Eska Heritage, a vintage chronograph with La Joux-Perret caliber

Last year, Sinicha Knezevic and Christophe Chevreton, two Lyon-based entrepreneurs with a passion for watches, succeeded in their challenge: to revive a venerable Swiss brand with a rich history dating back to its creation in 1918: Eska, which had disappeared in the 1980s. Their first diving watch, the Eska Amphibian 250, inspired by the Amphibian 600 of yesteryear, sold quickly and well, with its 40 mm case, its unidirectional bezel with a reverse movement and its oversized cardinal points sandwich dial, incorporating the brand's historical typography. Now available in the permanent collection with the White Shark and Black Shark versions, the Amphibian 250 also had a limited edition with a red dial, the Red Viper, which is now sold out.

And now? Time for the return of historic chronographs, with a Heritage model featuring a bi-compax dial, inspired by a piece from the 1950s. Its 38 mm steel case with pierced lugs plays on polished and brushed surfaces. The classic round pushers are reminiscent of times gone by, and the wearer is impressively comfortable, especially with the superb rice grain bracelet offered alongside a leather one. The oversized, notched crown is stamped with the house logo. But it's above all the impression of depth on the dial that catches the eye. This is thanks to a clever step dial construction, with two superimposed levels of 0.4 mm enamel highlighting the minutes counter at 3 o'clock and the seconds counter at 9 o'clock.

Another asset of these vintage pieces revisited by Eska: a Swiss La Joux-Perret L113 bi-compax movement with column wheel. Enough to seduce lovers of fine movements… A hand-wound caliber offering a 60-hour power reserve, assembled in Besançon by the watchmakers of Julien Humbert-Droz (Réparalux). Through their sapphire caseback, you can admire a finish specific to ESKA Watches, between Côtes de Genève, circular-grained bridges, screws and a steel-colored column wheel. On the dial side, this revisited piece is offered in two very legible vintage finishes, with a black dial, double black sub-counters, white railways and indexes. Or with a beige dial, with double beige sub-counters, black railways and Old Radium, Old Radium numerals, black Eska inscription. This new edition is limited to 500 pieces this year, including 250 examples for the first delivery scheduled from the end of September. Pre-order from the brand's website until July 12th for €1,950, and the final price will be €2,490.