Author Archives: Daniel Goh

Lange celebrates the 30th anniversary of the LANGE 1 in 2024 with two limited edition collections

From left: The LANGE 1 and LITTLE LANGE 1 in 950 platinum with black onyx dial

Almost every modern luxury watch brand has a watch collection that is intrinsic to its brand identity. And for A. Lange & Söhne, it is undoubtedly the LANGE 1. The LANGE 1 is one of the few watches in history that can truly be considered an icon of modern watchmaking. The asymmetrical layout of its dial is not just representative of Lange’s brand DNA but it quite literally represents the cornerstone on which the contemporary version of A. Lange & Söhne was built upon. In 1994, when Günter Blümlein and Walter Lange unveiled the rebirth of Glashütte watchmaking, there stood Blümlein next to a giant print of the LANGE 1 Ref. 101.001. Therefore, to celebrate the LANGE 1’s 30th anniversary is to also celebrate 30 years of A. Lange & Söhne’s new era.

The LANGE 1 (left-most) was present ever since the brand relaunched in 1994 after the reunification of Germany

In an interview that Blümlein did with the famed author of watch books, Gisbert Brunner, in 1994, he said: “The 1994 A. Lange & Söhne wristwatches and all upcoming models are anything but epigones of watchmaking legends.” This was the mindset of the brand ever since it was revived. Creating watches that follow the attention to detail and craftsmanship of traditional watchmaking only in spirit. Everything else had to be befitting of the times. The LANGE 1 was a great example of this, as its now iconic asymmetrical design was practically unheard of back in the 1990s and represented a great risk, especially for a first collection. Back then, watchmaking in Germany, more specifically in Glashütte, was nowhere near what it is today with sometimes multiple manufactures lining the same street in this small town. And for a German brand to try and penetrate the upper echelons of watchmaking, a realm mostly conquered by the Swiss back then, they definitely received their fair share of scepticism and criticism.

A. Lange & Söhne, however, were confident of what they had with the LANGE 1 because, despite the irregular positions of its dial elements, they had put a considerable amount of thought into its design. According to Alp Sever of Langepedia, Helmut Geyer, Annegret Fleischer, and Kurt Klaus, the team behind the LANGE 1 along with Blümlein spent years perfecting the proportions. “Once they arrived at the asymmetric layout, countless hours were dedicated to refining the placement of each indication, rotating and adjusting until they achieved the design that is now widely regarded as an icon.” Interestingly, when you overlay a grid of golden-ratio guidelines over the LANGE 1’s dial, each component falls at intersecting or important points of this mathematical ratio that guides the most beautiful occurrences in nature.

From left: The LANGE 1 and LITTLE LANGE 1 in 750 pink gold with a blue dial in 925 silver

In the last 30 years, the design of the LANGE 1 has barely changed, even when they launched a smaller version with the LITTLE LANGE 1. Its design identity is widely associated with German watchmaking, to the point that there are other brands with Glashütte on the dial that try to create a similar asymmetry to their dials. The design however remains distinctly Lange as there is even an anecdote that the big-date aperture was, in fact, inspired by the five-minute clock that sits in the Semper Opera House in Dresden. The original clock in this building was built by Johann Christian Friedrich Gutkaes with the help of his soon-to-be son-in-law, F. A. Lange.

Today, 30 years after the first LANGE 1, the brand is launching two new references of the LANGE 1 and LITTLE LANGE 1 to mark this momentous milestone. The first reference combines the elegance of a 950 platinum case with the shimmering jet-black nature of Onyx. This marks the first time that this rare gemstone has been used in the LANGE 1 collection. Next comes a version clad in the warm tones of 750 pink gold. For this version, the dial is crafted out of 925 silver in blue, also a rare feat in watchmaking.

Despite both the LANGE 1 and LITTLE LANGE 1 having different case sizes, 38.5mm and 36.8mm respectively, both are still powered by the same Lange manufacture calibre L121.1 movement. This fantastic hand-wound movement offers all the hallmarks of German watchmaking including the use of a three-quarter plate. Additionally, all the intricacies specific to Lange are also present, such as the use of untreated German silver, the screws held in place by gold chatons and blued screws, along with the hand-engraved balance cock. And yes, as per Lange’s practice, each of these movements is also assembled twice. The LANGE 1 references are limited to only 300 watches each while for the LITTLE LANGE 1 each is limited to only 150 pieces worldwide.

“The LANGE 1 is a timepiece that unites everything that distinguishes a refined mechanical watch: originality, timeless elegance and horological precision, down to the last detail,” explains Wilhelm Schmid, A. Lange & Söhne CEO. “When it was launched thirty years ago, it broke the existing design rules and defined its very own style. This innovative force is embodied by our ambition to never stand still.”

Movado Steps Up a Notch with Their Latest Campaign “When I Move You Move”

Movado is back in a big way, announcing a new global campaign: “When I Move You Move”. For those that grew up in the early 2000s, the new campaign will trigger waves of nostalgia with legends like Grammy Award-winning rapper, actor and entrepreneur, Ludacris, and renowned actress and entrepreneur, Jessica Alba, appearing alongside legendary Academy Award-winning actress Julianne Moore, Pro Bowl and All-Pro running back Christian McCaffrey, and All-Star point guard and 2024 Team USA Summer Olympics team member and gold medalist, Tyrese Haliburton, as the new faces of Movado.

Ludacris, Grammy Award-winning rapper, actor and entrepreneur

This is completely in line with Movado’s brand DNA as the word Movado means “always in motion” in Esperanto. Even the name of the new campaign was inspired by Ludacris’ 2003 #1 Billboard and Grammy-nominated song “Stand Up.” In the chorus, the words “When I move you move” are sung as a call to action for people to express their full potential by doing what truly moves them. In the campaign, the talent showcases watches from across the Movado range each of which comes with the highly recognisable sphere at the 12 o’clock reminiscent of Movado’s Museum watch.

“We are proud of our multi-year partnership with this roster of amazing talent across culture and entertainment and to feature them in our 2024-2025 global brand campaign,” said Efraim Grinberg, Chairman and CEO, of Movado Group. “It was important to us that we aligned with individuals that truly represent Movado’s legacy of innovation, commitment to excellence and iconic design. This campaign has an incredible amount of energy and movement that is dynamic and makes you feel connected to Movado.”

Jessica Alba, actress and entrepreneur

Julianne Moore, Academy Award Winning actress

To bring their vision to life, Movado worked with Creative Director Robert Lussier from The Style Council and two globally renowned fashion photographers, Mert Alas & Marcus Piggott. The styling in the photos you see along with the hip-hop-esque campaign video was done by celebrity stylist Mel Ottenberg while the moves were choreographed by movement director Stephen Galloway.

“Over the last year, we’ve embarked on a journey to take our brand to new heights by developing a culturally relevant campaign that moves you – that literally makes you want to get up and move,” said Margot Grinberg, President, of Movado. “Our goal is to be disruptive and stand out – do something unexpected that will make you stop and want to see more from Movado. It will keep our brand top of mind and engage new audiences globally.”

Christian McCaffrey, Pro Bowl and All-Pro running back

Tyrese Haliburton, All-Star point guard and 2024 Team USA Summer Olympics team member and gold medalist

For more information and to see Movado’s new and extensive collection of watches and jewellery please visit Movado.com.

Grand Seiko unveils the secrets behind the ‘Nature of Time’

Grand Seiko brings the beauty of the natural world into Pavilion Kuala Lumpur through a new exhibition called ‘Nature of Time’. This unique showcase was created in partnership with Sincere Fine Watches and will run from 23rd November to 2nd January 2024. As with most projects that Grand Seiko undertakes, the ‘Nature of Time’ exhibition is an immersive experience, delighting all of the senses, and celebrates the harmonious blend of nature, craftsmanship, and innovation.

Starting with the design of the booth, located right outside the Sincere boutique, visitors are immediately transported from the lively and energetic vibe of Pavilion Kuala Lumpur into a plane of serenity and calm, inspired by the beauty of Japan’s forests. Shades and textures of birch trees can be found throughout the installation. At the same time, projection mapping overlays the interplay of shadows as if the light is filtering through an overhead canopy of leaves. Throughout, there are even sounds of a gentle breeze and the rustling of leaves piped in to complete the experience.

The concept of this unique exhibition borrows the ideas implemented by Grand Seiko when they exhibited in the Watches & Wonders show earlier this year in Geneva. And just as all the novelties were present then, the latest watches from the brand are also available in ‘Nature of Time’. This includes the newly launched Evolution 9 dress watch SLGW003 and its redesigned, manual-wind movement that offers one of the most pleasant winding experiences in a mechanical watch. Additionally, two of the brands elusive Kodo Constant-Force Tourbillons will also be showcased at the venue giving fans of watchmaking a chance to view the watch and all its mechanical prowess.

A live demonstration of the 9R Spring Drive calibre assembly by a Grand Seiko master watchmaker, Mr. Junya Kamijo.

Mr. Kiyotaka Sakai, the designer of the Evolution 9 style, shared about his inspiration and creative journey.

