Roger Dubuis is tipping its hat—or helmet—to 17th-century Japan and the samurai warriors that unified it with its latest avant-garde timepiece.
The Excalibur: The Kabuto Legacy honors the Edo period Tokugawa Shogunate government, which joined several warring states together upon formation and yielded 250 years of prosperity to the island nation. What exactly that historical period has to do with a Swiss luxury watchmaker may not be obvious, but the brand did its due diligence in crafting the design alongside Frederik Cryns, a Kyoto-based professor of Japanese history who consulted on the Emmy-winning FX series, Shōgun.
“Samurai culture produced some of the most extraordinary wearable art in human history,” said Cryns. “That this tradition of master craftsmanship now meets the art of haute horlogerie feels entirely fitting. Both disciplines demand the same uncompromising pursuit of excellence.”
Japan’s samurai commanders, or bushō, were each represented by their individual Kabuto—a ceremonial and protective helmet that served as a statement of their lineage, philosophy, and aspirations. As such, Roger Dubuis has micro-sculpted recreations of Kabuto in 18K pink gold from twelve of history’s most important bushō, each of which takes 2 to 3 days of work.
The circle begins at 12 o’clock with the shōgun (dictator) Tokugawa Ieyasu, one of the leading architects of the unified Japan, whose Kabuto has a fern to exemplify success and longevity. The legendary samurai commanders who fought on behalf of Tokugawa Ieyasu—the Four Heavenly Kings of the Tokugawa—also get a place around the dial.
At 1 o’clock is Honda Tadakatsu, a commander renowned for his loyalty to Tokugawa whose Kabuto features deer antlers as a source of divine protection. At 2 o’clock sits Sakai Tadatsugu, an elder statesman who helped establish the foundations of Tokugawa governance. His Kabuto represents the pinnacle of the craft, with a sword shaped front to symbolize righteousness and the cutting away of evil. Sakakibara Yasumasa’s homage appears at 4 o’clock with a sword-decorated Kabuto that represents strong martial virtue and the samurai’s soul. At 9 o’clock is Ii Naomasa, a diplomatically brilliant commander whose Kabuto symbolizes bravery. Seven more samurai are featured, each depicted by their characteristic Kabuto.
All are set on a 45-mm 18K pink gold case featuring a crown surrounded by a blue enamel ring and secured to a blue calf-skin leather strap, distinctively crafted with stitched tiles to resemble the samurai armor. Tributes to the twelve bushō continue on the caseback, where their twelve crests are laser-engraved on a blue-coated pink gold ring, covered by a sapphire glass to show the rotor of the RD821 automatic movement. Limited to a collection of 28 exclusive pieces that are estimated to retail for as much as $400,000, The Excalibur: The Kabuto Legacy is available upon inquiry through Roger Dubuis’ website.