LOUIS MOINET MOON STEEL BLUE REF. LM-45.10.MO Lunar meteorite capsule - Limited Edition (60)

"Moon":
celebrating 150 years of Around the Moon

Around the Moon is a landmark work by Jules Verne that revolutionised the genre of speculative fiction. Exactly one hundred years before Apollo XI accomplished the real thing, Jules Verne anticipated a journey to the Moon. A visionary in every detail, he imagined a launch site on the coast of Florida - and a rocket splashing down in the sea after having completed its lunar orbit.

Ateliers Louis Moinet feel that the 150th anniversary of Around the Moon deserves to be celebrated befittingly. History does not record whether Jules Verne and Louis Moinet ever met, but it's well within the bounds of probability: both were men of science with very advanced astronomical knowledge (Moinet to conduct his scientific research, Verne for the purposes of researching his written works); both lived in the same place during the same period (1848-1853), probably moving in the same circles, including the French Academy of Sciences, and frequenting the same people, such as the famous astronomer Lalande.
Ateliers Louis Moinet are celebrating this close encounter at the highest levels of astronomy with a limited edition comprising just 12 rose gold pieces and 60 steel pieces: "Moon".

A fragment of the Moon on the wrist
At three o'clock, the "Moon" piece features a capsule containing a genuine lunar meteorite fragment. The capsule is positioned amid a dial that faithfully reproduces the surface of the Moon, complete with its familiar craters. Indeed, expert craftsmanship has been exercised on the brass dial to produce accurate depictions of Gassendi, Tycho, and Cassini, the best-known craters on the visible face of our closest neighbour.

Moon features three different sets of openwork - on the hour markers, on the dial, and on the lugs and vertical bridges - giving the timepiece a uniquely three-dimensional aspect. It is also the first creation by Ateliers Louis Moinet to feature Roman numeral hour markers, made with three different geometrical sections. Their satin, diamond-studded finish is designed to reflect the blue flange that encompasses the piece, evoking the cosmos - and they appear to be suspended in mid-air, as if weightless.
The openwork on Moon's dial, between 8 and 12 o'clock, reveals each and every beat of the piece's caliber. The escapement (generating 28,800 vibrations per hour) and the offset seconds hand are displayed in all their glory - carefully positioned to ensure an unobstructed view of every detail of Moon's movement. The assembly is housed in Louis Moinet's 43.2-millimetre Neo case, structured around two vertical bridges that span the timepiece, securing the strap at each end of their openwork lugs.
An exclusive presentation case in the style of the first edition of Around the Moon has been specially created for this piece. In a new development, the Moon presentation case will also be punched in the shape of a lunar crater - in the middle of which a second fragment of lunar meteorite is sealed.