Ida Idris-Low, Managing Director of Grand Seiko Asia-Pacific, expressed, “This event is a testament to Grand Seiko’s commitment to both our heritage and our future. The ‘Nature of Time’ exhibition celebrates our passion for craftsmanship and precision, inviting our guests to experience the brand’s spirit through nature’s beauty and horological excellence. We are thrilled to share these iconic pieces and engage our guests in an experience that brings our brand’s spirit to life.”

Ong Ban, CEO of Sincere Watch Limited added, “Partnering with Grand Seiko for the ‘Nature of Time’ exhibition allows us to showcase the exceptional artistry and precision of Japanese watchmaking craftsmanship, or ‘Shokunin.’ Grand Seiko’s ability to seamlessly blend traditional techniques with cutting-edge innovation is truly inspiring. This exhibition offers our clients and watch enthusiasts an exclusive opportunity to experience the brand’s distinctive approach to horology. We are honoured to play an integral role in this remarkable collaboration, reinforcing our position as Asia’s Premier Watch Specialist.”

In addition to the visual and auditory stimulation at ‘Nature of Time’, a third partnership with the one-Michelin-star, Kyoto-based, kaiseki restaurant – Kinobu – will see them offer a special teaser tasting menu to guests before the Malaysian extension of the brand opens in the months to come. Fresh, seasonal ingredients will be flown in from Japan to celebrate the same dedication to perfection and harmony that defines Japanese watchmaking.

A sample of the menu offered by the Kinobu partnership

IWC’s Portugieser Eternal Calendar finally finds a solution to the perpetual calendar

Throughout history, humankind has always sought to keep time. It began with curious glances at the sun, moon and stars in the sky which turned into observations of the lunar and solar cycles. Then, as the broader notion of time was quantified into calendars, they looked at more minuscule values, breaking down and counting hours, minutes, seconds, and fractions of seconds. Today we have come to a point in civilization where timekeeping is so commonplace that we take it for granted. The people who once watched the shadows of the sundial in excitement as the hours passed have been replaced by us, who lazily glance at a digital screen to get the time. So advanced, in fact, is our civilisation that now, we have the luxury of investing instead in traditional technology for the sake of preserving culture.

The perpetual calendar within a mechanical wristwatch is a beacon of such luxury. Even though we have mastered the tracking of the Gregorian calendar with digital means, there are watchmakers who have continued picking at the gear trains of movements in the hopes of making a perpetual calendar that is truly perpetual. And it seems that those watchmakers reside in IWC Schaffhausen. This is a story about the Eternal Calendar, a secular perpetual calendar mechanism that has finally solved the peculiarities of the Gregorian calendar, theoretically being able to keep the date for ‘eternity’ and also promises to keep an accurate record of the moon phases for the next 45 million years.

LEAP OF FAITH

To understand why this problem exists in the first place, one need only look to the stars for answers. The simple explanation of a ‘year’ as most people on the planet recognise, is defined as the time it takes for the earth to make one full rotation around the sun. It is taught in schools as 365.25 days, and this is also why, in the Gregorian calendar system, every four years these quarters are added together to form an extra day on February 29. This is the leap day added every four years to what is known as a leap year, and this is the problem the perpetual calendar has already solved.

However, scientifically speaking, the exact time that the earth takes to rotate around the sun is not exactly 365.25 days but rather 365.2422 days. And if the leap years are consistently added every four years, it would progressively shift the calendar out of sync as the centuries go by. When Pope Gregory XIII instituted the Gregorian calendar system in 1582 it included the leap year exception rule where three leap years every 400 years are removed to accommodate this difference.

This leap year exception rule, where every year divisible by 100 is not a leap year unless it is divisible by 400, is the one that perpetual calendar mechanisms still can’t solve. Thus, despite what the name of the complication suggests, the calendar will still have to be adjusted in 2100, the next instance where the leap year exception rule takes place.

In the same vein, most moonphase functions are also designed with the general rule that a lunar cycle is 29.5 days. In reality, this number is again an approximation of the observed time of 29 days, 12 hours, 44 minutes, and 2.88 seconds. Therefore, with the simplest moon phase indicators working on the 29.5-day cycle, they will start to be inaccurate after a few years of functioning.

This is where IWC steps in. With their new Portugieser Eternal Calendar, they claim to have solved the problem by offering what they are calling a secular perpetual calendar complication that can not only keep track of the leap years but also observe the leap year exception rule resulting in a timekeeping mechanism that will theoretically display the correct date in perpetuity. And their moonphase indicator? They haven’t yet found a perfect solution, but are flexing hard with a mechanism that, they say, will be accurate for the next 45 million years. When the Eternal Calendar was launched, IWC cheekily stated that we would just have to take their word on this but since then, the Double Moon indicator on the watch has been recognised by Guinness World Records as the “most precise lunar phase wristwatch” with a theoretical deviation of just one day in 45,361,055 years.

COMMON DENOMINATOR

Solving this problem digitally is easy as most computers understand fractions and decimal places. And with the proper input instruction, you can get a computer to adhere to any nonconflicting rule like leap years and leap year exceptions. But when it comes to mechanical watchmaking, it is a lot more complex. Instructions have to be relayed in gears, springs and cams, while there is also the constraint of space in a wristwatch. This is why we mentioned at the top of the article that civilisation has to be at a place where excess is possible to devote the resources that luxury companies have to finding a more ‘artistic’ solution to a problem that has already been solved, vis-à-vis the calendar.

Kurt Klaus who celebrates his 90th birthday this year

However, in order to arrive at the Eternal Calendar, IWC had to have some considerable technical expertise in the complication. Their experience with perpetual calendars dates back to the 1980s with Kurt Klaus who incidentally is celebrating his 90th birthday this year. Klaus, was the student of yet another famous name at IWC, Albert Pellaton, of the Pellaton winding movement that is still in use today.

The IWC Da Vinci Perpetual Calendar Ref. 3750 in light yellow gold

In 1985 he pioneered an ingenious new perpetual Calendar movement within the Da Vinci Perpetual Calendar Ref. 3750 which allowed the user for the first time to set all the displays by simply turning the crown. And the genius of this perpetual calendar movement was that he achieved this through 82 individual components. Additionally, he also created a new moonphase indicator that was precise up to 122 years. Klaus’ perpetual calendar movement was also the first to offer a digital year display that could showcase the year until 2499. An interesting fact that IWC states is that that the 100-year numeral of this year display will advance only a mere 1.2mm in a century but a point on the balance wheel would have travelled a distance equivalent to 40 orbits of the Earth in the same time.

This was hardly the start of IWC’s foray into the perpetual calendar complication but it was a significant milestone in terms of the modern watchmaking landscape. The 1980s was the time of quartz technology and it took real gumption and perhaps foresight, both on the part of Klaus and IWC to choose to develop a mechanical calendar complication.

This choice, arguably has bore abundant fruits throughout the years as the perpetual calendar with moonphase indicator exists in some shape or form in the major IWC collections including the Pilot, Portofino and of course the Portugieser. And it has gotten upgrades over the years. In 2003 the perpetual calendar debuted within the Portugieser collection and its moonphase indicator gained accuracy, from needing adjustments once every 122 years to once every 577.5 years.

AGE OF ETERNITY

To say that IWC is excited about the Portugieser Eternal Calendar may be the understatement of the year as it was launched practically the moment the first pieces were fully assembled. Earlier this year at Watches & Wonders Geneva there were literally only two pieces of this watch circulating within their booth. Two pieces to serve thousands of journalists and more than ten thousand retailers, all clamouring to see this marvel that solved what the perpetual calendar complication couldn’t.

So how did they do this? The simple answer is to increase the duration of its calendar cycle. If you think about your average date display or the complete calendar complication it is simple because it is programmed to a 1-month cycle. This means that every month regardless if it’s a 30-, 28- (or 29) or 31-day month the date will always go to the 31st requiring an adjustment 5 times a year for the shorter months. The next step up in complexity is the Annual calendar which was designed in a 12-month cycle for the mechanism to understand the difference between the longer and shorter months.

Then comes the perpetual calendar. For it to understand that every four years a leap day has to be added to the end of February during a leap year it has to be designed to function in a four-year or 48-month cycle. With the same logic, the engineers at IWC solved the problem of the leap year exception rule by extending the programme cycle of the Eternal Calendar to a 400- year or 4,800-month cycle. This means, that inside the newly developed IWC-manufactured 52640 calibre movement, there is a gear that will only make one full rotation in four centuries. This gear contains three indentations which causes the perpetual calendar to skip three leap years over that period which happens next in 2100, 2200 and 2300.

Of course, if you’re going to have a secular perpetual calendar mechanism that theoretically keeps the date for ‘eternity’ the moonphase indicator that is accurate to 122 or 577.5 years simply won’t do. To solve this problem, IWC installed a reduction gear between the base movement and the moon phases disc to get as close as possible to the actual duration of the lunation – the aforementioned 29 days, 12 hours, 44 minutes, and 2.88 seconds. The design of this reduction gear, now this is the interesting bit, was done by engineers using a special computer programme to simulate more than 22 trillion different combinations before settling on this mechanism that they say will be accurate for the next 45 million years.

