Purple, as Claude Meylan puts it, isn’t just a color — it’s a signature. The Lady Tortue collection now welcomes new pieces built around that idea: a watch designed to turn a century of convention on its head, with a movement made to be seen, not hidden.
Turning Tradition Inside Out
Historically, the rotor of a self-winding watch was engineered to stay out of sight, tucked behind the dial in the name of understated elegance. The Tortue does the opposite. By reversing the construction of the movement, Claude Meylan brings the oscillating weight to the front of the watch — turning a purely functional mechanism into a piece of kinetic sculpture you can watch move on your own wrist.
The case itself is built on a tonneau, or barrel, shape in 316L stainless steel, its fluid profile shifting between a straight-grained finish on top and a mirror polish along the arched sides. Rather than a traditional dial, the front of the watch opens onto the gear train and oscillating weight directly, with the hours and minutes displayed in an off-centre circle at 12 o’clock. Turn the watch over, and the open case back reveals a pearled mainplate and bridges finished with Côtes de Genève — a 25-jewel movement, adjusted in six positions for accuracy. The watch is water-resistant to 3 ATM.
Three New Arrivals
The new pieces arrive in three distinct tones, each lending the same architecture a different character.
A matte black case and dial on a matching black alligator-textured strap, with the movement picked out in warm gold tones and a single red accent on the hour hand for a sharp, contemporary edge.
A rose gold case paired with a soft, pearl-white dial and a white alligator-textured strap, where the exposed gear train sits against a subtly lustrous backdrop for a warmer, more refined read on the same architecture.
A deep, nocturnal purple — the collection’s signature hue — covers the off-centre display and the crescent-shaped lower plate, paired with a white strap for striking contrast against the jewel-toned mechanics.
Why the Lady Tortue
This is a watch for someone who wants their mechanics on display, not hidden away — a rare architectural complication for collectors drawn to independent watchmaking and design that breaks from convention.
