It’s not often you will find a high quality diamond in a sub 5k watch, however, Backes & Strauss have done it for the Regent Black Knight.

The Regent collection has been around for a number of years in various designs and sizes, but the Black Knight 4047 in this colourway of blue and rose gold, in a polished black PVD case, is a brand new exclusive release for About Timepieces and it does feature the brand’s signature “Jewel in the Crown”.

Whilst the case and dial design are somewhat familiar to other versions, Backes & Strauss Brand Director, Levon Knadjian, explains the inspiration behind this “Black Knight” version of the Regent 4047.

The Backes & Strauss Regent Black Knight is a unique timepiece that merges Regence-era elegance with modern design. Inspired by London’s regency architecture and timeless sophistication, its sleek black PVD-coated oval case reflects the harmonious circular symmetry of John Nash’s Regent Street. The blue dial, adorned with hand-polished rose gold Arabic numerals, demonstrates understated luxury and exceptional craftsmanship.

A standout detail is the Round Brilliant Ideal Cut diamond set into the crown, a nod to Backes & Strauss’ legacy as the world’s oldest diamond company. With its black leather strap and precision Swiss movement, the Regent Black Knight seamlessly combines historical charm with contemporary style, making it a true highlight of the Regent collection.

Backes & Strauss Regent Black Knight 4047 Unique Piece

Face & case

Presented in a highly polished black PVD coated, stainless steel case, which is an oval (40 x 47mm) and features a relatively large bezel (at around 5mm wide).  The bezel acts as a frame to the multi-layered dial, which sits under a concave sapphire crystal.

The main dial background colour is blue; in dull lights it appears to be a flat, royal blue, whilst under different lights it changes quite considerably.  Not only the colour of blue shifts depending on how the light hits it, but the brightness also changes.  This is due to the alternating areas of horizontal and vertical guilloche patterns at the hour marker locations, as well as the flat areas around and in the centre of the dial, which have a contrasting, shiny finish to them.

Further contrast is provided by the applied indices, which are polished rose gold.  12, 3, 6 and 9 o’clock are Arabic numerals, whilst the remaining between are straight Roman style “1” markers.

Moving inwards, there is a ring inside the hour markers which acts as a central small seconds indicator.  This is printed onto the dial in a rose gold colour and has 12 mini four sided pyramid markers which have been applied at 5 second intervals, separated by thin black second markings.  Inside this ring, at the top half you will see “Backes & Strauss” printed in white, with the word “London” at the bottom half.

There is a date window between the 4 and 5 o’clock markings, which features black numbers on a white disc.  The window also has an applied polished rose gold trim to the aperture.

Astonishingly, you may be surprised to learn that over 125 processes were used whilst creating this dial.

The hands are sword shaped, with a polished rose gold frame and filled with lume for ease of reading under dull lighting conditions.  The seconds hand is short, whose end finishes inline with the inner seconds indication ring.

Looking at the watch from its side, a prominent concave shape to the case is apparent; the tear drop shaped lugs appear longer from the sides than they do from the front.

The crown is dainty, with tight ridges for grip.  It is an angled shape, from wide to narrow at its end, where the brand’s signature “Jewel in the Crown” (a 0.09 carat ideal cut diamond) sits in the end of the crown.

Turning the watch over, the polished finish is replaced by a vertical brushed finish to the case back and underside of the lugs.  The closed case back is screwed down with tiny screws in recessed holes at the four corners and light engravings can be seen on the case back, with brand name and logo, model number, Black Knight, Regent and case number – whilst this is a unique piece, the number you can see in the image (022/100) represents the case number in the series.

Backes & Strauss Regent Black Knight 4047 Unique Piece Case Back

Movement

A highly reliable automatic Swiss Sellita Calibre SW200 provides power (the movement has been enhanced by Franck Muller, specifically with a platinum rotor) .  It features 26 jewels, beats at 28,200 bph (4Hz), provides hours, minutes and date and should allow for around 38 hours power reserve once fully wound.

Backes & Strauss Regent Black Knight 4047 Unique Piece Strap & Buckle

Strap

The strap is made from high gloss (patent) black alligator skin, with black stitching and a soft, beige calfskin lining, with the Backes & Strauss logo and ostrich embossed in it.  Unlike many alligator straps, it is very supple and bends to fasten easily.  It is fastened with a polished black coated pin buckle; the main clasp being oversized and also featuring the brand’s logo and emblem, which is delicately engraved on it.

Backes & Strauss Regent Black Knight 4047 Unique Piece Side & Crown

Other Stuff

One of our previous articles on the Piccadilly Earl of Strauss covered a little on the brand’s extensive heritage, which dates back over 200 years and of course the title of the world’s oldest diamond company.

Whilst their watches are all now made in Switzerland, there is a long connection with London, whose city name is still stamped on their dials; this is due to the fact that in 1814 Backes & Strauss opened one of their first local branch office in Hatton Garden, London.  If you look closer at the names of their collections, you will notice that many of them are named after architecturally significant locations in London, such as Piccadilly, Berkeley, Mayfair and of course, Regent.

There have also been various collaborations between the brand and British Royalty, hence some other watch names linked to London and the British Royal Family, such as Queen of Hearts, Princess, Prince, King and Diamond Jubilee.

Backes & Strauss Regent Black Knight 4047 Unique Piece On the Wrist

Our verdict

Pictures of the Regent Black Knight really don’t do it justice – when I first saw the watch, 2 things were immediately apparent; the polish on the black PVD coating is the brightest/most reflective I have ever seen and the blue(s) on the dial were so vibrant.  It’s quite amazing how something in real life can look so much better than a render!

The dial has so many facets to it and if you don’t notice how many things are going on initially, you soon will; from all the polished applied rose gold elements, to the angled lines separating sections of the dial and the multidirectional guilloche patterns.

In hand, the case looks large (and it also feels substantially weighted too), but on the wrist, the size seems to reduce visually, perhaps due to the considerable concave to the case, which actually also provides a great fit to the contour of the wrist.  I think this watch would be well suited as either a dress watch, or it could also probably work as a smart casual piece, perhaps dressing the watch down slightly with a more casual strap material like alcantara, suede or denim(?) and adding some blue stitching might pop too.  It’s all down to the new owner’s personal style though!!

The only negative I really have to mention is a personal one and I don’t like the white date window.  I would have either preferred no date window at all, or that the date disc was colour matched to the blue, maybe with a white font.

Whilst there are other Regents and Black Knights in the Backes & Strauss Collection, this is a unique piece in this particular design configuration and with a price tag of just 3,333 GBP plus taxes (equivalent to just over 4,000 USD), this seems like extraordinary value.  You will definitely not see this watch anywhere else and it’s highly unlikely you will bump into another person wearing a Backes & Strauss if you are based in Europe.

Having spent some time with the CEO and Directors at Backes & Strauss, it is clear that their busiest market for sales is the Far East, however, with the connections to the UK, I am genuinely surprised that they don’t receive more appreciation closer to home.  We may, however, have something special coming soon which may help with that, so watch this space!!

https://www.backesandstrauss.com/

Available to purchase directly from us – this unique piece is available to purchase exclusively through About Timepieces (as of the date of this review) – BUY NOW