What is perhaps overshadowed by the 45 million years and the Eternal part of the watch is the details they have afforded on the dial of this Portugieser. They chose to go with a glass dial which is frosted and lacquered on the underside. On top, there are clear subdials and the numerals and characteristic Portugieser minute scale are printed on a white lacquered flange sitting between the glass dial and the front glass. The whole thing gives the watch a sort of dimensionality, revealing only a very inconspicuous clue that when 2100 rolls around, finally, no adjustments will have to be made.

THE END

Theoretically, if the Gregorian calendar system doesn’t change, the Portugieser Eternal Calendar presents a perfect calendar complication that would never run out of sync. However, at present IWC claims the secular perpetual calendar complication will be accurate until at least 3999 because it has not been officially decided if the year 4000 will be a leap year or not.

Assuming the rules stay status quo and, of course, humanity continues to exist, what then is eternity? How long will the calendar of the Eternal Calendar be accurate? These types of questions are too complex for us and perhaps even IWC to answer. So, they sought out, Brian Cox, particle physicist and professor at the University of Manchester, to help out:

“In our current baseline model of the universe, we understand that the universe is not only expanding, but it is expanding at an accelerating rate. If the universe continues to do that, we will reach a point when everything is so far apart from everything else, and the temperature of everything is the same. Technically, we would say that entropy always increases as the universe goes from a highly ordered state to something messier. However, one of the things that we know about a clock is that it is a thermodynamic device. To build a clock, you need a temperature difference. In the far future, we will reach a point when no more temperature differences exist in our universe. I suppose that, then, time will have gone. When we get to the point where nothing happens in our universe – when there are no more temperature differences, and you can’t even build a clock. That, to me, is eternity. It goes on forever, and time will have ceased to have meaning. To give you a rough number: we currently believe that the supermassive black hole in the centre of our galaxy will evaporate in something like 10 to the power of 100 years. That’s one with 100 zeros. So, we are talking about an unbelievable amount of time before that probably will happen.”

So in short, a really freaking long time.

Luminox Celebrates 35 Years Of Heritage In The Realms Of The Air, Land And Sea

For most of the big watch brands that are now part of even bigger watch groups, 35 years may not seem like a big deal, but for relatively new watch companies like Luminox, surviving the harsh landscape that is the horology industry for this amount of time is a definite cause for celebration. And celebrate they have, as this year they launched three new Luminox watches, one for the realms of air, land and sea, each drawing inspiration from a model from the brand’s storied past.

The brand, founded in 1989, was the brainchild of Barry Cohen who built Luminox based on two simple premises, luminescence and readability. Even the name Luminox was created from the Latin words ‘lumi’ which means light and ‘nox’ which means night. Thus, it makes perfect sense then that the signature element of most, if not all of their watches stems from their Luminox Light Technology which basically uses a completely sealed tube filled with tritium gas. This gas promises self-illumination without needing to recharge for at least 25 years.

As you would imagine, with a product built specifically on legibility in the absence of light, the watch would attract the attention of specialised industries. Over the last three and a half decades, Luminox has partnered with numerous military, police and rescue organisations around the world, outfitting their personnel with these reliable and precise timekeepers. For the most part, Luminox has not yet crumbled to the pressures of the modern watch industry, choosing to still power a majority of their watches with quartz movements rather than mechanically driven ones. This makes total sense if, as a brand, robustness is the unique selling point because quartz movements tend to fare a lot better when subjected to all sorts of extreme situations as compared to their mechanical counterparts.

That is not to say that Luminox has not kept up with current watchmaking tastes. In recent years they have started to add mechanical self-winding movements to their collection and even offer in-trend materials like a carbon composite (Carbonox) for their watch cases. Today, they have the full might of a Swiss watchmaking group behind them as well after being fully acquired by the Mondaine group back in 2016. And in case you were wondering, this is the same Mondaine that makes those watches inspired by the recognisable clocks found in Swiss Railway stations.

Sea

To celebrate its 35th anniversary, Luminox revives its Original 3001 Heritage model which is inspired by the very first 3001 from 30 years ago in 1994. For this piece, the design has been tweaked slightly but the biggest change comes in the form of the Carbonox material for the case. What we also liked about this model is the choice of stainless steel for the unidirectional bezel, the signature element of a dive watch. The core reason for this is to aid the reliability of the bezel rotation but as a side effect, the clicks feel extremely satisfying as it rotates. Other subtle touches include the number 30 on the bezel in red to signify the number of years since its origin story.

Air

Taking to the skies, Luminox looks to the Nighthawk model launched in 2007 to create its new F-117 Nighthawk x Skunk Works 6440 Heritage. Fans of military aviation will undoubtedly recognise the Skunk Works logo subtly hidden on the dial. This logo will blend into the black dial during the day but in the absence of light, it glows and comes alive. This is because the original watch was inspired by the F-117 jet which was built as a stealth fighter. Its iconic facets and black colour are reflected perfectly on the watch and because the watch was inspired by the skies, its bezel has a 12-hour scale so the wearer will be able to keep track of a second timezone without the need for additional mechanical complications. Additionally, where the original watch comes with a rubber strap, the new model comes with a strap in Kevlar, the same used on bullet-proof vests.

Land

On land, Luminox offers the RECON Point Man 8820 Heritage which references a model in the same collection from 2011. What is interesting about this piece is the inclusion of a tachymeter but not the kind most watch enthusiasts are familiar with. Where most tachymeters on watches today can be found on chronographs and can be used to measure the speed of motorsport vehicles, the one on this RECON Point Man offers a scale suited to measure walking speed instead. This is perfect for those going on hikes or maybe a long march and want to measure their pace. Although the dial is a little busier on this model, the watch is the largest of the three at 45mm in diameter giving it enough room to still be legible.

Each of these three models is, thankfully, not a limited-edition model but that is no guarantee that they won’t run out at specific Luminox retail outlets. They will each come with the 35th Anniversary insignia inscribed on the back and even a 35th-anniversary challenge coin included as a token of membership to the Luminox community.

Seiko Heralds In the Second Coming of The King with The New King Seiko KS1969

Japanese watchmaking powerhouse Seiko recently took us through the novelties of 2024, leaving us fairly flummoxed as to what watch to feature (there are also embargoes to consider). A standout for us is the Seiko Brand 100th Anniversary King Seiko KS1969, which is the first new iteration to feature something other than the usual round shape. In itself, a watch that is not round from a major producer already counts as big news, even if the appeal might be limited. To backtrack a little, Seiko makes a lot of watches – certainly enough that it knows how to read and respond to the market. That said, the form of the four KS1969 models (SJE109, SJE111, SJE113 and SJE115) is surprising, though not as eye-popping as the return of the Credor Locomotive, but that is a story for another time.

The original King Seiko watch from 1969

Returning to King Seiko then, the KS1969 collection is in what one might call a cushion-shape, or shield-shape; it could even be called tonneau or barrel-shaped. We prefer the shield option, which is what we will use since Seiko does not describe it officially. You will see in the specifications that the diameter is listed at 39.4mm but the real measurement everyone will want is lug-to-lug but that is not given (we estimate it to be in the 45mm range, based on our own casual measurement).

Whatever the case (no pun intended), do note the overwhelming presence of polished surfaces, including the case sides; the bracelet with its 13-link structure goes with alternating brushed and polished surfaces, which you can just about make out here. At 9.9mm thick, the watch can probably manage to fit underneath most sleeves. The water-resistance of 50m signals that this is one of those urban beaters, the kind advertised for the man who needs to seamlessly transition from work to social settings, and perhaps back again.

For dial options, there are three to take note of, and one to seek out if limited editions are your thing. The silver dial option is meant to bring to mind the skyline of Tokyo; the Edo purple is an approximation of a shade of purple popular in the Edo period; and the green dial is of course part of Seiko’s continuing obsession with natural beauty. The fourth dial is in a trendy turquoise shade with a very specific texture that references a dragon. This puts the 700-piece limited edition in the mythic-inspiration category while also making it a late entry into the year of the dragon category (this is Japan-specific but it works with the Chinese zodiac too).

Chanel Embraces Their Couture Roots In An Inventively Unique Watch Collection For 2024

When it comes to Chanel’s watchmaking, they have always tried to differentiate this division from the fashion side of things. In fact, this is a common trend among fashion houses, where they feel the need to distance themselves from the fashion element to establish themselves as serious players in the watchmaking industry. Therefore, you can imagine that it came as quite a surprise when for 2024 Chanel, instead of hiding away their couture heritage decided to use it as inspiration for an entire capsule collection, and exhibit them in the heart of the biggest watchmaking fair, Watches & Wonders Geneva earlier this year. For the fair, Chanel struts down the catwalk with timepieces inspired by elements of fashion design including buttons, pin cushions, couture dummies, thimbles, scissors and much more, in a collection of watches they are naming Couture o’clock.

