Double the Excitement: Roger Dubuis Launches Two New Excaliburs at Watches and Wonders 2025

Roger Dubuis' Excalibur timepieces continue to push the frontiers of haute horlogerie with their avant-garde designs and technical prowess. The latest Excalibur models launched at the ongoing Watches and Wonders Geneva 2025 — Excalibur Biretrograde Calendar (Ref. RDDBEX1179) and Excalibur Grande Complication (Ref. RDDBEX1174) — are proof. In fact, these clocks exemplify the brand's dedication to hyper horology. To the watchmaker, hyper horology represents an extreme form of haute horology that blends together skeletonised dials, sharp lines, high-tech materials, tourbillons, minute repeaters, and other complex mechanisms, with skeletonisation taking centre stage. Needless to say, the brand’s Watches and Wonders releases promise all these and more. 

Excalibur Biretrograde Calendar

This 40 mm watch has an 18 ct pink gold case, a notched bezel, and a crown with guards at 3 o'clock. The biretrograde system requires cams, rakes, clicks, and springs, which enable the calendar’s hands to move along the semicircle scales and at the end of their cycle, return immediately to zero. The silver-plated satin brushed white mother-of-pearl dial features a silver-plated double-surface flange, ridged top and opaline slope, with transferred text, and polished and gold-plated hour markers with white SLN in the centre. The dial also has a pink gold outline and texts, and mother-of-pearl inserts at 12 o'clock and 6 o'clock for the second subdial with a pink gold-plated satin brushed calendar display with black transferred texts and black dots.

The hour, minute hands are in pink gold as well, with satin brushed surfaces and SLN in the centre; the retrograde hands are in brass coated with pink gold. There are two biretrograde displays, one at 3 o'clock for the day of the week and the other at 9 o’clock for the date. Powering this watch is Calibre RD840, a self-winding movement with a 60-hour power reserve. The pink gold sapphire crystal caseback has an oscillating weight. The watch is finished on a calf leather strap with a pink gold triple folding buckle, supported by an interchangeable Quick Release system.

Excalibur Grande Complication

Limited to just eight pieces, this 45 mm watch also has an 18 ct pink gold case, a notched bezel, and a crown with guards at 3 o'clock. What’s more, the timepiece comes equipped with a perpetual calendar, a minute repeater, and an automatic tourbillon. Automatic calculations are performed by the automatic calendar for months with 28, 30, or 31 days; it also makes adjustments for leap years with a biretrograde semicircle display. By meeting such necessary and highly elaborate demands, the Excalibur Grande Complication does not require any manual correction until the year 2100 ― and then not again for 100 more years. 

There are two large counters on the dial: 7 o'clock to 10 o'clock has the day of the week counter, while the counter from 1 o'clock to 4 o'clock has the date counter, alongside a month disc between 11 and 12 o’clock and a small leap year indication. The minute repeater complication is built into the calibre. Here, the tritone chime is activated via the pusher on the left-hand side of the case. The information on each cam is mechanically read by the minute repeater’s main feeler-spindle system, which passes it on to the racks enabling the hammers to strike the gongs. 

The tourbillon is positioned between 5 o’clock and 6 o’clock; it is a flying construction. The mirror-polished cage, inspired by the Celtic Cross, is crafted from lightweight, non-magnetic titanium. The dial has a double-surface flange, along with a ridged black top and white polished slope, and a transferred minute track. The polished and gold-plated hour markers are filled with white SLN in the centre. The calendar display, retrograde and disc get a satin brushed black polished rhodium-plated outline, with gold-plated indications and red dots. 

The central hour, minute hands are in pink gold, with satin brushed surfaces and black SLN in the centre; the retrograde hands are in brass coated with pink gold. The oval ellipse retrograde counters have a balance wheel between 9 o’ clock and 3 o’ clock, and a satin sunburst main plate. Powering the watch is Calibre RD118, a self-winding movement with a 60-hour power reserve. Turning the watch showcases the transparent sapphire crystal caseback with oscillating weights for both the counters. The watch is finished on a  premium calf leather strap with a pink gold pin buckle and an interchangeable Quick Release system.