Roger Dubuis Revisits Its First-Ever Watch With The Excalibur Biretrograde Calendar At Watches & Wonders

Since its inception in 1995, Roger Dubuis has pursued a singular ambition: to craft timepieces unlike any other. Co-founded by visionary watchmaker Roger Dubuis and designer Carlos Dias, the Geneva-based Maison has spent three decades blending mechanical ingenuity with bold expressivity. As it celebrates its 30th anniversary in 2025, Roger Dubuis unveils the Excalibur Biretrograde Calendar at Watches & Wonders Geneva—a creation that echoes the spirit of its very first watch while reimagining it for today. This refined timepiece, adorned with a biretrograde display, heritage materials, and the prestigious Poinçon de Genève certification, is a bridge between past and future, honoring a legacy that remains vibrantly alive.

Dubuis was no ordinary watchmaker. His passion for complications was matched by a desire to infuse them with feeling—a trait epitomized by the biretrograde display, one of his most cherished innovations. In the late 1980s, alongside Jean-Marc Wiederrecht, he refined and patented this system, debuting it in the Maison’s inaugural 1995 timepiece paired with a chronograph. The biretrograde—a complex symphony of cams, rakes, clicks, and springs—allows hands to sweep gracefully along semi-circular scales, snapping back to zero at cycle’s end. In the Excalibur Biretrograde Calendar, this mechanism tracks day and date with skeletonized hands, their elegant arcs a testament to Dubuis’ love for showcasing mechanics as art. It’s a feature that captures both his technical prowess and his emotive soul, making every glance a performance.

At 40mm, the Excalibur Biretrograde Calendar recalls the refined proportions of Roger Dubuis’ 1990s designs, housed in a slimmer 18K pink gold case with a white mother-of-pearl dial. These materials nod to the Maison’s early 2000s audacity, when it pioneered pink gold and mother-of-pearl in men’s watches—a bold move that became a hallmark of its sophisticated yet daring identity. The dial’s iridescence catches the light with theatrical flair, paired with a 3D brown calfskin leather strap and an interchangeable pink gold triple-folding clasp. This blend of elegance and heritage feels both timeless and forward-looking, a fitting tribute to 30 years of innovation.

The Excalibur Biretrograde Calendar wears its history proudly. The biretrograde scales—wide at the edges, narrowing toward the center—mirror the expressive curvature of the 1996 original, lending a dynamic ellipsis to the design. Symmetry reigns, with scales balanced on either side of the dial, a small seconds counter at 6 o’clock aligning with a stamp at 12 o’clock. This stamp, featuring “BIRETROGRADE CALENDAR” in the Maison’s historic font alongside the Geneva Seal emblem, echoes the early 2000s Much More Biretrograde Calendar—a subtle anniversary homage. These classic aesthetic codes, rooted in Roger Dubuis’ foundational years, are reinterpreted with a contemporary edge, proving the past can inspire without constraining.

Powering this creation is the automatic Calibre RD840, offering a 60-hour power reserve. Visible through a sapphire crystal caseback, its oscillating weight pays tribute to the Maison’s first 1996 design, updated with a modern twist. Every one of its components is hand-decorated and polished to meet the exacting standards of the Poinçon de Genève—a certification Roger Dubuis saw as a philosophy, not just a seal. For him, it was about marrying aesthetics and performance, a belief etched into the Excalibur Biretrograde Calendar’s pristine finish. A poignant touch lies in a quote from the co-founders, inscribed in classic handwriting on a ring beneath the glass: “C’est une montre actuelle, inspirée mais pas soumise au passé, qui se projette dans un futur qui nous appartient” (“This is a watch of today, inspired but not restricted to the past, projected into a future that belongs to us”). It’s a mantra that has guided Roger Dubuis for decades.

Specifications:

• Model: Excalibur Biretrograde Calendar
• Caliber: RD840, automatic
• Functions: Hours, minutes, small seconds, biretrograde day and date
• Power Reserve: 60 hours
• Case: 40mm, 18K pink gold
• Dial: White mother-of-pearl
• Strap: 3D brown calfskin leather with interchangeable pink gold triple-folding clasp
• Certification: Poinçon de Genève