Are you ready to delve into Chinese culture and tradition? Atelier Wen was founded in 2018 by two young Frenchmen who wanted to remove the Stigma of the Chinese watches that were made cheap and bad. The opening collection recorded the essence of the traditional Chinese porcelain, but only to publish the recognized perception did things began to turn into higher equipment for young people. This brand new studio Wen Ancestra or Jiao in traditional Chinese captures the spirit of Hongshan Jade Dragon and mixes it with French clock sensitivity performance to see the classic clothing clock!
The whole idea behind Atelier Wen is to combine the best of traditional Chinese culture and craftsmanship with the attractiveness of mechanical watchmaking. Think of handmade porcelain, hand-turned Guilloché pattern and engraving and so on. While the brand made its debut with Chinese calibers, it now shifts her attention, at least for the mechanics, to Europe. In particular, France, like the new Ancestra, comes with a movement of Pencignet, but more.
The concept of the new Ancestra is a strong break from the rather original perception, at least looks. It still includes traditional Chinese symbols, mythology and craftsmanship and combines them into a much more classic clothing watch profile. The housing is processed from 904l stainless steel, which is stronger and has a more lively shine than conventional 316L steel. It measures a diameter of 38 mm and a height of relatively slim 11.3 mm. The design is pretty fresh, with an interesting, detached LUG construction that is screwed on the fall band. The shape of the housing and lug sections is inspired by the earliest representation of a kite in Chinese culture, the carved jade to Long Dragons. The finishing looks pretty impressive, with a mixture of polished straps and various brushed surfaces.
If you switch to the dial, an incredible number of details are displayed. First and foremost is the hand-hammered fumé dial. The color ranges from light silver in the middle to the deep cobalt on the outer edge. The defamed texture is covered by several layers of Grand Feu -aille, which was created by the Lingjun workshop of Kong, one of the most revered enamel studies of China. Each dial should take up to 20 days with a failure rate of 50% from start to finish, so it is anything but a simple process! All the more praise to Atelier Wen and the Schmelz workshop for the star result!
To tell the time, the Ancestra uses a pair of rhodium-shaped leaf-shaped hour and minutes of hands with a frozen spine and wide polished slopes. The hour markings are a mixture of diamonds with baguette cowls and Chinese calligraphy symbols. The last sleeping includes a swirling minute track, which is inspired by border designs in traditional Chinese works of art. Atelier Wen mentioned that a Western Arabian alternative layout is available when your Chinese is a touch of Rusty.
As already mentioned, Atelier changes from his Chinese peacocks and Dandong caliber to one from France. The EPM03 caliber supplied by PEQUGNET is adjusted before it is installed in the Ancestra. The automatic time-up movement runs with a rate of 28,800 VPH and has a generous electricity reserve of 65 hours. It is regulated to run within an average deviation of +/- 2 seconds a day, which is very impressive! This means that it is going well in COSC parameters! The three -quarter bridge is decorated with a deeply micro -protected Chinese manuscript called the sky. The 5N rotor with rose gold uses an efficient pellatone wrap system and repeats the decorative margin design found on the dial. The last sleeping includes a mirror-polished ratchet wheel and a balance bridge.
The ancestra comes on a taup-colored granular calf leather leather strap with a handmade and polished needle buckle. It is not limited to a certain number of itself, but from now on you only have 7 days to provide your order, with deliveries for the second quarter of 2026 planned. Further variations will surely follow, but for the time being this is introduced at a price of USD 5,850 Without VAT. This makes it quite more expensive than the Odyssey of the porcelain and the perception, but you definitely get more than consideration!
I have to say that I was already a fan of the perception collection because it offers something fresh and original. It is a bold but worthwhile step to move from traditional western design codes and to embrace the old Chinese symbolism and craftsmanship. Atelier Wen has directed a new light on Chinese culture and tradition with his precious collections and continues to do so on a new and higher level with the Ancestra or Jiao. And for that I greet you!
For more information, see Atelierwen.com.
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