The Chanel J12 Couture in 33mm and 38mm. Image credit: Photography, Edmund Lee; Styling, Ervin Tan

Chanel Première Ruban Couture Watch. Image credit: Photography, Edmund Lee; Styling, Ervin Tan

Chanel Mademoiselle J12 Couture. Image credit: Photography, Edmund Lee; Styling, Ervin Tan

This is not to say that they have neglected the watchmaking side of things because even though the collection is fun in nature, the mechanisms behind them are still incredibly serious. For example, the hero watch for the year is a J12 timepiece which recreates a scene inspired by Gabrielle Chanel and her couture atelier at rue Cambon. To achieve their intended effect, the Chanel Watchmaking Creation Studio worked with movement makers Kenissi to create the first ever automaton movement, the Calibre 6, to animate the figurine of Mademoiselle Chanel, her scissors and her couture dummy.

In terms of complication, Chanel also made a one-of-a-kind mechanical sculpture that is at once a music box, automaton and clock to evoke the interior of Gabrielle Chanel’s apartment. When activated the couture busts come to life serenaded by the rhythms of “My Woman” by Al Bowlly, a melody that Mademoiselle liked to hum.

Yet another milestone reached this year is the introduction of a movement by the Kenissi manufacture within their ultra-feminine 33mm collection. With the J12 33mm getting its own self-winding movement, the Calibre 12.2, the timepiece becomes so much more than just a fashion accessory. The movement had to be carefully redesigned to fit a smaller case and thankfully all of it is visible through the transparent caseback. The Calibre 12.2 is also equipped with an oscillating weight in the form of a perfect circle. And to show you just how serious Chanel is about their watchmaking, the 33mm J12 is even officially Chronometer certified by the COSC.

In addition to this, Chanel is also bringing a touch of pink to their collection for 2024. The J12 and J12 X-Ray get this accent through the liberal use of baguette-cut pink sapphires strewn across the bezel and on the indices. As for the Boy-Friend Skeleton collection, the skeletonised bridges and plates have been given a pink coating.

Rado’s Mastery of Their Past Paves the Way Forward for Their Future

Through a cursory glance at Rado’s catalogue, it is easy to mistakenly identify it as a relatively new brand. The watches on display are mostly imbued with ceramics, giving it a glossy demeanour signalling to the customer that these are modern, high-tech watches. While the watches of Rado are modern and made through high-technology processes, you would be surprised at just how much heritage can be revealed as soon as you scratch the surface. Well, technically speaking, most of the watches at Rado are near un-scratchable but you get the meaning. Beneath the glossy, ceramic veneer, lies a brand story that spans more than a hundred years, dating back to 1917.

It is surprising, isn’t it? that the story of Rado began that long ago. Put them beside any other watch brand that has been around for the same amount of time, and it is highly likely that their watches will look worlds apart. And this is because, ever since its founding, the brand has had a fascination with innovation. Their tagline sums it up “If we can imagine it, we can make it, and if we can make it, we will!” With such unrestrained creativity, it is no surprise that most of the watches to come out of Rado defy conventional watch shapes to produce avant-garde silhouettes. However, this is not to say that in moving forward, they have discarded their history entirely. In this story, we take a look at the latest addition to the Captain Cook collection which represents a prime example of how Rado’s past continues to guide their present, or as they put it – how their heritage masters their future.

Spirit of Innovation

Although not expressly stated, we think that Rado’s philosophy regarding constant innovation is deeply rooted within its origin story. Unlike most watch brands, Rado didn’t start as a brand. It was founded as the Schlup & Co. watchmaking factory by the brothers Fritz, Ernst and Werner in 1917. In the beginning, they simply converted a part of their parent’s home in Lengnau, Switzerland into an atelier and through their industrious spirit, the trio began to grow their list of clients. By the end of the Second World War, they grew into one of the largest movement manufactures in the world. During this time, they assembled and finished watches primarily for the American market, and mostly for other brands. It wasn’t until the 1950s that they began manufacturing watches under the name Rado.

Establishing the business and growing it to the size that Rado managed, for sure required an innovative mindset. At the time, industrial processes were not as streamlined as it is today and so most likely every watch manufacture had to continuously evolve to create the most efficient processes. This mindset prevailed and when Rado started creating watches under its own brand name in the 1950s, it brought with them the same spirit of continuous improvement. A case in point is the Golden Horse collection in 1957 which brought with it a waterproof case for the first time, improving the usability of the watch. Then, in 1962 they debuted the very first Captain Cook watch which took water resistance to the next level.

It was also around this time that their search for better, more robust and scratch-resistant materials led them to hard metals like those found in the Diastar case. Their foray into the material sciences then continued to evolve throughout the 1980s and by the 1990s they arrived at what many would call, Rado’s signature element, ceramics.

Quest For Hardness

Rado’s foray and subsequent mastering of Ceramics can perhaps be attributed to the continuation of what they managed to achieve with the ultra-hard Diastar back in 1962. The impetus for this collection was to create a case that could not be scratched and today, ceramic is one of the materials that offers an even greater level of hardness. 1,250 Vickers of hardness to be precise and just as a comparison, stainless steel clocks in at about 180 Vickers.

Additionally, ceramic is also chemically inert and biocompatible, which means, the material is hypoallergenic and completely complementary to the human body. In fact, Zirconium oxide (ceramic) was once used to create the femoral cap in hip implants due to these exact properties. This biocompatibility is also perhaps one of the reasons why people often remark that ceramic feels like nothing else to the touch. It has a sort of silkiness that gives the wearer a feeling of extreme comfort on the wrist. Last but not least, ceramic also doesn’t discolour when exposed to ultraviolet light. Meaning that Rado’s ceramic watches will retain their vibrant colours throughout the watch’s entire lifetime.

With that being said, however, it is these fantastic properties of ceramic as a material that also make it incredibly difficult to work with. Especially in the watchmaking industry when production tolerances can sometimes come down to mere micrometres in deviation. Like all ceramics, zirconium oxide also begins as an ultra-fine powder and with its melting point at 2000°C special processes are needed to shape it into watch cases. You can’t melt the ceramic and pour it into moulds because most ceramics melt at temperatures higher than metal.

Achieving their title of “Master of Materials” took more than just a few years of research & development and investment from Rado. Throughout the years, they created and perfected their ceramic-making techniques. Today the Rado manufacture has machines for injection moulding, specialised formulas that can processes that produce ceramics in a wide array of colours, ovens that can sinter ceramics at extremely high temperatures over many hours, and even an oven designed to discharge gas activated by plasma at over 20,000°C.

Cooling Off

The Captain Cook collection is currently one of Rado’s most celebrated models and for good reason. It is bold and rugged, and you’d be hard-pressed to find a watch enthusiast who can pass up a great dive watch. The modern Captain Cook watches we see today were only relaunched relatively recently in 2017. Before that, the watch was discontinued and laid dormant in Rado’s archives for almost 40 years. This fantastic dive watch was first launched during the same year as the Diastar in 1962 and was created to address the growing number of recreational divers thanks to the improvements and widespread acceptance of scuba diving equipment.

As with most dive watches of the past, the Captain Cook watches also had a uni-directional rotating bezel that would help divers keep track of time during their dives. These bezels played such a pivotal role in diving that they soon became the defining characteristics of a dive watch. Of course, this design feature had to be complemented by an equally precise movement and great legibility for it to become a functional tool for divers. Then, in 1968, the Captain Cook was discontinued, and it was surprising that it took Rado nearly 50 years to resurrect this storied collection.

In 2017, inspired by the past, Captain Cook once again hoisted its sails and was re-released, this time for a different type of diver, the desk diver. Today, nearly half a century later, the role of a mechanical dive watch lies in the fulfilment of emotional appeal as opposed to functionality, as digital dive watches can simply do so much more. However, this is not to say that these dive watches are not functional. It is a testament to the luxury watch industry that even if dive watches like this Rado Captain Cook High-Tech Ceramic Skeleton will probably not be worn while diving to extreme depths, it is fully capable of doing so. It still has the unidirectional bezel, a precise mechanical movement to ensure accurate timekeeping, fantastic legibility and most importantly a water resistance of up to 300m.

The Korean actor and singer, Ji Chang-Wook, is a brand ambassador for Rado

This watch is the perfect embodiment of how Rado uses its heritage to master its future. Because even as the watch takes its design from an intrinsic part of Rado’s history, these new Captain Cook watches have been given every update in Rado’s playbook. The most obvious of which is the high-tech ceramic case that bestows the Captain Cook with interesting colours not usually seen on dive watch cases. As with all Rado’s high-tech ceramic cases, this one also has the same scratch-proof properties which make it perfect considering the dive watch was created for more rugged use. The use of ceramic on a dive watch also provides one unexpected bonus, corrosion resistance. Saltwater is extremely harsh on materials and although stainless steel cases fare in the sea just as well, it doesn’t hurt to have this extra bit of assurance that the watch will stay as lovely as the day it came out of the box even with multiple dive excursions beneath the sea.

