Priced from about $107,000 to roughly $128,000 and housed in exact 38 mm white gold cases kissed by 71 diamonds each, Hermès’ Arceau Jour de Casting turns Bernard Arnault level seriousness into a delightful surprise, letting employee dogs Orson, Amy, and Taco take over métiers d’art dials while Swift calfskin straps, silk scarf ancestry, and six figure watchmaking bravado collide in the most charmingly extravagant way
A Madison Avenue unveiling where humor strolls into haute horlogerie
The setting was peak Hermès, reportedly, with the 706 Madison Avenue flagship in New York glowing like a cathedral of craft as the Time Suspended exhibition drew in collectors expecting reverence. According to guests, the maison revealed three limited Arceau Jour de Casting editions that slip comedy into couture without losing discipline for a second. Each piece keeps the Arceau’s refined geometry, sized at a wrist friendly yet presence making 38 mm, which feels deliberately chosen for elegance rather than flash. Around that, 71 diamonds sit on the white gold case like a soft spotlight on the dial’s star performer. It is the kind of debut that makes you grin and check your bank balance in the same breath.
Hermès is associated with solemn excellence, handbags worth around a small fortune, and a legacy that does not need to try hard, so this playful pivot lands with delicious contrast. The dogs are not fictional mascots but is said to be the real pets of Hermès employees, which gives the story an insider warmth you cannot manufacture. Their first public bow came via the Jour de Casting carré 70 silk scarf from the Spring Summer 2025 collection, and that textile link turns the watches into a continuation of house lore. Fashion, after all, is self expression at any altitude, including the six figure kind, and Hermès seems to be reminding us of that.
Under the whimsy is proper horological backbone, the mechanical self winding Hermès H1912 movement, a manufacture caliber that signals the brand is not here to play only on the surface. The asymmetrical Arceau lugs and smooth case profile frame the dial like a gallery wall, letting métiers d’art take the spotlight without clutter. Hermès is reportedly betting that today’s collector wants narrative and legitimacy fused together, not separated into different watch boxes. The result is a serious watch that smiles, which is rare in a market that often confuses stiffness for sophistication. With only 60 pieces total across the trio, scarcity is baked in, and the chase has already begun.
Three canine muses, three métiers d’art worlds, one irresistible trio
Orson is the quiet sophisticate, and his dial proves understatement can be the most expensive trick of all. Crafted entirely in wood marquetry, his black and white coat is built from eight different types of wood, each cut and fitted like a tiny parquet masterpiece. The muzzle, eyes, nose, and tongue are hand painted, adding life to the portrait in a way that makes the dog feel present rather than printed. A genuine leather bone rests against a sky blue background, a cheeky detail that still reads as luxury because of the labor behind it. Limited to just 12 pieces, Orson arrives with a noir Swift calfskin strap and a price around $117,000, which feels perfectly on brand for someone who never raises his voice.
Amy is the extrovert, and her dial practically struts. Her portrait is a spectacle of textured brushstrokes, using miniature painting to create depth in fur, light in the eyes, and a sense of movement frozen mid pose. Those vivid sunglasses are unapologetically fashion forward, turning the dial into a tiny runway moment. She wears a stylish collar, her bone is always near, and the palette radiates confidence without tipping into chaos. Amy is reportedly limited to 24 pieces and priced at about $107,000, which makes her the “entry point” of the trio, if you can call anything here an entry. Does any collector really believe they will stop at one?
Taco, last but far from least, is the technical showpiece wrapped in sweetness. His dial blends miniature painting, leather, and cloisonné enamel, where delicate gold wires outline cells that hold enamel pigments with jewel like precision. The cloisonné work gives the fur relief and the collar dimensional depth, producing a surface that changes character as light shifts. Taco’s laughing eyes and open expression add a hit of joy that feels almost subversive at this price tier. Paired with a Bleu Jean Swift calfskin strap, he is priced roughly at $128,000 and limited to 24 pieces, a combination that will keep him scarce and highly fought over. If Orson is calm and Amy is bold, Taco is the one you buy when you want mastery hiding inside a grin.
Why six figure whimsy may be the sharpest collector play right now
There is an audacious pleasure in paying $100,000 plus for watchmaking that dares to be adorable, and Hermès knows exactly what it is doing. Each edition uses a distinct métiers d’art discipline, effectively turning the trio into a portable exhibition of craft rather than a simple novelty set. The diamonds and white gold framing make it clear these are not jokes dressed up as luxury, but luxury dressed up as jokes. Collectors who care about technique will see the marquetry, miniature painting, and cloisonné enamel as serious signals of skill. And collectors who care about soul will notice the dogs looking back at them like personalities, not patterns.
Scarcity sharpens the appetite, and here it is engineered with classic Hermès restraint. Orson’s run of 12 pieces feels like the inner circle, while Amy and Taco at 24 each are still rarer than many high profile haute horlogerie editions. Across all three, only 60 exist, which makes this tiny pack one of the most elusive Hermès métiers d’art stories in recent memory. According to World Tempus, the line is already being treated as a high collectability moment, and the employee pet provenance gives it a narrative authenticity money normally cannot buy. These watches are not only about how they look, but about who they are. That kind of character based luxury ages well.
Expect the usual choreography next, whispered waitlists, discreet boutique calls, and collectors quietly plotting how to land the specific dog that matches their mood. Hermès has been steadily expanding its watchmaking credibility, and pieces like this tighten the link between the brand’s fashion imagination and its mechanical seriousness. The Arceau collection already had design loyalists, but now it has a chapter that will be remembered because it took a risk and made people feel something. In a few years, seeing one of these at a collector dinner will trigger instant recognition and envy, the sweetest kind. If Hermès keeps threading humor through craftsmanship at this level, playful haute horlogerie might become the next status frontier. And if that happens, which dog do you think will lead the pack?