Creating the ‘Azur’ – L’Heure Bleue.
A milestone in American watchmaking.
Azur started as an ambition that became a commission: a pocket watch with two spring barrels, a skeletonised back plate, no key winding, and a dial unlike any other.
”My client asked for something unique, elegant, and enduring — not in gold or platinum, but in a metal with character.
My choice was a rare metal named ‘Tantalum’ ”.
Tantalum: the metal of choice
Tantalum is an extraordinary, a shiny, silver grey-blue metal with a high melting point. The metal is highly resistant to chemical attack and has a high electrical capacitance. Its physical properties make it ideal for numerous applications, particularly in the electronics and aerospace industries.
Tantalum was discovered in 1802 by Anders Gustaf Ekeberg. The metal was named after Tantalus from Greek mythology.
Its rare beauty inspired the name Azur, “the blue hour.”
A First: hand made, entirely in the USA.
This watch is the first Tantalum-cased pocket watch ever made in the United States. It is one of the very few fully American-made pocket watches in many decades.
Every element of Azur was designed to honor both tradition and innovation.
The swan icon, inspired by the mystical black swans of my birthplace, Perth, Western Australia.
Walter Truss back plate, inspired by Derek Pratt, with my own flying cocks for the train wheels—a design language I developed years ago.
Double End balance bridge, flame-blued for the first time in history, a rare finish that elevates the movement into sculpture.
Custom screws, hand-made, domed, and flame-blued at the client’s request.
Silver dial, engine-turned, with handcrafted flame-blued steel hands.
Movement architecture in German Silver—main plate, truss, and flying cocks—balancing strength with refinement.
Working sketches and drawings
”Azur is more than a collectable a pocket watch.
It is a hallmark peice: a selection of rare materials, uncompromising craft: an all American made piece of horological history”
David Walter
