The New Chronoswiss Delphis Dracula, Horizon and Dune

Chronoswiss was founded in 1983 in Munich by the late Gerd R. Lang, a celebrated watchmaker with a penchant for classical regulators. Now in the hands of Oliver Ebstein and based in Lucerne, Switzerland, Chronoswiss maintains its repertoire of dynamic regulator layouts with old-school decorative techniques jazzed up with wild colours. The Chronoswiss Delphis, launched in 2023, is an eye-catching jumping hours model with retrograde minutes and small seconds – see it as a strong evolution over the classic regulator. Three new Delphis models, two in titanium and one in red gold, join the collection with boldly coloured hand-guilloché enamel dials that deftly blend old and new.

Grand Feu Enamel dials are highly coveted in the watch world. Thanks to their resilience to fading, they maintain their original and highly lustrous colours for years to come. The three Delphis models have curved gold dials and hand-guilloché in the fan-shaped upper section of the gold dial and inside the small seconds counter. Decorated with an undulating wave-like guilloché pattern, the dial is then treated with seven layers of Grand Feu enamel. The rectangular window for the jumping hours with a white background is in the centre of the fan. The arc features a semi-circular minutes scale for the openworked retrograde minutes hand. The minutes track is accompanied by a scale of ceramic dots and lines for heightened precision.

Two bridges span the lower half of the dial, the smaller one supporting the raised small seconds counter with its guilloché interior and Grand Feu enamel. A curious blend of old and new, the contemporary blackened bridges are openworked and rise above the grained background.

Aptly named, the Delphis Dracula has an intense blood-red enamel shade and comes in an 18k red gold case – note that Chronoswiss pushed the concept quite far, with a presentation box shaped like a coffin… The Delphis Dune combines a contemporary titanium case with an amber-coloured dial, while the titanium Delphis Horizon captures the colours of the horizon with its sky-blue Grand Feu enamel.

All three Delphis models share a 42mm case with a height of 14.5mm, the brand’s signature oversized striated onion crown, and knurling below the bezel and on the caseback. Decorated with brightly polished surfaces and vertically brushed flanks, the cases are water-resistant to 100 metres.

The sapphire crystal on the caseback reveals the contemporary automatic calibre C. 6004 developed by La Joux-Perret. It has an openworked tungsten rotor (shaped like the bridges on the dial) and ruthenium-plated components. The movement beats at 28,800vph and has an autonomy of 55 hours.

Availability & Price

The Chronoswiss Delphis Dracula, Dune and Horizon are paired with black rubber straps with a folding clasp. Limited editions of 50 pieces in each colour, the Delphis Dracula in red gold retails for CHF 38,000 or EUR 41,800, while the Delphis Dune and Horizon in titanium share a price of CHF 19,800 or EUR 21,800. For more information, please consult chronoswiss.com.