Short answer
A replica Breguet Classique perpetual calendar with moon phase is a watch built to look like a Breguet Classique reference such as the 5327. The case copies the fluted caseband, the welded lugs, and the silvered guilloche dial. The calendar runs on a simple calendar module. It shows day, date, month, and a moon disc. It does not track 30 and 31 day months or leap years the way a real perpetual calendar does. Prices sit between $150 and $600 for most examples. US law bars import and sale of counterfeit goods, and Customs can seize the watch at the border.
What the genuine watch is
Breguet is a Swiss maker founded in Paris in 1775 by Abraham-Louis Breguet. The brand is part of the Swatch Group. The Classique line uses a thin round case, a fluted caseband, straight welded lugs, and a hand-guilloche dial. The genuine Classique Quantieme Perpetuel 5327 measures 39 mm across in gold and carries a mechanical caliber with a perpetual calendar plate. List prices for gold versions sit in the $70,000 to $90,000 range. The dial shows day, date, month, leap year, and a moon phase window at 6 o'clock.
What the replica copies
- Case size and shape: 39 mm to 40 mm, plated or solid gold finish, fluted band.
- Dial: printed or stamped guilloche pattern, blue steel hands, Breguet numerals.
- Moon phase window at 6 o'clock with a printed disc.
- Caseback engraving with a serial number and a reference number.
- Box, papers, and hang tags printed to match the original packaging.
What the replica does not copy
A real perpetual calendar uses a program wheel or lever set that knows month lengths and adds February 29 in leap years. On a replica the month, date, and moon disc run off a plain calendar plate. The leap year window on many examples is a 24-hour wheel that moves each day and shows the wrong year. Setting the date near midnight can jam the module. Moon phase discs on most replicas use a 59-tooth wheel, so they drift about one day every 2 years and 7 months. A 135-tooth wheel version holds to one day in about 122 years.
Movement reality
Common bases include the Seagull ST19 family, clone ETA 2824 variants, and Chinese copies of the Valjoux 7750 and 7751. A 7751 copy carries day, date, month, and moon phase on one plate. That produces the look of a calendar watch. It is not a perpetual calendar. Most of these movements beat at 28,800 vph. Hand winding feel, rotor finish, and hairspring type differ from the gold-rotor caliber in the genuine piece. Replica cases in gold plate wear through at the lugs and crown after a few years.
Legal status in the United States
Breguet is a registered trademark of Montres Breguet S.A. Under 19 U.S.C. 1526, importing goods that carry a counterfeit mark is prohibited, and Customs and Border Protection can seize and destroy the shipment. Under 18 U.S.C. 2320, trafficking in counterfeit goods carries up to 10 years in prison and a $2,000,000 fine for a first offense by an individual. Resale inside the US is the main enforcement target. A single watch held for personal use can still be seized and destroyed at the border.
Points to check
- Case diameter against the reference. The genuine 5327 is 39 mm.
- Moon phase disc: count teeth through the dial window or on the wheel under the dial.
- Leap year indicator: set it forward four years and see if it returns to the same position.
- Weight in the hand. Gold cases weigh more than plated brass or steel.
- Engraving depth and font on the caseback.
- Hand alignment at 12 and 6, and date change at exactly midnight.