TAG HEUER - Watch Monaco V4 number 001/150 auctioned next September

Tag Heuer’s most revolutionary creation to date will be auctioned at the prestigious Only Watch in Monaco on September 24th 2009

Press release

TAG Heuer Monaco V4 © TAG Heuer

The first (N°001/150) of the “150 years of TAG Heuer” limited edition TAG Heuer Monaco V4, the world’s first ever belt-driven watch with a linear oscillating mass, will be offered at the biennial Only Watch auction in Monaco on September 24th.

Only Watch is a charity auction of unique watches created by Switzerland’s most exclusive watch brands. The exceptional event is held every two years under the patronage of HSH Prince Albert II and the Monegasque Association. All proceeds of the prestigious sale go to research into Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy, a genetic ailment affecting one in every 3,500 boys in the world.

The world’s first watch with ball bearings and belt-drives — the latest breakthrough invention by TAG Heuer — was presented as a Concept Watch in Baselworld 2004. Now it becomes a commercial realty at the eve of the brand’s 150 year anniversary. The 2009 Only Watch Monaco V4, N° 1 of limited series of 150, celebrates 150 years of pioneering in Swiss luxury watchmaking (TAG Heuer was founded in 1860 in Saint-Imier, Switzerland) and represents the revolutionary next step in the daring evolution of the iconic, square-faced Monaco — the audacious watch first seen on Steve McQueen’s wrist in the 1970 race film classic Le Mans.

In classic TAG Heuer tradition, the watch’s movement represents a complete break everything that came before.

The pinions of the traditional mechanical movement have been replaced in the Monaco V4 with a patented relay of 5 notched driving belts whose tension is controlled by turnbuckles.

The automatic winding system is also unique: the oscillating weight, a 12g tungsten ingot, doesn’t move back and forth but up and down — on a track between the four spring barrels, which are mounted on a V-shaped main plate angled at 15 degrees, like cylinders in a high-end motor racing engine. The audacious look outside matches the revolutionary movement inside. The beveled sapphire crystal, manufactured in 3-D, curves down to join the sides of the case. The small second hand is at 4:30. The folding-buckle bracelet is in stylish alligator. The overall design is inspired by the iconic Monaco, the world's first automatic chronograph with microrotor, created in 1969 and still ahead of its time.