Tambour Convergence Guilloché

Tambour Convergence Guilloché

Louis Vuitton moves deeper into the refined world of watchmaking decorative savoir-faire with a new timepiece that celebrates the art of traditional hand-turned guillochage.

Entirely produced, assembled and finished in the Geneva workshops of La Fabrique du Temps Louis Vuitton, the Tambour Convergence Guilloché furthers the House’s use of the wide precious plate characterizing the collection, as a canvas of expression for métiers d’art. It is the third model to be released in the Tambour Convergence collection, exactly one year after the collection’s debut at LVMH Watch Week 2025.

An unconventional expression of time In 2025, the launch of the Tambour Convergence collection established a horological milestone for the House. Its name alludes to the nature of this landmark, marking the first collection to be conceived and crafted in the aesthetic language that unifies the various Geneva ateliers of La Fabrique du Temps Louis Vuitton. Beating within the two launch models of the Tambour Convergence was another exceptional horological première — the Calibre LFT MA01.01, the first self-winding movement to be fully designed and conceived by La Fabrique du Temps Louis Vuitton.

The design of the Tambour Convergence expanded on this thematic exploration of progression and coalescence, incorporating a highly visual and dynamic representation of time. A dragging indication of the hours and minutes is given via two rotating discs, framed by an arched guichet with scalloped edges, and anchored by a sculpted lozenge for an intuitive reading of the time.

Inspiration has also been drawn from Louis Vuitton’s heritage, notably in the shape of the dial guichet, which recalls elements of interior architecture from the Louis Vuitton’s family home in Asnières.

It represents a convergence of past and present, framing the timepiece’s hour and minute display, and illustrating the Louis Vuitton’s simultaneous ability to celebrate tradition while looking to the future.

Conceptually, mechanically and aesthetically, the concept of convergence resonates throughout the collection, finding its latest expression in the Tambour Convergence Guilloché.

A testament to handcrafted excellence

Adorned with two different forms of hand-turned guillochage, the Tambour Convergence Guilloché continues to perpetuate Louis Vuitton’s commitment to expanding its in-house mastery of watchmaking métiers d’art. A rippling halo of concentric waves encircles the upper surface of the rose gold case, imparting a new dimension of tactility to the precious plate. The centre of the watch features an array of undulating rays emanating from the hour and minute guichet, bestowing greater depth and texture to the subtly domed case.

The central guilloché pattern reinforces one of the original tenets of design concerning the shape of the hour and minute guichet, which evoke the gilded edges of clouds pierced through with sunlight. With the metallised periphery of the guichet and the refraction of light at the edges of the sapphire crystal, this effect becomes even more pronounced, and the guilloché rays give a final amplifying touch to this evocative flourish.

The intricacy of guillochage

The guillochage of the Tambour Convergence Guilloché is the result of a painstaking and highly specialised craft recently enriched within the House. At La Fabrique des Arts, where the House gathers expertise in métiers d’art, antique machines from the mid-19th century and early 20th century have been restored — a restoration that took around one year for each machine — in order to create this decorative effect.

On these machines, artisans practise demanding techniques that engage multiple senses simultaneously. Sight guides the guillocheur along the metal’s minutely shifting surface, and constant monitoring is required to ensure the gold is being cut at precisely the right depth. Touch plays a role as well. The subtle vibration transmitted through the lathe gives tactile confirmation that each pattern is forming with the fidelity required of the desired guilloché result.

This nuanced sensory interplay becomes all the more crucial when guillochage is applied to curved surfaces — a challenge the Tambour Convergence Guilloché embraces on multiple levels. Because the rose gold case is subtly domed, the engraving tool must follow a complex three-dimensional contour, and the guillocheur must continuously adjust the pressure and depth of cut to maintain consistent geometry as the surface rises and falls beneath the cutting tool. Any deviation can cause the cuts to drift, breaking the optical harmony of the pattern. It is an undertaking that calls for intense concentration and deep familiarity with both material and machine, qualities cultivated and refined within the workshops of La Fabrique des Arts.

