Arceau Into the Canadian Wild

Canada's natural beauty is the inspiration behind two limited editions of 24 pieces each. Both are housed inside the Hermès Arceau case, with its characteristic asymmetric lugs, here executed in white gold with 24 diamonds set around the bezel. The animal characters – a polar bear with its cub looking out across icy floes and a snowy owl flying amidst the Northern Lights – are taken from the "Into the Canadian Wild" silk scarf that artist Alice Shirley imagined in 2017 for the 150th anniversary of Canada's founding. The dial artisan devotes more than a week to each of these miniature works, first tracing the contours of the design on the glittering aventurine base then fixing them by firing the piece in the kiln. The different volumes of the landscapes and the animals are then formed by applying and firing successive layers of paint. Both watches show hours and minutes. The polar bear version is fitted with the in-house H1912 automatic movement. The snowy owl version also presents a moon-phase display and is powered by the H1837 movement.