Czapek & Cie Faubourg de Cracovie Ocean d'Or Rouge 18K RG Blue Dial PROTOTYPE RARE

This Czapek Faubourg de Cracovie Océan d'Or is the prototype for the rose gold edition, engraved Prototype on its caseback and distinct from the eight numbered examples that followed. A prototype is the brand's working reference, the watch used to resolve case, dial and finishing before series production begins. That makes this piece the physical starting point of the Océan d'Or, a far rarer proposition than the edition itself and one that will appeal to the collector who prizes where a design began. It is powered by the proprietary automatic calibre SXH3, a COSC-certified integrated chronograph with column wheel and vertical clutch, beating at 5Hz and fitted with a date. The 18K 5N rose gold case measures 41.5mm by 41.5mm and 14mm in thickness, its integrated pushers and sloping lugs lending it a fluid, muscular presence. The blue dial carries the hand-guilloché Résonance pattern, traced back to François Czapek himself. The Océan d'Or brought the Faubourg de Cracovie into gold for the first time, and this watch marks the moment that happened.-