The first reference for Rado’s Captain Cook novelties for the year comes in a stunning version with a blue high-tech ceramic case for the first time. This blue high-tech ceramic case of the Captain Cook will also be paired with either a blue bezel for the core collection and a red or yellow bezel for the limited edition of 250 pieces worldwide. The version with the blue bezel will offer a matte blue ceramic case while the other two will come with a polished blue ceramic case. This isn’t your grandfather’s dive watch, that’s for sure. Its modern and conspicuous design language was made to suit those who like to make a statement with what they choose to put on their wrist. For instance, instead of a traditional three-link bracelet, Rado has decided to offer these watches with a more dynamic rubber strap, also in blue. And with fashion tipping towards the more casual end, the watch will most likely transition from the workday to a night out without a problem.

For those looking for a Captain Cook with a little more subtle case, there is also a version of the Captain Cook High-Tech Ceramic Skeleton that will be available in an olive green colour. This reference was inspired by the world’s cities that have become a fair bit greener as compared to before. Thus, the green chosen for the watch is in a little bit of a darker hue and is paired with an extremely elegant PVD rose-gold detailing perfect for those ‘diving’ into an urban playground. Additionally, this version of the watch will also come with the signature ceramic three-link bracelet. And as mentioned before, with comfort being one of the benefits of using ceramic materials, this is now even more apparent through the use of a ceramic bracelet as it drapes effortlessly on the wrist of the wearer.

Compounding the complexity of these Captain Cook High-Tech Ceramic models is also the skeletonised movement, the Calibre R808, fully revealed by the transparent dial. This movement is leagues beyond the calibre present in the first Captain Cook from 1962, bringing with it all the advancements in movement technology. The inclusion of a Nivachron™ hairspring within the calibre means that the watch is now resistant to magnetic fields and thanks to updates in the powertrain, the R808 is also capable of a massive 80 hours of power reserve. To ensure that the watch performs with the utmost precision, it has undergone accuracy adjustments in five different positions.

IWC Unveils The First Ever Luminous Ceramic Watch Prototype

IWC Schaffhausen has announced the debut of Ceralume®, a groundbreaking luminous ceramic technology that marks a first in the watchmaking industry. This innovation allows for the creation of fully luminous ceramic watch cases, an achievement realized through a patent-pending process developed by IWC’s engineering division, XPL.

Ceralume® integrates high-grade Super-LumiNova® pigments into ceramic powders, resulting in a material that emits a bright blueish light for over 24 hours. This advancement cements IWC’s position at the forefront of ceramic watch technology, a field where the company has demonstrated expertise for nearly four decades. Just imagining the possibilities for what IWC can do with a material like this is exciting not only for the brand but also for its collectors around the world.

And just as a teaser to hint at possibly what is to come, quite recently, at the previous Monaco Formula 1 Grand Prix, Sir Lewis Hamilton was spotted with a this concept piece on his wrist as he stylishly made his way around the paddocks.

“Creating the first fully luminous ceramic case is a testament to our pioneering spirit and innovative prowess,” said Dr. Lorenz Brunner, IWC’s Department Manager for Research & Innovation. “The development of Ceralume® involved overcoming significant challenges to ensure maximum homogeneity and adherence to our stringent quality standards.”

Breitling’s Limited-Edition Collaboration With Victoria Beckham Combines Elegance And Craftsmanship

This year, Breitling teams up with fashion icon Victoria Beckham to introduce the Chronomat Automatic 36 Victoria Beckham collection, a thrilling new take on one of Breitling’s most versatile timepieces. Limited to just 1,500 pieces, this series encapsulates the best of both worlds, featuring

Beckham’s unmistakable chic signature melded seamlessly with Breitling’s legendary watchmaking prowess. Beckham, now the matriarch of a legitimate empire, shot to fame as a member of the famed, Spice Girls, and subsequently established herself as a major voice in British fashion with her eponymous label. Both commercially and creatively successful, the Victoria Beckham brand represents a sleek, unfussy aesthetic that sits well with Breitling’s approach to watch design.

“It has been wonderful watching Breitling’s craftsmanship and innovation come together with my ideas to create something so elegant and fresh,” Beckham shares, to which Breitling’s CEO Georges Kern agrees. “The Chronomat is already a versatile watch with a classic form. With Victoria Beckham’s signature style, this collection is a modern, radiant expression of that timepiece.”

The collection retains the Chronomat’s well-loved features like the sleek metal rouleaux bracelet and the distinctive rider tabs at the 15-minute mark, while introducing an array of elegant new colourways inspired by Beckham’s Spring/Summer 2024 line. These include sophisticated shades like peppermint, midnight blue, dove grey, and sand, which add a touch of runway glamour to the watch’s robust functionality. With a decent water resistance of 10 bar, this watch is a great candidate for a wellrounded, sturdy and stylish everyday watch. It boasts a nice heft with a case height of 10mm, introducing a muscular element into the watch’s overall feminine appeal.

Each model in the collection boasts refined details that speak to connoisseurs of both fashion and horology—Victoria Beckham’s initials grace the seconds hand, while a discreet VB logo also embellishes the bracelet. Limited edition numbering, with exclusive inscriptions such as “One of 400” for the stainlesssteel models and “One of 100” for the yellow gold variations, has been specially revived by Breitling for this collaboration.

The technical aspects are just as impressive, with the Chronomat Automatic 36 Victoria Beckham powered by Breitling’s Caliber 10. This robust engine ensures a power reserve of approximately 42 hours and, like all Breitling watches, achieves the highly-coveted Contrôle officiel suisse des chronomètres (COSC) certification, confirming its accuracy and reliability. True to the spirit of luxury, each piece comes in a specially designed co-branded box, and the gold versions include an exclusive travel pouch, enhancing the unboxing experience to delightful new levels.

This collaboration is more than just a merging of two brands; it’s a celebration of style, precision, and innovation. The Chronomat Automatic 36 Victoria Beckham is bound to appeal to collectors with a penchant for fashion and style, and a good indication of what can happen when two masters of their crafts unite to create something quite spectacular.

Expedition Hublot – The Fusion in Art of Fusion

In an industry where tradition often takes more precedence over experimentation, Hublot is an outlier. They are proud of the fact their claim to fame began when they started ‘fusing’ unorthodox materials together. Over the decades, Hublot went from combining gold cases with rubber straps to fusing materials at a molecular level resulting in some never before seen within the industry. Today they are the only brand that can offer a watch case made with unscratchable gold, and ceramic and sapphire ones with colours that no other brand has managed to achieve. They are more science lab than a watch manufacture so when Hublot invited me behind the scenes to tour its facilities, how could I refuse?

ART OF FUSION REDUX

The last time I was at the doors of the Hublot manufacture in Nyon, Switzerland was in 2016. I remember it because one, it was the first manufacture I visited as a fresh-faced journalist all those years ago, and two, the building I was standing in front of, had just been inaugurated in late 2015. At the time this was a major indicator of the brand’s success. Because, consider this, it was in 2008 that the LVMH group acquired Hublot and in 2009 it opened the first building which was around 6,000sqm. Then, to need a new building, not even six years later, which, by the way, is 8,000sqm, more than doubling the size of their facilities, if that is not a sign of success, I don’t know what is.

Views of the first and second building of Hublot

At the time, all of this flew over my head, but now, with a little more experience, I realised that the reason for this expansion was the Unico movement. In 2010 they made the manufacture movement, Unico, and with ‘in-house’ being the buzzword it still currently is, it was no wonder that Jean-Claude Biver wanted this expansion to focus on making these movements. I mean, the man’s foresight is practically the reason behind Hublot’s Art of Fusion, not to mention why Blancpain is still around today and why James Bond only wears Omega.

Now in 2024, Hublot have settled nicely into this new building, and as we move through the facilities for the tour, I noticed a large space being cleared right next door. You can guess what is coming next. No, it was not a new neighbour moving in, but rather once again Hublot has outgrown its current setup and is looking toward expansion. Their CEO, Ricardo Guadalupe wants to double down on in-house movements so they are building the third facility, this time with 15,000sqm of space.

This new building for Hublot will not only be focused on their in-house movements but will also bring with it an automated logistics system to transport parts within and between Hublot’s manufacture. Currently, this process is done manually where once a component is done, it is packed into boxes and transported by staff members. To make the process more efficient, an automated system with robotic elements will replace the manual parts of the logistics process. The new building is set to be complete by 2026 and when that happens, Hublot will be loaning their oldest building to the LVMH group.

WHERE THE MAGIC HAPPENS

By and large, when it comes to assembly, the Hublot manufacture is practically like every other one we have seen. Just rows of watchmakers going about their day with their loupes over their eyes, focused looks on their faces, Swiss countryside outside the window, you know the drill. Where Hublot is interesting however is seeing the various contraptions that it uses to machine and cut their cases from. And because Hublot is one of the very few brands that work with such a diverse amount of material, you can imagine the selection of machines in their manufacture.

Where most brands work with stainless steel, some precious metal and maybe titanium within their manufactures, Hublot has a selection of case materials which include the aforementioned along with some other unorthodox options like Magic Gold, the world’s only scratch-resistant gold, ceramics and sapphire. And what do all of these have in common? An extremely high level of hardness.

