This helmet, initially in electric blue and then in midnight blue from 1972 onwards, features twin windows protected by a visor and enhanced by white stripes whose shape earned the helmet its ‘owl’ nickname. Acting as the driver's signature, the helmet's graphic design remained identical for 30 years: more than the car number, it was this helmet that served to identify the driver.
The Mille Miglia Classic Chronograph JX7 model is packed with symbols and references to Jacky Ickx, starting with this helmet, whose midnight blue colour sets the aesthetic tone on the dial. Punctuated by white markings, this dial guarantees optimum legibility by day or night, thanks to the Super-LumiNova® used for the hour-markers as well as the hours and minutes hands. The date disc displays the days in white numerals. In a nod to Jacky Ickx's six victories in the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the 6 and 24 numbers are distinguished by red markings.
Embellished with a flange bearing a graduated tachymeter scale essential for speed calculations, the dial is topped by a prominent ‘glass box’ sapphire crystal secured by a slender bezel. Widely used from the 1930s to the 1960s, ‘glass box’ crystals of this type offer an obvious aesthetic advantage by endowing the dial with a sense of perspective and emphasising the watch’s nicely balanced overall proportions. More complex to machine than the usual sapphire crystals, they maximise the depth of the dial opening, allowing light to pour in from the top and sides while creating exquisite shimmering reflections playing across the dial.
The watch comes in a special presentation box alongside a miniature reproduction of the legendary accessory that inspired it. As the ultimate signature of the collaboration, the watch's sapphire crystal case-back is adorned with the famous 'owl' helmet and bears the words Time Attack to recall the spirit of competition and performance instilled into the design details of the Mille Miglia Classic Chronograph JX7 model. This term designates a qualifying race in which drivers are timed over several laps to determine their position on a race’s starting grid. It’s a stage that proved decisive for the outcome of a competition, even though Jacky Ickx demonstrated in the course of his career that he was capable of crossing the start line last and the finish line first in a given race.
A watch ‘engine’ with certified precision
The exhibition case-back affords a view of the self-winding chronograph movement, featuring a 54-hour power reserve and precision certified by the Official Swiss Chronometer Testing Institute. In race conditions, competitors will appreciate the movement's 4Hz frequency, stop-second function, tachymeter scale as well as the layout of the three 12-hour, 30-minute and small seconds counters. This model is indeed aimed at drivers seeking to surpass themselves, like the Maison’s legendary Ambassador and six-time winner of Le Mans.
