Louis Vuitton Marks Two Decades of Watchmaking With Tambour Twenty
Using a movement based on Zenith’s El Primero.
Louis Vuitton is marking two decades of watchmaking with a 1/10th second 20th anniversary Tambour Chronograph.
Limited to 200 pieces, the Tambour Twenty is housed in a 41.5mm case with the letters making up ‘Louis Vuitton’ wrapped around the caseband and is paired with a brown sun-brushed dial. The watch’s central chronograph seconds hand, 30-minute and 12-hour counter are all picked out in contrasting yellow.
Water resistant to 100m, the Tambour Twenty uses the high-beat LV277 automatic movement – a highly modified version of Zenith’s El Primero movement – which features a monogrammed 22K gold winding rotor and 50-hour power reserve.
“Watch enthusiasts will recognise all the features that made the Tambour’s design so unique. While this limited edition is a true concentrate of everything that made this watch stand out, it also boasts brand new features that will set it apart for collectors,” says Jean Arnault, marketing and development director for Louis Vuitton watches. “To me, as well as celebrating our anniversary, this watch also paves the way for many future decades of fine watchmaking, staying true to Louis Vuitton’s values of creativity, craftsmanship and excellence.”
The distinctive Tambour – with drum-shaped case and applied lugs – made its debut in 2002 and has evolved over the years, to be joined by the innovative Tambour Spin Time in 2009, oversized Tambour Evolution in 2014, the svelte, tourbillon-equiped Tambour Slim in 2016, Tambour Moon in 2017 and haute horlogerie Tambour Curve in 2020.
In 2011, the Tambour and the rest of Louis Vuitton’s watchmaking concern was elevated by the acquisition of the La Fabrique du Temps facility in Geneva, a watchmaking facility founded by master watchmakers Michel Navas and Enrico Barbasini.
Two versions of the Tambour were honoured by the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève (GPHG) in 2021, with the piece unique Carpe Diem receiving the Audacity Prize and the Tambour Street Diver scooping the Diver’s Watch Prize.
The Tambour was also the model chosen for Louis Vuitton’s first smartwatch, the travel-orientated Tambour Horizon, which is now in its third generation.
The Tambour Twenty is presented in a mini trunk with monogram canvas and is available now via Louis Vuitton, priced £12,700 GBP (approximately $14,600 USD).
Elsewhere in watches, Baltic and A Collected Man celebrate mid-century dress watches.