Hublot Big Bang Unico Pink Sapphire

As you would imagine, this puts an immense strain on their CNC machines which sometimes, as the Hublot representative tells me, have to work throughout the night to complete the workload. The great part of this is that the process can be automated so the employees of Hublot can still keep regular hours while the machines keep milling away. Additionally, because the range of material is so diverse, these machines are also often used to make tools for other machines, it’s all very Matrix-esque. Currently, there are roughly 25 to 30 machines within Hublot’s manufacture and each costs around about a million Swiss francs and have a lifespan of about 10 years. Apparently, it’s not just the watches that take time to make, even these machines have to be ordered sometimes a year in advance.

Hublot Big Bang Unico Orange Ceramic

Next, we move away from the machining of the watch components to the reason why it was imperative for them to have so many different types of machines in the first place, Hublot’s emphasis on material innovation. There is a lab within the Hublot manufacture where mad scientists dream of things like gold that cannot be scratched. With gold being one of the softer metals, to the point it normally has to be made into an alloy before it is remotely useable in jewellery or watchmaking, scratch-proof gold was at some point unthinkable. Hublot however managed this in the form of their proprietary Magic gold. And because they make this material themselves, they can explain exactly how they did it. First, they had to make a tube of boron carbide by compressing the powder at 200 bar and sintering it at about 2,700°C. The control of temperature along with the recipe of the boron carbide powder makes a material that looks smooth but is actually porous. Then, molten gold is injected at high pressures and temperatures so that it fills these minuscule holes like how a sponge soaks up water. The result is gold that is so hard that it can’t be scratched.

The tubes of King Gold before it is milled into Hublot’s cases

It is also in labs like this that Hublot dreams up ways to create ceramics in the most vibrant colours. Traditionally, ceramics can’t be made with these bright colours as the pigments usually burn during the sintering process resulting in dull shades. Hublot on the other hand patented a process that sinters the ceramics in higher pressures but lower temperatures so in the end the colours that emerge are still as brilliant as intended.

Up until now, Hublot is the only brand that has managed to industrialise the process of making sapphire cases. Unlike ceramics that get their colour from pigments, sapphire gets its colour through the addition of trace elements like cobalt and chromium, which are roughly the same principles that give natural diamonds and sapphires a variance in colour. In Hublot, they play god in growing and controlling the exact hue that a sapphire material is formed within their facilities. Interestingly they must make a reasonable amount of sapphire cases for them to even consider making these cases in-house. The way this is done is by heating alumina to a molten state and then introducing a ‘seed’ which is usually a piece of sapphire with the exact monocrystalline structure Hublot wants. As the molten alumina cools, the molecules will automatically mimic this monocrystalline structure giving the material its transparency. Then, tubes are cut out of these sapphire blocks before being fed to the CNC machines to get cut into Hublot’s cases.

Hublot Spirit of Big Bang Sang Bleu Sapphire

Visiting the Hublot manufacture is practically part science lesson and part introduction to machining, but it did leave me with a renewed sense of awe. The brand’s flashy demeanour with its celebrity ambassadors and colourful watches may somewhat detract from the fact that Hublot really is a serious innovator in this space. Perhaps when 2026 rolls around, I will need that reminder once again and I am more than certain that the new 15,000sqm space will scarcely disappoint.

Franck Muller Serves Up A Refreshing Long Island For 2024 and Beyond

The Asian region has long been an important market for Franck Muller. Just how important? We got an inclination when we made our stop at Watchland earlier this year for WPHH. Every year during the Watches & Wonders Geneva week in April, Franck Muller runs an independent fair in tandem, inviting retailers, customers and the media to Genthod, Switzerland where there is a large enough space on the grounds of their manufacture to host a mini-exhibition of their own. There, we were introduced to the most important novelty of the year, for us in the Asia Pacific region at least, the Long Island Evolution.

This new collection, dubbed Long Island Evolution, will be a regional exclusive for the next two years. The Long Island collection was first debuted in 2000 and today it returns with a case construction reimagined by the cofounder of the brand Vartan Simarkes. This new Long Island adds an inner case to the design giving the watch a new level of complexity.

Long Island Evolution Master Jumper

Three complications have been launched with the debut of the Long Island Evolution. The first and of course, most impressive is the new Long Island Evolution Master Jumper which comes with a movement capable of a triple jumping display. This unique take on time indication offers the wearer a jumping hour and minutes along with a jumping date complication. And because it is housed in a rectangular case, the engineers could fit all three display apertures vertically in a straight line.

What Franck Muller collection would be complete without a tourbillon and for this purpose, they chose the biggest one they have, the Giga Tourbillon. At a diameter of 20mm, this thing dominates the lower half of the Long Island Evolution case and creates drama all on its own as it just casually goes about its business of regulating the time.

Last but certainly not least is the most wallet-friendly version of the Long Island Evolution the 7 Days Power Reserve which is pretty self-explanatory. Because of the shape rectangular shape of these watches, however, all three of these watches are equipped with manually wound movements.

Besides the Long Island Evolution collection, another novelty we were surprised by was the Cintrée Curvex Double Retrograde. If you can move past the slightly busier dial, the complication within is actually quite intriguing. It splits the 24-hour day into 12-hour intervals and uses two retrograde displays to help the wearer distinguish between night and day. From 6 am to 6 pm the top half of the display ticks on and as it reaches the end of its tenure it seemingly passes the baton over to the hand on the lower half which then continues the task of indicating time.

Omega celebrates the first human flight to orbit the moon with a new Speedmaster

Despite how large the sun appears in our sky, the moon is the closest celestial body to Earth. And for thousands of years, it has remained a great source of intrigue for all civilisation. One year before man was able to set foot on the moon, however, in 1968, Apollo 8 became the first ever human flight to orbit Earth’s only natural satellite. More than 50 years ago these pioneering astronauts were the first human beings to experience the dark side of the moon and it has been well documented that all of them wore Speedmasters.

To celebrate this milestone for humanity, in 2018 Omega launched the first Speedmaster Dark Side of the Moon Apollo 8 and this year they have updated the watch with even more mooninspired details. The most noticeable of which is the relief of the moon’s surface that you will find on the dial side of this watch. Fantastically, on the back of the movement, Omega has also created a laser-ablated moon relief on the blackened mainplate and bridges. While the dial side represents the view of the moon as seen from Earth, on the back, through the transparent caseback, one will see the other side of the moon.

Interestingly we only ever see one side of the moon even though the moon itself rotates on its own axis. This is due to a phenomenon called tidal locking where the gravitational pull of the Earth adjusts the moon’s spin so that it is in perfect sync with the rotation of Earth. Therefore, it was only when Apollo 8 orbited the moon, that we managed to catch a glimpse of the “far side of the moon” as it is often called.

The other cool feature, and I think most posted on social media, is the fact that instead of a traditional small seconds hand, Omega has managed to swap it out for a tiny little rocket modelled after NASA’s Saturn V. As the seconds tick away, this little rocket spins around on the subdial almost as if it is weightlessly floating in space. This tiny little miniature also has a patent-pending status because it has been engineered from grade 5 titanium, sculpted via a laser turning process and the colours were achieved through white varnish, ablation and laser blackening. Talk about high tech.

As for the case, it is made from black ceramic along with an anodised aluminium dial which is fitting with this whole aerospace theme. Its lightness, at only 99 grams, is also welcomed because even though the movement is a manualwinding Calibre 3869, it still sits quite hefty on the wrist at 13mm high and 44.25mm in diameter.

Leaps And Bounds: The Alluring Green Dial of Blancpain’s Villeret Quantième Perpétuel Ref. 6656

How often do you think about a leap year? The seemingly innocuous phenomenon that happens once every four years, adding a single day to February. For most of the world’s population it is probably just “oh, there is a February 29th this year” as they see the date on the screen of a smartphone, smartwatch or Google calendar. But, for us watch enthusiasts, on the other hand, February 29th is the day when we finally get to see the perpetual calendar complication go to work. The day when your mechanically driven timepiece can intuitively understand that in 2024, February doesn’t end on the 28th and therefore can automatically compensate for the extra day, and subsequently the arrival of March.

Put to a non-watch person, it may seem that all the research and development and investment from the brand side, along with the hefty asking price of a perpetual calendar, to see it in action once every 1,460 days is probably not justified. However, this is the reason you buy a perpetual calendar. Not an annual calendar or a complete calendar, which is comparatively much cheaper. You buy a perpetual calendar so you can set it once, and if continuously powered, will keep the date until 2100 whereby many of us reading this would no longer be alive.

In honour of the year that will see the Perpetual Calendar complication put to good use, for our Spring 2024 issue, we take a closer look at this complication from Blancpain. More specifically the Villeret Quantième Perpétuel Ref. 6656, a model that represents the confluence between the trifecta of complexity, functionality and design. This model from the manufacture is not new per se but for 2024 it has, for the first time, been given a deep green dial inspired by the fir forests of the Vallée de Joux and paired with an elegant red gold case, giving us the perfect opportunity to revisit the perpetual calendar complication, a complicated that many collectors would probably have on their grail list.

