Introducing The Czapek Antarctique Mount Erebus In Both Rose And Yellow Gold
After it debuted in 2020, the Antarctique quickly became Czapek’s best-selling watch. And what do you do as a brand when one of your watches becomes a success? That’s right; you make different versions of it. However, that’s easier said than done. There’s a serious risk that a not-so-successful version will harm the good image of the original. In the case of Czapek and its Antarctique, though, it seems like every new version is actually improving the image of both the collection and the brand itself. With this new Antarctique Mount Erebus Deep Blue in both rose and yellow gold, that certainly won’t change.
For a while, the Czapek Antarctique was only available in stainless steel. That was until almost a year ago when the brand released a version of the watch with a lightweight titanium case and bracelet. This year, instead of losing weight, Czapek’s superstar gains a little — or a lot. Yes, the Antarctique will be available in heavyweight rose and yellow gold for the first time. Let’s take a quick look.
The Czapek Antarctique Mount Erebus
The story of the new Czapek Antarctique Mount Erebus Deep Blue starts on Ross Island. That’s an island south of New Zealand and named after Sir James Clark Ross, its discoverer. On the island, there’s a volcano named Mount Erebus. One of the peculiar things about that volcano is that it releases 80 grams of gold each day through its volcanic gases. That’s also why the lava from this still-active volcano contains gold. Unfortunately, it’s illegal to harvest any gold from the Antarctic (don’t get any ideas!). But using all this as an inspiration for the new full-gold Czapek Antarctique’s name does make a lot of sense.
The new Antarctique Mount Erebus Deep Blue comes in both 5N rose gold and 2N yellow gold versions. Apart from the gold elements on the watches, all of the general specs remain the same. The case still measures 40.5mm in diameter, 10.6mm thick, and 45mm from lug to lug. It shows a radially brushed finish on the top, while a fully polished bezel encircles the sapphire crystal. Of course, the integrated bracelet perfectly matches those finishes with its brushed links and polished connectors. The combination of the full-gold case and quick-release bracelet weighs roughly 200 grams.
A combed blue dial
Czapek has matched both of these gold versions with a deep blue dial. The finishing of it is called “lamé,” a term often used to describe a type of woven or knitted fabric. In the case of this dial, it refers to a highly textured satin finish created using a special kind of comb. This technique was developed in collaboration with Czapek’s dial-manufacturing partner Metalem. It was also used on the very first Antarctique, the limited-edition Terre Adélie Secret Alloy. Back then, the dial was gray, but now it’s a deep blue that matches well with both its rose and yellow gold surroundings.
On the dial, you can find the Antarctique’s eight-faceted indexes and sword hands in matching rose or yellow gold with a luminous filling. At 6 o’clock, we find the large date window, which frames a color-matched date wheel with white numerals in an elegant font.
Not just pretty from the front
The screw-down crown between the case’s skinny crown guards controls the in-house-developed micro-rotor movement inside. The SXH5 caliber runs at a 28,800vph frequency, features 28 jewels, and holds a power reserve of 60 hours. But the best things about it are its industrial architecture and finishing, which are visible through the case back’s sapphire window. This offers a view of the platinum micro-rotor, open-worked gears, sandblasted black bridges with brushed bevels, and hand-beveled concave angles.
I don’t expect you to take these full-gold versions of the Antarctique anywhere near a swimming pool or the sea. If you want to, though, it’s good to know that these watches are water resistant to 120 meters.
Final thoughts
I’m glad that Czapek has kept the design of the Antarctique Mount Erebus Deep Blue quite clean and simple. The rose and yellow gold add enough color and shininess; these watches don’t need any other frills to make them stand out. I’m curious to see what the deep blue dial will look like in person. If I had to choose my favorite now, I’d pick the one with the yellow gold case and bracelet, but maybe that’s simply because I’m not a huge fan of rose gold.
The Czapek Antarctique Mount Erebus Deep Blue is available to pre-order now and will be delivered this year. The rose gold version is a limited edition of 100 pieces and will be available both in stores and online. It costs €55,000 on a bracelet and €32,600 on an integrated rubber strap. Czapek will limit the yellow gold version to 50 pieces, which will only be available online. This version will sell for €56,700 on the bracelet and €33,800 on a rubber strap. For more information, please check Czapek’s official website.
Let me know in the comments below what you think of Czapek’s new Antarctique Mount Erebus Deep Blue!
