Raketa, 300 years of Russian avant-garde watchmaking

There was a time when France and Russia were more than close.

Long before the Napoleonic wars, the Russian revolution, the Soviet years or the Putin era.

Saint-Petersburg, formerly Petrograd then Leningrad, regained in 1991 the name of its founder.

As for the direct heir to the imperial manufacture of Peterhof, founded in 1721 at the will of Peter the Great, she has survived.

Between Pobeda ("victory", in Russian) and Raketa ("rocket"), following Gagarin's exploit, the 8000 employees of the manufacture produced several million watches per year until 1991 and the implosion of the USSR.

A Russian watch with a resolutely artistic display.

Raketa

It was in 2011 that a Frenchman of Russian origin, Jacques von Polier and his partner, David Henderson-Stewart, New Zealander but also from the Russian nobility, decided to save what remained of the manufacture.

Workshops without heating, old-fashioned production… Everything has to be reinvented.

Today, the Manufacture is multiplying its novelties and is once again conquering the world of watchmaking, with its Russian Code, its Polar or its Avant-Garde.

A timepiece entirely made in Saint Petersburg.

Raketa

It is precisely in the Avant-garde that Raketa proposes to enter with its new limited edition.

In line with Russian artists such as Malevich and Kandinsky, who have moved away from traditional classical art towards a radically new vision of art, this “Avant-garde” Raketa multiplies colorful abstract shapes on each part of the watch: hands, dial, bracelet, up to the movement itself.

Over time, the composition of the work changes, with the circular movement of geometric shapes moving on the dial at different speeds.

A dial and a movement with Russian DNA.

Raketa

This limited edition of 300 copies thus displays three geometric shapes moving above the dial, in place of the hands: a triangle for the hour hand, a circle for the minute hand and a point for the hand. seconds.

Its dial displays an avant-garde graphic design, with the words “Made in Russia” written in its center.

Finally, its leather strap has circular openings over its entire length revealing the red lining.

A watch movement marked Made in Russia Raketa

Finally, the automatic movement of this piece produced entirely in St. Petersburg is also adorned with an avant-garde-inspired design, not only on the oscillating weight, but also on the main bridge.

This bidirectional automatic winding movement offers a 40-hour power reserve.

In France, these 100% Russian creations are offered in particular at Fréret-Roy and Ocarat.

Raketa Avant-Garde, 1350 €