THE DIFFERENCE A DAY MAKES

To understand what makes a perpetual calendar so special, one must first go back to the basics of the date function. At its most basic level, the date mechanism simply follows the advance of the hour hand. For every 24 hours that pass, the date wheel is advanced one day forward. If all months had 31 days this complication wouldn’t have a problem because mechanics thrive on repetition (I recommend playing the video game Opus Magnum to better understand what I mean). However, as we know, some months have 30 days while others have 31. If this was the only variable in a calendar, then, still a perpetual calendar wouldn’t be too difficult to make as the mechanism only has to compensate for two variable factors. Adding on yet another layer of complexity is the fact that February has 28 days which makes this month out of the 12 yet another anomaly which has to be mechanically adjusted.

For each layer of ‘rule’ added to a calendar the mechanics inside have to increase exponentially in terms of complexity to comply. For example, the traditional date complication is simple to manufacture because it follows one rule, and the human (wearer) will manually compensate for the discrepancies between the different days of the month. This means that the date wheel will just automatically advance to 31 every month and five times a year this must be manually corrected.

The next layer of complexity is a movement that can discern between the months that have 30 and 31 days and automatically advance the date as such. This is the function of an annual calendar complication. To achieve this, engineers devised a special cam that takes into consideration the pattern of days in the month within a 1-year cycle. But, as the name alludes, the Annual calendar still requires one manual adjustment to the date every year which is in February, regardless of whether it is a leap year. Interestingly enough, even though the perpetual calendar was invented by Thomas Mudge around the 1760s it was only in 1996 that the simpler annual calendar was invented.

For a perpetual calendar to work, the mechanism within the movement has to be capable of not just ‘understanding’ the patterns of 30 and 31 days within a year, it also has to ‘remember’ that February has only 28 days. And the most important of which, is it has to keep track that every four years, during a leap year, there is an extra day on February 29th. Explaining the mechanism to achieve this would probably take more pages than we have for this article so for the sake of brevity, the ‘memory’ of a perpetual calendar can be boiled down to a cleverly designed cam that records the length of months in a four-year cycle. For this Ref. 6656 specifically, the cam is based on an 8-year cycle recording two consecutive leap years, which can clearly be observed on the subdial at 12 o’clock. On paper, it may seem simple enough to add one day to February every four years, but in reality, the Perpetual calendar is even more complicated than the fan-favourite tourbillon and is probably closer in number of parts to a minute repeater.

Within this new version of the Villeret Quantième Perpétuel Ref. 6656, beats the calibre 5954 automatic movement with its integrated perpetual calendar complication. It is capable of offering a power reserve of 72 hours when fully wound and offers the same anti-magnetic properties thanks to its silicon hairspring.

Even though the word perpetual suggests that the watch need not ever be adjusted, Blancpain’s perpetual calendar, and for that matter almost all perpetual calendar complications are not perfect because they still must be manually adjusted in 2100. If you take the rule that a leap year happens every year divisible by four, then technically 2100 should be a leap year. But it’s not. This is because the exact time that Earth makes a full rotation around the sun is not exactly 365.25 days but rather 365.2422 days. By this logic, if we continue to apply the leap year rule, after a couple of hundred cycles, our seasons will start to get out of sync. Therefore, when the Gregorian calendar (the one we use today) was invented it stated that century years would have to be divisible by 400 for it to be a leap year. Thus 2100, 2200 and so on, will not be leap years to compensate.

BETTER SAFE THAN SORRY

On the subject of manual corrections, the perpetual calendar complication can be notorious when it comes to its adjustments. In perpetual calendars of the past, it has been said that manipulating and adjusting the watch at certain times could easily damage the watch earning it a round trip home to Switzerland and along with it, a large bill for the repairs. And this forbidden period was between the few hours before midnight and the few hours that followed. During this time, the calendar indications are changing, and any manual correction applied could easily damage the delicate gears.

With the Villeret Quantième Perpétuel Ref. 6656 from Blancpain, this is no longer an issue as the watch designers at the manufacture have managed to eliminate this risk entirely. When the user tries to make the adjustment while changes are happening, a clutch disengages the system to prevent any damages from occurring. But the ability to do this doesn’t come without its cost, and according to Blancpain, they needed 40 per cent more components compared to a traditional complication to achieve this. Of course, all of this is hidden beneath the dial so all the wearer sees, is a clean and elegant design on its top side.

Another testament to the usability of Blancpain’s perpetual calendar movements is the fact that since 2005 they have introduced a patented system of manual adjustment – under-lug correctors. Traditionally these manual adjustment mechanisms have always been built into the sides of the cases. In fact, most other perpetual calendars still use these correctors, which appear as small dimples on the case of the watches. The clever use of under-lug correctors by Blancpain enhances the watch in two ways.

The first of which is purely functional where instead of needing a tool to depress the dimples on the case, the lever on the underside of the lugs can be manipulated using one’s fingernails. Secondly, the discarding of these dimples can now allow the watch case to have an entirely smooth surface, adding heaps to the elegance of the watch. This is especially prominent in the case of the Reference 6656 where the beautifully minimalistic dial is complemented by the blemish-free red gold polished case.

MOON FACE INDICATOR

Okay, before you grab your pitchforks protesting this sub-heading, it is indeed quite a literal reference to the little face present on the moonphase indicator on the dial. The moonphase has always been a significant part of Blancpain’s history; One could even say that it is the perfect representation of Blancpain’s ethos as a watch company.

As the story goes, the legendary Jean-Claude Biver said when he bought Blancpain in 1982: “There has never been a quartz Blancpain, and there never will be.” Back then, even the Swiss watch brands were starting to dabble with quartz technology during the era of the quartz crisis. But Blancpain took an opposite stance, instead, doubling down its efforts to cement the mechanical watch’s place in contemporary times by demonstrating how quartz could never replicate the complexity, craftsmanship and history of traditional watchmaking. One of the first complications they decided to make in its modern era was a moon phase indicator in 1983.

Looking at the moon phase indicator on the new Villeret Quantième Perpétuel Ref. 6656, I feel like the face on this moon is portraying something akin to an all-knowing smirk. Perhaps it knows that Blancpain’s choice to make a statement with this complication basically predicted the role of the mechanical watch for contemporary times, not just for Blancpain, but arguably for the entire luxury watch industry that exists today.

The design of the dial is the same Ref. 6656 that was first launched in 2018 which also served as a replacement for the Ref. 6057 which offered a similar design, day, date, month and leap year indicators in three subdials, but in a smaller 38mm case. The new Ref 6656 on the other hand is housed in a 40mm red gold case complete with the collection’s signature double-stepped case. Last but certainly not least, the new look is also defined by the mesmerising, deep green of the dial. The colour along with its sunburst pattern was inspired by the fir forests of the Vallée de Joux that surround the Grandes Complications workshop where the watch is meticulously crafted by its master watchmakers.

G-Shock Creates Their Latest MRG-B2000SG With Traditional Samurai Crafts

Celebrating G-Shock’s deep connection with Japanese culture, Casio turned to the country’s history, more than 400 years in the past, resurrecting the soul of the Samurai to influence the creation of the brand new MRGB2000SG. This fantastic watch was designed alongside the creation of the Shougeki-Maru: Gai, a unique kabuto helmet made by two of Japan’s nationally acclaimed artisans – Kobayashi Masao and Suzukine Yuzan – especially to celebrate the MR-G series.

Transferring all the intricacies of the helmet onto the watch was no easy feat. However, Casio managed to accomplish this through a number of highly unique design characteristics. The first and most discernible of which is the outer bezel of the watch. Here, the master metalsmith, Kobayashi Masao, chiselled indentations onto the metal bezel, creating a unique rock-grain relief pattern. Additionally, the ferocious tiger found on the maedate crest on the helmet is also hand-engraved onto the bezel.

The case of this extravagant watch is crafted using ionised titanium making the watch incredibly light despite its size. Additionally, the case is also finished with a deep-layer hardening process which increases its scratch resistance while also revealing a unique crystalline pattern that encapsulates the entirety of the watch. The white Dura Soft band was chosen to reflect the white ito odoshi (overlaying plates of armour bound together with white string) of the Shougeki-Maru: Gai. This strap, made with soft fluor rubber is flexible on the wrist and has excellent durability and stain resistance.

The MRG-B2000SG also represents a confluence where craftsmanship meets technology. Despite all the oldworld techniques utilised on its exterior, the internal electronic movement of the watch offers a host of new-world technologies. First, the watch is powered by the sun, through Casio’s Tough Solar system. Then, the watch is also capable of calibrating its timekeeping in a myriad of ways. It receives radio signals periodically throughout the day to synchronise the time and also it can be adjusted through a Bluetooth connection with a smartphone. In terms of functionality, the watch offers a dualtime configuration with the ability to adjust for 27 different time zones and for those who might travel to seasonal countries, it can even automatically adjust for daylight savings time.

The MRG-B2000SG is a limited edition of only 700 pieces worldwide, with only five units in Malaysia. It is available at the G-Shock stores in Lalaport and IOI City Mall Putrajaya at a retail price of MYR 30,995.

