I have an enormous affection for Czapek’s CEO, Xavier de Roquemaurel. We’ve known each other for a decade and a half — we first met when he was part of the team working with my favorite tailors, Lorenzo and Massimo Cifonelli, to launch their ready-to wear collection. So when he took the helm of Czapek and staged its resurrection in 2012, I wished him all the best. 

No. 33 Bis Quai des Bergues

In 2016, Czapek won the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève’s Public Prize for its No. 33 Bis Quai des Bergues. This timepiece, which was based loosely around a historic pocket watch, featured appealing neoclassical design, an ivory grand feu enamel dial, fleur-de-lys hands and a seven-day power reserve indicator. But it wasn’t until 2020 that Czapek and de Roquemaurel really hit their stride with the creation of the Antarctique. 

Antarctique Terre Adélie Secret Alloy

Imbued with inspiration drawn from one of the brand’s shareholder’s trip to Antarctica, it was de Roquemaurel’s take on an integrated bracelet sports-chic watch — and it was a good one. The bracelet of the watch featured distinct U-shaped links that flowed into a barrel-shaped case, counterpointed by a steeply raked high-polished bezel and two slightly extended but still graceful crown guards. 

The bracelet features distinctive U-shaped links that flow into the barrel-shaped case.

The proportions of the model at 40.5mm in diameter and 10.6mm in thickness were balanced and appealing on the wrist. But it was the movement of the Antarctique that was the talking point. More than Czapek’s first fully in-house caliber, the SXH5 evinced a multitude of my favorite horological details. These included the fact that it was a full bridge movement, with each wheel in the train supported by its own unique bridge, making it much easier to service. But beyond this pragmatic detail, it was the architecture of the movement with this dynamic series of finger bridges that was so visually appealing. Not to be overlooked is the full traversing balance bridge with free sprung balance wheel at 6 o’clock. I’ve always loved watches with this kind of balance bridge, because it means the movement was designed to be, as they say in the industry, “a tractor,” meaning one to shrug off micro-shocks, that watches receive on an almost constant basis, with ease. 

So as not to cover the watchmaking firepower, de Roquemaurel, who worked with Chronode’s Jean-François Mojon on the movement, specified a micro-rotor. In fact, I liked the movement so much that during a fondue in Neuchâtel with Xavier for his birthday, I asked him if he was considering making an openworked version of the Antarctique so the owner could view the bridges from the front. He looked at me with a smile and explained I wasn’t the first to ask that. He even had a request to create an image of the movement on the front of the watch with a sort of trompe-l’œil effect — which I took to mean something like the Bvlgari Octo Finissimo Sketch. He took me into his confidence, revealing that a skeleton version was in the works, but it was a full four years away. I left that dinner intrigued. In fact, I couldn’t stop thinking about an openworked Antarctique. 

Resilience and the Révélation

It was during the next year that de Roquemaurel faced a personal health issue that was, without overstating it, truly severe. I checked in with him from time to time and have to say that the courage, perseverance and unremitting warrior spirit with which he faced his moments of adversity were extremely inspiring. I suppose that of all the qualities, I find resilience — the ability to come back from an existential threat — to be the most admirable, and I will forever associate de Roquemaurel with this quality. By this time, we had begun the discussion on a collaborative timepiece, but we still had not arrived on the final design. 

Cut to 2024. By this point, the Czapek Antarctique had proven itself to be a worthy addition to the integrated bracelet timepiece category led, of course, by the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak and Patek Philippe Nautilus, as well as many other watches. Its nicheness makes me place the Antarctique in the same smaller subset that includes timepieces like the Laurent Ferrier Sport, and the watch continues to be distinguished by its highly appealing proprietary movement. In 2024, Czapek finally unveiled the skeletonized version — the Antarctique Révélation. De Roquemaurel did this in a small run of 100 timepieces per year that were subsequently sold out quickly. The primary difference between this and the standard version is the removal of the dial that reveals the extensive openworking that has been applied to the new Caliber SXH7 movement. Rather than the previous center seconds version, this movement features a small seconds indicator at 4:30.

