The watch industry on a whole has seen a renewed interest in métiers d’art decoration. As a result, more brands, from entry-level microbrands to leading independents and major maisons, are offering dials adorned with enamel or guilloché. This is good news for enthusiasts, as it means a wider audience can experience these crafts. Yet it is no secret that some creations stand well above the rest. Playing at the very highest level and rising to the number-one spot in Revolution’s annual Best Métiers d’Art category is the Louis Vuitton Escale en Amazonie pocket watch.

Louis Vuitton Escale en Amazonie

At Revolution, the criteria for selecting the Best Métiers d’Art watch of the year rest not only on the quality of the artisanal decoration. The decoration must also be in dialogue with the watch’s horological content, enhancing the entire watch rather than existing as mere ornament. And that is precisely what the Escale en Amazonie achieves. Here’s why.

The Amazonie is, first and foremost, a minute repeater featuring an automaton, with the two functions closely intertwined. When the minute repeater is activated, the chimes are accompanied by movement across the dial, as the automata come to life.

The dial depicts a scene from the Amazon Rainforest, rendered in meticulous miniature enamel painting. The execution is particularly effective, with a palette that feels mysterious and layered, creating a strong sense of depth and the brooding atmosphere of an ancient forest. Within this landscape are birds, snakes, monkeys and even a boat. All are rendered in relief above the dial, sculpted or engraved before being finished with enamel.

The enamel painting Amazon Rainforest dial

Details on the dial with brand’s signature Monogram

Crucially, these elements are not static, despite appearances. Once the minute repeater is engaged, they begin to move, some with gentle back-and-forth motion. The trunk on the boat, for example, opens to reveal golden flowers within (which are, of course, in the shape of the brand’s signature Monogram).

The quality of the enamel work on the dial, together with the gradient gemstone decoration on the case and bezel, is so high that it is almost self-explanatory. A single glance does most of the work. What is worth noting, however, is the fact that the movement within, like the dial and case, is also made in-house at Louis Vuitton.

Developed at La Fabrique du Temps, the LFT AU14.03 is a dedicated pocket watch movement, something rare in modern horology. And it is no ordinary caliber. In addition to the minute repeater and automaton functions mentioned above, it also incorporates a tourbillon and offers a substantial power reserve of eight full days.

Breakdown on the LFT AU14.03 movement

The movement impresses not only in its construction, but also in its finishing, with extensive black polishing, notably on the steel tourbillon bridge, as well as finely executed interior and exterior angles along the edges of the bridges. The execution is exemplary, living up to the standards of the Poinçon de Genève and then some.