Van Cleef & Arpels Midnight Jour Nuit Moon Phase Watch
The Van Cleef & Arpels Midnight Jour Nuit Phase de Lune expands the brand’s Poetic Complications line by adding an animated moon‑phase module to the existing day‑night watch. Housed in a 42 mm 18k white‑gold case, the timepiece features a black Murano aventurine sky that displays a 24‑hour rotating sun and a mother‑of‑pearl moon with tiny stars, while a hidden aperture reveals a secondary disc tracking the moon’s 29.5‑day cycle. An on‑demand automaton, activated by a pusher at 8 o’clock, rotates the dial for ten seconds to show the precise lunar phase, a feature developed over four years. The watch’s caseback is engraved with lunar topography and conceals an in‑house automatic 36‑hour movement, whose rotor is covered by a sapphire crystal depicting a miniature cosmos. Finished with a black alligator strap and a white‑gold folding buckle, the piece is priced at EUR 156,000 and represents a fusion of high jewellery craftsmanship, astronomical expertise, and sophisticated mechanical storytelling.
Buying Time Analysis: This story highlights Van Cleef & Arpels’ groundbreaking fusion of haute jewellery and haute horlogerie, introducing an on‑demand moon‑phase automaton that pushes the boundaries of mechanical storytelling and exemplifies the brand’s mastery of artistic watchmaking.
