Artic ice.Krayon, the independent that nearly perfected the sunrise and sunset complication for Anywhere and Everywhere on the planet, applies its no-half-measures approach to gem-setting with the Parhelion. Set with 171 sapphires in a gradient from dark blue to colourless, a dozen of which are a unique “Krayon cut”, the Parhelion is a halo product that seeks to recreate a magical moment the brand’s founders experienced in the arctic.
Initial Thoughts
Given my affinity for baguette set watches and astronomical complications, I don’t stand much of a chance against the Parhelion, a chilly, high jewellery version of the Anywhere. This isn’t Krayon’s first gemset watch, which would be the Everywhere, but is the best yet. I especially appreciate the creation of a novel fancy cut “Krayon-cut” which preserves the hour marker’s original form, something that is often lost in gem-set versions of originally non gem-set watches.
Of course, this only worsens the Anywhere’s only fault – other than lack of summer time adjustment – pushing the Anywhere’s already high (if justifiable) price tag over the half-million dollar mark. That is a lot of money, but it is also a lot of watch, and still well below Patek Philippe’s sapphire-set Celestial.
Near-Artic Encouter
Caused by sunlight passing through hexagonal ice crystals in high-altitude clouds, parhelia (more commonly, sundogs) are a type of halo that mimics a second, and usually a third sun. The effect is most common, and most dramatic at high-latitudes and low temperatures due lower angle of the sun and the extreme cold needed to form good crystals. Rémi Maillat and Fei Hou, the husband-and-wife team who founded Krayon, experienced (and the latter photographed) a particularly strong parhelion during a trip to Greenland, which inspired this watch.
And what better homage is there to sparkling ice crystals amid a sea of ice than blue and white sapphires. While the carat weight hasn’t been finalized yet, the design calls for 171 stones, most of which (specifically 124) are baguette cut sapphires that form a blue to white gradient across the bezel and flanks of the case and lugs, and the buckle is set with a further 35 stones of the same type. Interestingly the crown is left bare. Technically – there are two more sapphires, the crystal and display case back.
A fancy cut white sapphire in the shape of Krayon’s logo terminates the bezel. Eleven more of these Krayon-cut stones encircle the nicely blue mother-of-pearl (nacre) dial to mark the hours. The icy feel continues across the rest of the dial, with a white metal sun and a sky backdrop that sparkles like virgin snow during sunrise.
Movement
Inside is the same cal. C030 you’d find in any Anywhere. Even in a 42 mm case, the oversized movement (35.40 mm in diameter) is a tight fit. Placing most of the sunrise and sunset complication on the same level as the rest of the movement keeps the height down to a moderate 5 mm while putting the most interesting part of the movement on full display. The generously large barrel, which uses the nostalgic combination of a Maltese stop works and bar style click, still provides 72 hours of going.
Anywhere displays the time of sunset and sunrise using a rotating sun disk and two shutters, like Patek Philippe’s Star Calibre 2000 or F.P. Journe’s Astronomic. However unlike those watches the Anywhere’s set latitude can be adjusted without cutting new cams, you just need to turn two screws.
The complication is controlled by a simple calendar that needs to be corrected on months with less than 31 days, but this can be done from the crown. The aforementioned watches from Patek Philippe and F.P. Journe can be corrected without tools either, but not quite as easily.
The movement’s wayward striping represents a graph of the sunrise and sunset times in Neuchâtel, while the a barrel bridge traces the Lake Neuchâtel shoreline. Overall, it is finished to an unnecessarily high level for a watch that could easily stand on its own technically. The luminous beveling in particular captures pocket-watch-era Swiss decadent decoration as well as Philippe Dufour or Seiko’s Micro Artist Studio.
The Parhelion is not a unique piece, or even limited edition, but considering it took the better part of a year to gather the stones to make the first example, and the brand’s mere double-digit annual output, it will be more limited than most limited editions.
Key Facts and Price
Krayon Parhelion
Diameter: 39 mm
Height: 9.5 mm
Material: 18K white gold, set with 124 sapphires.
Crystal: Sapphire
Water-resistance: 30 m
Movement: Cal. C030
Functions: Hour, minutes, date, month, time of sunrise, time of sunset, 24-hour sun
Winding: Hand-wound
Frequency: 21,600 beats per hour (3 Hz)
Power reserve: 72 hours
Strap: Dark blue aligator leather leather with 18K white gold pin buckle set with 35 sapphires
Limited edition: No, but limited production
Availability: From Krayon retailers
Price: CHF430,000
For more, visit Krayon.ch.
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