As its name suggests, the latest watch by De Bethune features a neat representation of our galaxy on its face. Apart from this appealing and realistic depiction of the Milky Way, the watch also includes the brand’s trademark three-dimensional moon phase display seen throughout De Bethune palette of products. The watch runs on a proprietary manually-wound movement which includes five of the brand’s patented features and has the opulent power reserve that lasts for nearly entire week. Finally, it also features a bezel set with 66 diamonds for an additional sparkle. De Bethune DB25L Milky Way is set in a platinum housing and has the steep price of around $225,000.
The main distinguishing feature of the new De Bethune timekeeper is the mentioned depiction of the Milky Way on its face which looks rather captivating. For it, the Swiss high-end watchmaker used a flame-blued disc made of titanium which was subsequently polished. This captivating background that represents the night sky is paired with two different types of stars. The larger ones are actually polished white gold spheres which are carefully and individually set by hand. These three-dimensional minute celestial objects are combined with the smaller ones which are actually micro laser gilded leafs made of 24 carat gold. All of these carefully placed details combined show an accurate map of the Milky Way.
In order not to obscure this lovely celestial map on the front, the dial of the watch features just two more indications. The first one of these is the time representation which is shown with curved Breguet-styled central hands in gold. The other one is the famed spherical moon-phase display made of blued steel and platinum which not only looks good but it is also very punctual. It requires a single adjustment every 122 years. This is a recognizable De Bethune feature which the brand registered as a patent more than a decade ago. As for the only other supported indication, De Bethune 25L Milky Way also has a power reserve display on the rear side of the case. It shows the state of its power reserve that lasts for as long as six entire days.
Five Patents and Shiny Finishes
The long-lasting power reserve of Caliber DB2105v2 is based on a self-regulating twin barrel, another of the brand’s featured patents. Other ones that were used during the construction of the manually-wound mechanical caliber are its silicon annular balance surrounded with a white gold ring (which is also visible on the case-back), a balance spring with a flat terminal curve, as well as a triple para-chute shock protection system. The caliber consists of 289 components altogether and integrates 29 jewels in its construction. It beats at the high frequency of 4 Hz. Caliber DB2105v2 is 30 mm wide. As for its decorations, the caliber with the recognizable architecture that mimics the shape of the brand’s logo has its steel plate and barrel bridge cover treated with a mirror polish. The barrels are hand snailed, while other steel pats are polished manually and chamfered.
The timekeeper with an astronomical theme is placed inside a round platinum housing with the diameter of 44.6 mm and the thickness of 11.3 mm. It has the recognizable design with floating lugs, while its fixed bezel is adorned with 66 baguette-cut diamonds that significantly raise the price of the piece which is valued at a quarter of a million of dollars. The rear part of the case is made from polished white gold, while both sides include sapphire crystals (that have the hardness of 1800 Vickers). The one on the front also possesses a double anti-reflective treatment.
De Bethune DB25L Voie Lacte is coupled with a black extra-supple alligator leather strap with alligator paddling. It locks with a platinum buckle clasp.
