SJX Watches
Chanel Introduces the J12 Paradoxe
Having given the J12 a thorough revamp last year, Chanel has just dropped the most astonishing iteration of its signature watch in the lead-up to Baselworld 2020 – the J12 Paradoxe. Conceived to mark the 20th anniversary of the iconic watch, the J12 Paradoxe looks like a digitally doctored timepiece at first glance. In fact, the stock images of the watch would pass for an abstract J12 ad. But J12 Paradoxe is actually two-tone – two thirds of the case in white ceramic and the remainder in black ceramic. Rely on the same concept but more valuable materials, Chanel is also rolling out the uber-extravagant J12 Paradoxe Diamonds combining black ceramic, white gold, and diamonds. While ceramic is about four times harder than steel, the hardness makes it brittle and delicate to machine, making a ceramic watch case slightly more challenging to fabricate than the same in steel. Produced by G&F; Chatelain, the buckle and case-maker owned by Chanel, the case is essentially two sections of ceramic anchored to an inner steel frame. Each section is secured to the frame with two screws, which are visible on the back of the watch. And the movement is also contained with the frame. Because of the multi-part construction of the case, the water resistance is 50 m, instead of the 200 m of the standard J12 that has a single-piece ceramic case. The dial and bezel insert continue the colours of the case, but each component is a single piece that’s been treated to create a two-colour fini...
