During the AuroChronos Festival, I got the chance to get in contact with Roland Baptiste. I know his work for some years but never got the chance to see live his watches. The master engraver has tremendous experience in the art of engraving but also a love for fine mechanical watches. Roland uses the watches as a canvas for his work. And the results are fantastic. Today, I would like to introduce into his most important collections: the R. Baptiste Royal, the R. Baptiste Vicomte and the R. Baptiste Marquis.
R. Baptiste Royal
The Royal was the first watch created by Roland Baptiste. Manufactured in steel, the watch displays the time through a small aperture at 6 o’clock. The presented 42 mm diameter watch is a piece unique. The R. Baptiste Royal is powered by a modified Swiss mechanical automatic movement. The calibre was modified to display time via a disc. The price tag is 6200€. Talking about custom and special watches, taking into account the work amount, the price seems to be more than fair. Of course, you can have your own special unique piece. I have seen two spectacular interpretations of the Royal.
Please enjoy the pictures with the R. Baptiste Royal:
R. Baptiste Vicomte
The Vicomte watch uses the same 42mm case lines of the Royal watches. The dial is a traditional three hands time display. The Vicomte Collection includes watches with and without date, depending on the client’s preferences. The dial can be also adorned with gemstones setting. The look of the Vicomte watches is limited only by the clients’ wishes and imagination. Prices from 5500€.
Below, one of the Vicomte variations without date or gem set:
R. Baptiste Marquis
The R. Baptiste Marquis Collection is the “lightest” between Roland’s collection. The Marquis comes with a more slender 42mm steel case. The dial’s complexity, with or without date display or gem set, is a matter of personal preferences. Prices from 5250€.
The piece presented today features a small aperture at 3 o’clock for date display. The dial is further adorned with orange diamonds and gold inserts.
About Roland Baptiste
Roland has more than 20 years of experience in engravings. The Belgian and his team have worked with fine gun making houses in Belgium, and then to the historically prestigious gunmakers of Britain and other parts of the world. Sun of an engraver, Roland Baptiste has the art of engraving flowing through its veins. And this can be easily observed in his work. He is an avid promoter of the fine hand engravings.
Besides the collection presented above, Roland worked a fourth collection – the Baron, the most affordable of his watches. He also commissions special bespoke projects or watches and other metal objects customisations. So you can turn to him for any watch project or custom requests. For more information, please visit his Website.
