Grail Watch 6: De Bethune DB25 Perpetual Calendar 40mm “Rhapsody In Blue”

Shary Rahman is one of the nicest human beings on the planet, a fact attested to by his many friends. He is also a man of supreme taste, sartorially resplendent in his Terry Haste, Cifonelli and Edward Sexton bespoke suits and with an array of horological finery on his wrist that places him at the very top echelon of global collectors. He is the owner of a very special 40mm DB25 Starry Sky in platinum. He explained, “Mo Coppoletta [the acclaimed tattoo artist] showed me his De Bethune DB28 pièce unique and I was immediately smitten with the brand. The horological language was so distinct. It is like when you hear music created by a true genius and the voice is so original, distinct and pure.

“When I was in Geneva during Watches and Wonders, I went to visit Pierre Jacques and asked to commission a DB25 Starry Sky. At the time, the watch was made primarily in the 44mm diameter. As it happened, he showed me a few examples and one was a considerably smaller 40mm version with a platinum gem-set case that they had created for a female client. I tried it on and the size was perfect. I asked if my watch could be made in this size and after he briefly consulted with Denis, he agreed. When I received this watch, I was just amazed at its beauty and fell totally in love with its size and proportions. Then during the COVID pandemic, we found ourselves in a Clubhouse chat on De Bethune with Pierre Jacques and Jörg Hysek Jr.”

While it seems like a distant memory now, during the initial lockdowns perpetuated by the global COVID pandemic, we were all desperate to connect with other human beings. Those of us in the watch community, in particular, yearned to speak with our friends from around the world. As such, at Revolution, we decided to start a series of group chats on the Clubhouse platform. I knew that, without a doubt, I wanted one of my first topics to be on “De Bethune — The Next Big Thing.” I strongly felt that this extraordinary brand capable of such dizzying feats of horological prowess had been flying under the radar for so many years. But finally, as the world grew re-enchanted with independent watchmaking and new collectors had time to read in-depth articles about real watchmaking, I felt that the world was poised to embrace De Bethune in a big way. During these Clubhouse chats, myself, Rahman, Coppoletta and Austen Chu, founder of Wristcheck.com, all professed our love for the brand. While many of us were focused on the DB28, at some point, the subject turned to the DB25.