The Buci Paris Chapter 1 Brick Automatic watch sets out to “poeticize time.” It is limited to 100 numbered pieces and designed to be worn by anyone. Each one comes on a hand-stitched leather strap engraved with a short line about time, such as “When we have time, we have freedom” or “Live in seconds, think in eternity.”, in either french or english. The engraving may be on the inside or outside of the strap, so every piece is a little different. The watch arrives in a book-style case with a booklet of poetry.

The 316L stainless steel case is 38mm across, 46mm lug-to-lug and 11mm thick, with brushed and polished surfaces and a screw-down caseback. A double-domed sapphire crystal with anti-reflective coating sits over a brick-red dial with a textured, paper-like finish, applied indices and a printed logo. The hands are nickel-plated steel with a rounded polish. The vegetable-tanned leather strap comes in brown, camel or black, with quick-release spring bars and an engraved pin buckle.

Inside is the Swiss-made Newton automatic by Soprod, with 23 jewels, a beat rate of 28,800 vibrations per hour and a 44-hour power reserve. It is regulated to within ±7 seconds per day across three positions and has Incabloc shock protection and a rotor finished with rhodium-plated Geneva stripes. It shows hours, minutes and hacking seconds. Water resistance is 3 ATM (30 meters), enough for splashes and everyday wear.