Ebel 'The Architects Of Time' - Brand Overview

Calling watches architectural seems to raise watches into the realm of art. It’s a way of drawing attention to the sketches, scale models, noble materials, smooth textures and uncompromising attention to detail that are needed for the construction of both watches and buildings. Many watches (and buildings) outlive their makers. Ebel even has an astronomic moon phase with perpetual calandar that only needs adjusting every 122 years.

In the 1980s and early 1990s, when Ebel’s production was burgeoning, it produced cases, movements and bracelets for a staggering 300,000 watches annually for its rival, Cartier. Today, Ebel’s smoothly constructed metal bracelets remain one of its signature telltale design cues – although the khaki and navy straps on the new Ebel Classic Sport Chronos are gorgeous too.

Certain watches spotlight the Ebel link to architecture. The Brasilia collection alludes to the capital of Brazil, a city created in the 1950s by starchitect Oscar Niemeyer, while the dial of Ebel’s Villa Tourbillon mimics the imaginative floor plan of the Villa Turque – the luxurious home cum meeting place Ebel bought for its 75th anniversary.

In this home, built in 1917 for a watch industrialist by Le Corbusier, arguably the most revered architect of the 20th century, the ceiling of the ground floor living room is the ceiling of the house itself, although the rest of the home is on two floors. Enormous bay windows bathe the space in natural light from three sides. Previous guests have included former brand ambassador Madonna - and me a couple of years ago, in the room where Madonna once stayed, I might add!

See Ebel watches for a range of styles.