Artle - DB27 Titan Hawk V2 Limited to 20 pieces

DETAILS

Since its foundation in 2002, De Bethune has set the bar very high. Initially, De Bethune created its own version of classic designs, but quickly switched to an alternative high-tech style. What is particularly valuable and pleasing for experts and collectors is that all in-house calibers, which the brand began developing immediately after its foundation, were manufactured in the corresponding high-tech style. The DB27 Titan Hawk automatic watch, which has no complications but only hours, minutes and a large central date hand, was launched by De Bethune in 2012 to celebrate its 10th anniversary.

The DB27 Titan Hawk, originally positioned as the first offering in the collection, has nevertheless not become an overly cheap product. It retains the key features of De Bethune's high-quality watchmaking, including the 43mm titanium case with spring-loaded floating lugs as on the other models of De Bethune's collection and the in-house caliber S233 with snailed mainplate, hand-chamfered steel parts, the brand's signature triple pare-chute shock-absorbing system of the balance wheel and a few other features. The only thing that might confuse a discerning connoisseur is a small window in the caseback, through which only the balance can be seen. And also a fragment of the automatic winding rotor that sometimes appears in this window. Could it be that the suspicion was correct and De Bethune had skimped on the high-quality finishing of the movement beyond the blurred view offered by the small window? No, the fate of the DB27 Titan Hawk has not experienced such revelations, as at least the high listings of this watch on the secondary market show – well above the CHF 37,000 retail price announced by the brand in 2012.

REASONS TO BUY

In our opinion, finding a rare version of De Bethune is a real event, considering that any watch from this brand is already a rarity. The DB27 Titan Hawk V2 Qatar Edition 20 exemplifies the identity of the De Bethune collection in general and the DB27 line in particular: It has a thin, elegant 9 mm titanium case with the brand’s signature ‘floating’, spring-loaded lugs that make the watch a real pleasure to wear on the wrist. They wrap confidently yet gently around the wrist, making you reluctant to part with them for even a second. A similar effect is achieved by the fascinating two-tone dial with a blue titanium center zone with fine concentric grooves that create a sunburst effect and stunning openworked hands in the typical DB27 design. This very rare watch is part of a special limited edition of 20 pieces, making it even more desirable.

ABOUT THIS WATCH

The DB27 Titan Hawk, which debuted in 2012, is now referred to as version 1 –V1, while the V2 version was introduced six years later, in 2018. The most noticeable upgrade is that the V1’s partially open caseback has been replaced by a fully transparent exhibition sapphire caseback, revealing the intricately crafted movement and its high-tech details. The new AutoV2 caliber, which replaces the previous S233, features a new titanium balance with white gold inserts, a grooved titanium anchor-shaped rotor and a heavy tungsten alloy segment. All titanium parts of the caliber are blue-coated, a De Bethune specialty.

De Bethune made a further change by removing the large central date hand and adding a central seconds hand. Both are useful on everyday watches, but generally the seconds hand is preferred on De Bethune watches, as in the vast majority of cases they are highly prized collectors' watches worn on special occasions. The dial of the basic design of the DB27 Titan Hawk V2 still bears a reference to the large date hand of the V1 version – a raised detail in the form of an extremely broad arrowhead, a typical motif of the De Bethune design code. This is a feature of the basic design of the DB27 Titan Hawk V2, while some extremely rare models have a simple dial without this relief decoration.

This DB27 Titan Hawk V2 Qatar Edition 20 features this extremely rare version of the design with a stunningly attractive combination of a two-tone dial, the central part of which is made of blued titanium and decorated only with thin concentric grooves, and the silver chapter ring with Arabic numerals and a grained finish in a domed shape – very much in the spirit of De Bethune. What is unusual and rare and adds spice to this rare design is the complete absence of the De Bethune logo, but this does not prevent this watch from remaining absolutely recognizable. This watch was released in 2024 in a limited edition of just 20 pieces to celebrate De Bethune’s 12-year partnership with Blue Salon, one of Qatar’s leading luxury stores. The color scheme of the dial is repeated in the design of the movement, adding to the appeal of this version of the DB27 Titan Hawk V2.