1990s Blancpain Villeret Ultra Thin Skeleton

In 1981, Jean-Claude Biver and Jacques Piguet purchased Blancpain and paved the way for a revival that re-established the brand as a powerhouse in traditional Swiss mechanical watch-making. As a direct response to the Quartz Crisis, Biver and Piguet famously centered their efforts around the slogan: "Since 1735 there has never been a quartz Blancpain watch. And there never will be.” Indeed, much of the 11 years of their leadership was spent developing the company’s “Six Masterpieces”, a collection of classically designed watches that focused on discrete sizes and high complications. The move proved to be a massive success and in 1992 Blancpain was sold to the SMH Group (now the Swatch Group) for nearly 3,000 times what the two had originally paid.

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While not the most complex of the Six Masterpieces, the Reference 0021 proves that technical mastery can also lie in extreme thinness. Measuring a hair over 5mm in height, the watch is powered by the legendary Frédéric Piguet Caliber 21, which was originally designed in the 1920s and remains in use today. Despite its minimalist execution, the Blancpain 0021 featured significant diversity across its production run, coming in yellow gold, rose gold, white gold, platinum, and stainless steel cases paired with classic lacquer dials or striking skeletonized variants.

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The watch offered here is one such variant, providing a stunning open-worked view of the ultra thin movement framed by a suspended outer chapter ring. While the level of decoration seen here is typically performed on larger calibers to ensure structural stability, doing so on the Caliber 21 required extreme precision using tiny hand tools under magnification. Due to the high failure rate and intensive work involved, these skeletonized variants were produced in very low volumes and limited to yellow gold and platinum cases. For collectors in search of a time-only dress watch with a touch of flair, this rare skeletonized Blancpain punches well above its weight.