The harmony of expression

To achieve the dual patterns of this watch, two distinct manually operated lathes are required. One rose engine from 1850, fitted with traditional rosettes, generates the concentric waves along the perimeter, each pass producing the soft, clean lines characteristic of classical guillochage.

The second machine, a straight-line engine from 1935 is dedicated to linear motifs such as the pattern at the heart of the watch. For this, La Fabrique des Arts developed a bespoke cam to produce the smoothly rising and falling topography of the rays. More than twenty trials were executed over a six-month development period before the final orchestration of lines and light met the exigent standards of the Louis Vuitton artisans, but also the design expectations of Matthieu Hegi, the Artistic Director of La Fabrique du Temps Louis Vuitton.

Achieving a harmonious pairing between the two techniques required months of iteration and refinement. Furthermore, the depth of engraving on the Tambour Convergence Guilloché is nearly three times that of conventional dial guillochage.

Because the final hand-polishing on the plate is done after the hand-guilloché is executed, the guillocheur engraves deeper to ensure that the lines remain sharp and clearly defined, resulting in greater contrast and overall textural richness.

Approximately sixteen hours of engraving are required for a single Tambour Convergence Guilloché, a span during which the guillocheur must maintain a high level of performance and unrelenting focus. The decorative vocabulary of the watch emerges from the gold itself. Waves, rays, and reflective planes materialise through experience and centuries-old knowledge.

By the time the final segment is cut, the case has become more than a surface for ornamentation; it has become a testament to the House’s devotion to bringing métiers d’art fully into the fold of its contemporary watchmaking vision.

The elegance of form

Precision and equilibrium define both the exterior and the interior of the Tambour Convergence Guilloché, which houses the self-winding cal. LFT MA01.01. This manufacture movement delivers robust chronometric performance thanks to a 4Hz (28,800 vph) free-sprung balance fitted with variable inertia blocks.

Its 45-hour power reserve is continually replenished by the 18k rose gold rotor, the weight and geometry of which were optimised to ensure optimal winding under daily wear.

Sandblasted movement bridges with micro-sandblasted edges, to the V-notched periphery of the rose gold rotor and polished chamfers form a refined counterpoint to the ornamental splendour of the guilloché exterior.

The movement jewels, transparent instead of traditional ruby red, provide a contemporary signature of La Fabrique du Temps Louis Vuitton. Beyond reimagining even the smallest details, they also echo the design language introduced with the LFT023 caliber of the Escale and Tambour collection, creating a subtle yet meaningful continuity across the House’s movements.

Surrounding this mechanical core is the distinctive Tambour Convergence case, a refined evolution of Louis Vuitton’s emblematic silhouette, with a discreet 37mm diameter and 8mm height. Delicately cambered sides taper gently towards a natural inflexion point, allowing the watch to sit discreetly low on the wrist and enhancing the impression of slimness. Redesigned lugs set the Tambour Convergence line apart from the current Tambour collection: harmonious, architectural, and visually concise, they balance polished surfaces with hollowed, micro-sandblasted lateral exterior surfaces that amplify the interplay of light across the case. 

Convergence of savoir-faire and modernity

The Tambour Convergence Guilloché embodies the spirit of continual evolution that drives Louis Vuitton’s watchmaking ethos. It is an object shaped by heritage yet defined by innovation, bringing together métiers d’art, modern engineering, and a distinctive aesthetic language born within the Geneva ateliers of La Fabrique du Temps Louis Vuitton.

As the House advances its mastery of decorative crafts and strengthens its capabilities as a full-fledged manufacture, the Tambour Convergence Guilloché stands as both a testament and a promise. It stands as a creation that captures a moment of artistic intersection today, while looking towards the future of Louis Vuitton’s horological journey.