Czapek CEO, Xavier de Roquemaurel

Illuminating the Spectrum

As the plans to launch the Révélation firmed up, I approached de Roquemaurel to pitch him a collaborative watch. Understanding what he had been through, we thought a version of the Révélation — one that expressed resilience and optimism even in dark times — would be apt. So we decided to start working on the timepiece that would become the Czapek Antarctique Révélation Spectrum. The idea was to illuminate the singular skeleton architecture of this watch with white Super-LumiNova so that, in daylight, it might appear to be a normal skeleton version of the Antarctique, but in ambient light or at night, the visual signature of the movement would be on display in a light show. Even better, because the baseplate of the movement featured a stealthy sandblasted surface, the contrast between light and darkness would be maximized. 

But the complexity of applying the luminous substance far surpassed our expectations. Looking deep into the watch, what is truly impressive here is the massive work that has been put into the architecture of the caliber’s bridges. The bridges for the barrel, the micro-rotor, the balance and even the hour and minute hands are all faceted and feature sharp three-dimensional curves that bring your eye into the dramatic microcosm of the movement. On top of that, for our collaborative watch, the Antarctique Révélation Spectrum, sections along the narrow surfaces of these skeletonized bridges had to be further excavated to create negative voids for the luminous paint. And here’s the hard part: Think about applying the Super-LumiNova across all of these faceted surfaces that slope steeply up and down. 

Says de Roquemaurel with a laugh, “Already hand beveling all these angles of the bridges was much harder than we expected because of the radical 3D architecture, but this [applying the Super-LumiNova] added an even bigger challenge. If the luminous material was not perfect, we had to start all over again.” As de Roquemaurel points out, all the sharp inner angles for the barrel bridge, rotor bridge and balance bridge could only be achieved by hand. The process of creating the watch necessitated that this was achieved first before the luminous material was applied, and if not done perfectly or with too many waves, then the entire bridge would have to be restarted from the beginning.

The bridges for the barrel, the micro-rotor, the balance and even the hour and minute hands are all faceted and feature sharp three-dimensional curves, making the application of Super-LumiNova an incredibly complex task.

He shares, “As much as I love Revolution, I will never agree to undertake hand painting bridges that have already been perfectly beveled by hand. The rejection rate of this was too crazy.” Eventually, because of these challenges, we even decreased the number of watches from 30 to 20.

The SXH7 movement is 30mm in diameter, vibrates at 4Hz and features a full 60 hours of power reserve, meaning that it is not just very cool looking, but also a hardworking beast of an automatic caliber. From a design perspective, the five-sided, three-dimensional hour markers are fixed to a peripheral ring, while a lightly fumé sapphire disk at 4:30 incorporates the sub-seconds track. All markers and indexes are also rendered in the stark white Super-LumiNova that glows this color when light is dim. In contrast, the Super-LumiNova applied to the hands appear white but actually glows blue in dark conditions, creating a visually striking juxtaposition between the indicators. Underneath the indicators, the stunning full bridge layout of the movement comes to life when the light goes out, like an abstract symbol for the optimism that so wonderfully characterizes the personality of Xavier de Roquemaurel.  

The Revolution × Czapek Antarctique Révélation Spectrum with its striking openworked dial showcasing its full bridge movement.

The Revolution × Czapek Antarctique Révélation Spectrum is priced at CHF 42,000 (excl. taxes) each. Available exclusively on RevolutionWatch.com 

Tech Spec: Revolution × Czapek Antarctique Révélation Spectrum

Movement Self-winding Caliber SXH7; 60-hour power reserve

Functions Hours, minutes and small seconds

Case 40.5mm × 10.6mm; stainless steel; water resistant to 120m

Dial Skeletonized with unique luminescent coating on hands and movement bridges

Strap Integrated stainless steel bracelet; additional white rubber, both with quick-release system

Price CHF 42,000 (excl. VAT)

Availability Limited edition of 20 pieces