Or do you deviate and, in the words of American poet Robert Frost, tread “the road not taken”? The latter involves channeling the spirit of the original timepiece but creating something altogether new. Says Bertrand Savary, a man who wears dual hats as president of Arnold & Son and Angelus, both owned by The Citizen Group, “I am often inspired by the daring of the automotive industry. One of my favorite cars is Ferrari’s F12 Tour de France designed by Flavio Manzoni. I love how he channeled the spirit of the 250 GT Tour de France to create one of the world’s most original modern supercars. He was able to forge just the right genetic lineage with its ancestor while designing something completely new and breathtaking.”

Angelus Chronodato — The First Full Calendar Chronograph

The Chronodate, as it was named in 1942, the year of its launch, was the world’s first triple calendar chronograph. It preceded even Rolex’s reference 6036 “Jean Claude Killy” by nine years. It was, at the time of its launch, a work of absolute disruptive modernity. Bear in mind that in the context of the early 1940s, a wristwatch chronograph was already an incredibly modern super machine. The idea that you could harness the power of a stopwatch, an instrument that allowed you to time everything, from sporting events to auto races, or help you rapidly calculate heart rate in a miniature wristwatch format was already mind-blowing. At the same time, having an indication for day, date and month was the equivalent of having a super computer strapped to your wrist. So the very idea of combining these two functions represented a mind-blowingly modern timepiece. While it is true that a year before, Patek Philippe had launched the 1518 perpetual calendar chronograph, that was a horological unicorn meant for the very rarefied elite. In contrast, the Angelus Chronodate was a stunningly original everyman’s watch meant to be accessible to a far wider audience.ngular faceted lugs and purposeful square pushers.

The New Angelus Chronodate

Says Savary, “We were intensely aware of the demand of the Chronodate and the surging cult of collectibility in recent years, so we were ready to relaunch this model. Of course, there was the temptation to make an exact replica of the 38mm vintage watch. But it would have been inconsistent with the modern identity of Angelus. It might be something we could revive as a small edition in the future but not as something we would make on a regular basis. So the question became how do we make a watch that is immediately identifiable as a Chronodate, yet feels vibrant and contemporary?”

Says Savary, “Some of the best designs in watches create a dynamic tension between hyper modern and retro elements. And so, we wanted to create a dial that developed this same type of dynamic tension with the case.” What he means is that it is the dial of the Chronodate that allows this watch to fully develop what has to be said is an incredibly appealing character. It features an aggressively frosted or grené central area, the two signature “Big Eye” counters of the original Chronodate, the syringe-shaped hands, the central pointer with red-tipped arrow and date scale at the perimeter, and the applied Arabic indexes. But it is in the subtle contrast between textures that the dial becomes so vividly expressive. The frosted finish — approaching the texture of a tremblage dial — is contrasted by the ultra fine circular guilloché in the subdials, contrasted by the matte finish in the minute track and contrasted by the circular brushing of the date display, while the applied luminous indexes are amongst the most three-dimensional I’ve ever seen. The overall effect is a dial that positively ripples with electrifying nuance.

Did the absence of the month and day indicators bother me? To be honest, at first yes, but the more I looked at the design of the watch, the more swayed I was by it, as it is just so balanced. Trying to imagine apertures at 12 and six o’clock somehow disrupted the visual harmony. So did the idea of a tachymeter which was present in the original watch. Indeed, the more I looked at the updated Chronodate model, the more I felt it is one of the most visually appealing new automatic chronograph models that I could think of.

At 42.5mm by 14.25mm, the case is proportionally harmonious and not too thick as watches in this category sometimes are. In addition, the extremely short lugs make the watch wear slightly smaller, more like a 41mm watch. I really liked the watch. So much so that I was sorely tempted to purchase one; it was just so different from what I usually wear. But then I got it in my head to try to convince Bertrand Savary to make me my own version of the watch, with a dial color that has become something of a signature for a Revolution limited edition timepiece.

La Vie En Rose

The new Angelus Chronodate is offered in three versions, each a 25-piece limited edition. There are two versions in titanium and carbon cases, with blue and silver dials, and a rose gold and carbon case version with a blue dial. Looking at the frosted finish of the dial, I somehow immediately imagined the watch with an almost rose gold-like salmon dial. I’ve always loved the contrast between this very special hue and the stealthy darker color of titanium.

Celestial Inspirations

To observe the beauty of the resulting watch in the light of the Gironde was something truly unforgettable. The dial was perfect in tone. At my request, Savary and his team had set about subtly increasing the contrast between all the different areas of the dial. The grené or frosted area is a touch more aggressively textured, to contrast more with the delicate snailing of the subdials, while the circular brushing on the date track is even more assertive than normal.

During our time in the cellar, we also learned the term “Angels’ Share” which refers to the small amount of wine that evaporates each year the wine is stored. This evaporated portion is, therefore, believed to have ascended to the heavens to be supped on by God’s best angels. But we began to imagine that this wine also found its way to the dial of the watch bestowing it with its signature color and so — as often, we are told, happens in the cellars of this mythical vineyard — inspiration struck and we found the perfect nickname for our watch.

So it is that the Angelus × Revolution Chronodate “Angels’ Share” will be made in 25 examples, and each comes with a bottle of this fabulous elixir made at its namesake in Bordeaux.

Tech Specs

Angelus × Revolution Chronodate “Angels’ Share”

Movement: Self-winding caliber A-500; 60-hour power reserve
Functions: Hours, minutes, small seconds, chronograph and date
Case: 42.5mm; titanium; water resistant to 30m
Dial: Salmon (6N gold plated) with grené or frosted area; Super-LumiNova filled Arabic numerals
Strap: Ballistic gray rubber; titanium folding clasp
Price: CHF 21,300
Availability: Numbered and limited edition of 25 pieces