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Le Régulateur Unique Prototype
Le Régulateur Unique Prototype Le Régulateur Unique Prototype Le Régulateur Unique Prototype Le Régulateur Unique Prototype Le Régulateur Unique Prototype Le Régulateur Unique Prototype Le Régulateur Unique Prototype Le Régulateur Unique Prototype
lot 27

Louis Erard x Alain Silberstein

Le Régulateur Unique Prototype

This lot has a reserve price
Estimate CHF 4 000 / CHF 8 000
Starting bid CHF 3 500
Hammer price CHF 8 200
Total bids 22
Buyer’s premium will not be charged
Manuel Emch is a gifted idea generator. It’s easy to produce an expensive collector’s watch with a price tag of, say, 20k+. Besides, the word “produce” also includes “sell”, so prices on the secondary market don’t fall, but rather rise. Manuel Emch joined Louis Erard in 2019 and has released a number of collab watches priced between 3,000 and 4,000 Swiss francs. Among the most popular collabs are several models co-designed with Alain Silberstein. The Louis Erard x Alain Silberstein Le Régulateur ‘One-eyed panda’ is notable and valuable as it’s the first one-of-a-kind piece for the Louis Erard brand collection, at least in recent decades, but listen, this is a “panda” even if it’s one-eyed! It has its own charm.
Alex Kutkovoy
More than 10 years editor in Revolution
Estimate
CHF 4 000 / CHF 8 000

Specification

CaseTitanium case with polished & pierced titanium lugs, sapphire caseback
StrapBlack nylon-strap with Velcro
DialSilvered regulator dial with big blue arrow minute-hand, red triangle hour-hand and yellow serpentine-hand for the seconds, signed" Louis Erard"
MovementAutomatic movement with a regulator allocation
Cal.SW220-1
Ref.85358TT13
Case No.581276
D=40mm
Year2023

Condition report

Case:Brand new
Strap:Brand new
Dial:Mint condition
Movement:Very good, all functions working properly
Amplitude (Dial on top/Lift angle 52):Approx 330°
Accuracy (Dial on top):Approx +4 sec/day
Box:Yes
Papers:Yes

Details 

A very rare, attractive and collectible titanium wristwatch from the independent Swiss brand Louis Erard. The company was founded in 1929 by Louis Erard and André Perret. The present prototype was made in 2022 in collaboration with Alain Silberstein, a renowned watch designer from France. Drum-shaped titanium grade 2 case with titanium grade 5 ‘brancard’-shaped lugs, diameter 40 mm, 11.6 mm thick, crown with red lacquered Louis Erard symbol, sapphire caseback with “Louis Erard x Alain Silberstein” engraving on the rim. Light grey regulator-style dial with black hour sub-dial at 12 o’clock, Alain Silberstein’s signature colored hour markers, red lacquered hour hand, blue lacquered minute hand and yellow lacquered seconds hand. Caliber Sellita SW266-1, self-winding with skeletonized and personalized Louis Erard rotor, power reserve up to 38 hours. Functions – display of time in hours, minutes and seconds on three separate positions. Black nylon strap, Velcro closure with titanium cap. Unique prototype watch. 

Lot essay 

The rules of the game have changed at Louis Erard with the launch of two Louis Erard x Alain Silberstein Excellence Regulateur models in 2019. With this design, the independent Swiss watch brand has actually attracted a lot of attention from collectors for the first time in its history. The watch was designed in collaboration with Alain Silberstein, an icon of modern watchmaking, a conceptual designer and founder of the eponymous brand. Unfortunately, the Alain Silberstein brand finally went bankrupt in 2012, but the man didn’t disappear from the horizon and continued to embody his own version of the Bauhaus style he invented in watches from other brands such as MB&F (the HM2.2 ‘Black Box’ in 2009 and the LM1 in 2011), Romain Jérôme (the Subcraft watch launched in 2015; Romain Jérôme is bankrupt as of 2020) and, since 2019, with Louis Erard. 

The unique character of the Louis Erard x Alain Silberstein Le Régulateur ‘One-eyed panda’ Unique Prototype watch comes from the charisma of Alain Silberstein, who implements his unique version of Bauhaus style in collaboration with the Louis Erard brand.

The collaboration of Louis Erard and Alain Silberstein wouldn’t have been possible without Manuel Emch, who managed Romain Jérôme and convinced Alain Silberstein to work with this brand. Manuel Emch, who is now a delegate of the Board of Directors of Louis Erard, joined the team as a consultant in 2019. Apparently, one of his ideas was to offer affordable (compared to premium luxury brands) collectible watches created in collaboration with independent watchmakers, designers, fashion brands and even bloggers. The amazing story of Louis Erard collectible watches began with the first two 2019 Louis Erard x Alain Silberstein models, black and white. As monochrome-watches.com noted in 2019, in its 90 years of existence, Louis Erard has never given carte blanche to a designer. Now, collectors have a new and very attractive collectible from Louis Erard, which has been boldly collaborating since then, while the collaboration watches are sold on the secondary market above their retail price. 

Even against the background of this dynamically developing situation, the present example undoubtedly attracts attention. It’s the first unique watch prototype by Louis Erard, at least in modern times. For the first time, the Louis Erard x Alain Silberstein watch features a panda dial with a light grey background and a black sub-dial to indicate the hours. That’s where the nickname ‘One-eyed panda’ comes from. 

Reasons to bid 

The unique character of the Louis Erard x Alain Silberstein Le Régulateur ‘One-eyed panda’ Unique Prototype watch comes from the charisma of Alain Silberstein, who implements his unique version of Bauhaus style in collaboration with the Louis Erard brand, and the bold approach of the brand itself, which dared to step out of the mid-price segment and embark on the adventure of creating collectible watches. Therefore, the present lot is definitely an excellent buy for the collector who wants a rare and unique prototype wristwatch, a remarkable and important piece of the history of the modern collectible watch market. The attractiveness of this watch is enhanced by the unique ‘One-eyed panda’ dial, which makes its character even more spectacular and eye-catching. 

*Under the aegis of Maître Marco Breitenmoser, Huissier Judiciaire