is now used in countless automatic rotors.

The "Tradition 7037," featuring a gold 38mm case, is offered with a blue rubber strap with light gray stitching, in a cord-finished style. Breguet also plans to offer a white rubber strap.

Tradition GMT 7067

The new "Tradition GMT 7067" presents significant differences while adopting the design codes of the model that gave the collection its name.

In this "Tradition" model, a gradient green is used for the time display dial for the first time. Achieving this with Grand Feu enamel requires extremely advanced skill. The master enameler must find the perfect color transition from a deep green in the center of the dial to an absolute black at the periphery. The choice of enamel glaze, its gradual variation, color balance, and the precise control of firing temperature and time are all part of the authentic know-how carefully preserved by Maison Breguet. These elements are a true expression of métiers d'art on this dial. This is made even more difficult as the dial does not fill the case entirely as usual. And, as with the "Tradition 7037," the adoption of Arabic numerals demonstrates fidelity to Breguet's spirit, achieving excellent legibility by coloring the Arabic numerals in silver on the black peripheral part of the dial.

Mechanism Directly Reminiscent of Abraham-Louis Breguet

The main dial indicates local time, meaning the time at the current location. An additional dial at 8 o'clock indicates home time, the time of the usual place of residence. A discreetly placed day/night indicator at 10 o'clock complements the movement. This display is located close to the crown used to adjust the complications in one-hour increments.

For the "Tradition GMT 7067," home time numerals can be chosen from two options: Arabic numerals (Breguet numerals) or Oriental numerals. This latter variation, though rare in the manufacture's current offerings, derives from genuine personalization that Abraham-Louis Breguet undertook for clients in the Ottoman Empire from 1800 onwards. These watches, now known as "Turkish clocks," are easily identified by their enamel dials and distinctive Oriental numerals. The cases, often double-cased, were fully enameled and decorated with floral or landscape motifs.

Thus, the current Breguet is once again engaging in personalization for clients in the Arabian Peninsula, just as the great watchmaker Abraham-Louis Breguet did himself in the early 19th century.

The choice of two time zones is also a legacy of the great watchmaker. In 1815, Abraham-Louis Breguet was appointed Royal Navy watchmaker by King Louis XVIII of France. His mission was to overcome time differences, which would later be defined as "time zones" in 1884, with the utmost precision. This lineage passed down through the fourth generation, Antoine Breguet, to the fifth generation, aviation pioneers Louis-Charles Breguet and Jacques-Eugène Henri Breguet. Dual-time watches were essential for their flights, as they were pioneers of aviation who achieved early world flights.

The "Tradition GMT 7067," featuring a platinum 40mm case, is offered with a black rubber strap with green stitching.

Tradition 7038

Breguet further enriches the collection with the "Tradition 7038," presented with a new arrangement. This model exemplifies the fusion of exceptional watchmaking technology and delicate craftsmanship, where the mechanical structure itself becomes the focal point of aesthetics.

In the "Tradition 7038," the three-dimensional, sculptural silhouette of the movement is emphasized. The unique and easily recognizable structure, visible when observing the mechanism from above, is precisely what a watchmaker discovers upon opening the case.

This new model is considered a rare product aimed at enthusiasts who passionately love fine watchmaking. It merges haute horlogerie with jewelry, combining advanced technology with sophisticated techniques.

Each model is crafted with unparalleled expertise, a testament to Breguet's outstanding craftsmanship.

Powered by Breguet's automatic movement, Caliber 505SR, the "Tradition 7038" unfolds its mechanical expression at the center of its rhodium-plated 18K white gold case. The bezel, adorned with 58 diamonds that delicately catch the light, enhances this model with dazzling brilliance, contrasting with the ruby-set crown used for time setting.

For the first time in its "Tradition" models, Maison Breguet beautifully adorns the dial with black aventurine glass. The dial, enhanced by delicate transfers of silver powder, creates a deep, subtle texture throughout. Furthermore, the grained bridges and mainplate are elegantly finished with a deep black surface treatment.

Time is read using white gold Breguet hands with hollowed tips. The retrograde second hand at 10 o'clock is also made of white gold, elegantly decorating the display. The fluted case band (coin edge) and soldered lugs follow the historical design codes of the "Tradition" collection.

The black strap, made of satin-finished fabric, gently wraps the wrist with a silk touch. Rhodium-plated...