Bell & Ross’ newest BR 03-94 Blacktrack chronograph is a design-forward instrument

Look no further than Bell & Ross when you train your sight on contemporary design in the arena of watchmaking. The emblematic “square within a circle” is a hallmark comparable to some of the legendary aesthetics within the industry. Its endeavours are laudable because despite its recency, having founded in 1992, Bell & Ross has already firmly established itself as a major player and successfully blazed a trail with a design language wholly its own. The BR 03-94 Blacktrack chronograph is very much an epitome of this daring approach.

Inspired by the avant-garde Blacktrack BT-06 motorcycle, the new chronograph is an extension of this machine, from sharing the iconoclastic looks and down to the enigmatic soul. A collaboration between prolific designer Sacha Lakic and Bell & Ross, the basis to the chronograph is drawn from the aerodynamic lines of stealth aircraft and bolstered by the genius of Lakic. The man has won accolades for his endeavours, inter alia, responsible for the style of Venturi, an exceptional electric sports carmaker. In 2016, spurred on by his success, Lakic instituted Blacktrack, his own motorcycle brand as proof that his love of speed is genuine.

The passion is shared by Bell & Ross. In 2011, Bell & Ross hopped on a partnership with Shaw Harley-Davidson to create the Nascafe Racer Bell & Ross. It gave rise to the unique BR 01 Carbon watch, which could be embedded into the bike’s central console. The favourable reception furthered their partnership in 2014, in the form of the BR 01 chronograph, and its twin, the BR 03 B-Rocket. Both were heavily influenced by Shaw Harley- Davidson’s B-Rocket, as well as an obsession of Bell & Ross’ creative director and co-founder Bruno Belamich, the jet plane.

The BR 03-94 Blacktrack chronograph thoroughly echoes both of these supremely engineered bikes and jets from the design perspective. Water resistant to 100 metres, the chronograph features a 42mm matt black ceramic case. It highlights faceted angles borrowed from stealth fighters, while the black calfskin strap, hemmed with a red edge and lined with high-resistance technical material, is a reference to the Blacktrack motorcycle, which serves as the muse. The quilting on the strap is an ode to the bike’s saddle cover and rider’s protective suit.

Bell & Ross debuts the redesigned subdials for the new chronograph, which have adopted the shape of the dials on motorcycle handlebars. Furthermore, the superposition of the off-centre chronograph seconds hand over the minute hand to create the Blacktrack “B” is a subtle detail not to be overlooked. Despite the monochromatic combination of grey and black, information presented on the chronograph is designed for legibility while balancing the cool factor. Boasting 42 hours of power reserve, the BR-CAL.301 self-winding mechanical movement is exceptionally finished. More importantly, the BR 03-94 Blacktrack chronograph can be inserted in the bike’s centre console, proving that it is not only a wristwatch but an instrument.

Corum’s latest Admiral timepieces bring together ceramic and an emblematic design

A study of CORUM’s repertoire reveals a telling observation; the brand doesn’t do things the conventional way. Case in point: The Bubble houses a magnifying domed sapphire crystal, while the Golden Bridge emphasises a singular baguette movement. And today’s focus falls on the Admiral, a collection of timepieces evincing a distinctive dodecagonal bezel. As the name suggests, the Admiral has maritime provenance. Originally conceived over 60 years ago as a companion to yachting, with a suite of nautical pennants on the dial as signatures, the Admiral has gone through numerous metamorphoses over the years. The latest evolution sees it take on one of the most beloved watchmaking materials today: ceramic.

Ceramic is favoured by watchmakers who possess the know-how to fully exploit its unique qualities, such as durability, scratch and corrosion resistance, to their advantage. The composition of ceramic splits between aluminium oxide (Al2O3) and zirconium oxide (ZrO2), making it around 20 to 25 percent lighter than the prevalent 316L stainless steel.

Bolder and beaming with personality, CORUM also presents two extraordinary additions to the Admiral family, called Admiral 42 “TAG”. They are called TAG because the watches feature a creative element in the form of graffiti. The first of the two is limited to 50 pieces. It is attired in a full-black sand-blasted ceramic case and a sleek black NATO strap. The Corum logo is “tagged” across the dial, though one might not immediately notice it. It is a watch that is deceptively discreet in daylight but audaciously eye-catching at nighttime, thanks to the rich luminescence that comes alive in the dark.

Crafted in white ceramic, the second reference is decidedly effervescent, with the indexes and hands generously painted in a rainbow of colours for an added touch of idiosyncrasy. CORUM pushes the boundaries in reshaping the watch into a canvas for individuality and unadulterated artistic expressions.

These statement timepieces beat with the precision of the C0 395 automatic movement, offering 42 hours of power reserve. The sapphire crystal case back permits unobstructed views of the movement, reaffirming CORUM’s commitment to redefine the horological landscape through craftsmanship, innovation and daring.

Ressence Brings a Novel Approach to Timekeeping Legibility

There is a reason why the watches in the independent watchmaking landscape look so different from one brand to the next. Unlike the traditional brands which have existed for centuries and have developed their own rigid design and watchmaking principles, those that venture into independent watchmaking do so for a variety of different reasons. Some go at it to break the rules of horology, others want to bring back the most traditional forms of watchmaking. For Ressence however, their goal was simple, to make a watch that tells time in the most legible and practical of ways.

Ressence Type 1 M

This quest for legibility was the brainchild of Benoît Mintiens, the founder of Ressence. In his words “A product only gets its reason from its function. A product that has no function has no reason to exist. A watch is made to express time and so we thought, how can we maximise that?” By looking at this problem from through the lens of someone from outside of the watchmaking industry, the result is as innovative and as unorthodox as we soon found out.

Just by looking at the watch, its dial is unlike anything else on the market. The concept takes the basic premise of regulatorstyle watches and separates the hour and minute functions detaching them from the central axis that most watches use. The kicker is that as the minutes tick by, the entire disc rotates stringing along the little subdial for the hour that rotates on its axis as well. To aid in its legibility, the dial is also curved so it sits as close as possible to the domed sapphire crystal.

Ressence Type 3 EE

Although the Ressence watches, like the colourful new Ressence TYPE 1° M from their core collection, look to be on the funky, playful side, all of their watches actually pack some really clever innovations just beneath the domed dial. Arguably, there will be a camp of people that will not consider these innovations serious “horology” techniques, but it doesn’t change the fact that these are mechanical complications in their own right.

To drive this unique style of time telling, Mintiens imagined the ROCS module which stands for Ressence Orbital Convex System. The basic premise of this module is a series of gear trains that sit just underneath the convex dial and allow the watch to move in its orbital way. Meeting Mintiens at The Hour Glass boutique recently he demonstrated just how this system works, and although the gearing itself doesn’t look all too complicated, the innovative bit is that this entire module can be driven by just the minute function on a standard movement.

Yup, you read right, most of the watches from Ressence’s repertoire function with an ETA movement. Of course, considering the asking price, the ETA movement they use is not exactly just the stock 2824 calibre. Instead, they use the base ETA movement as their canvas, disassembling it to remove the components that are unnecessary leaving just the minutes function. Then, they have to replace specific parts with that made of titanium because according to Mintiens, the torque generated by the ROCS module can sometimes break the stock components. Additionally, the barrel also has to be replaced as more power is needed to drive the orbital geartrain of the mechanism. “The barrel has to be replaced to one that is almost similar to a barrel you would find on a chronograph movement,” he explains. Still, this method of using ETA bases remains more cost-effective than actually buying the components and assembling the entire thing themselves.

Speaking to Mintiens, he reiterates “I am interested in watches because it is an interesting product. I am a product designer, so I am interested in products more than I am interested in watches.” In looking at the watch from this viewpoint, Ressence is not afraid to explore options that are unorthodox within a traditional watch industry. For example, the idea of filling a watch with oil would normally destroy a mechanical movement but in the pursuit of legibility, Ressence created the Type 3, which does exactly that. The concept of filling the dial with oil comes from the principles of light refraction. Because oil and glass share similar refraction properties, it tricks the eye, making the dial look like it is right on the surface of the crystal.

To do this, the entire top half, including the ROCS module, is submerged in oil leaving the base movement below in a normal air-filled chamber. Then, to transmit the minute information from the base movement to the ROCS module which is now separated, they use micro-magnets to relay information. The easiest analogy to explain this is the magnetic aquarium cleaners where the one outside the aquarium is magnetically attached to its counterpart inside allowing the user to wipe the inner glass by moving the component on the outside.

For Ressence the fact that it was born outside the watchmaking industry gives it an unbridled approach to watch design. “Normal watchmaking always starts with the movement so we [Ressence] have a different approach leading to a different result. And all this stems from the design thinking approach where you really try to put the user at the centre of everything and work around the user and not around the movement and to me this is something that comes from the design world.”

Ressence is one of those brands that truly offers a product unlike any other in the current watch industry. Having been born in Antwerp, Mintiens says “Belgium is sandwiched between France and Germany; the French take design very seriously, the Germans are serious, and Belgians have Belgitude, meaning we don’t take ourselves very seriously.”

Roar into the Lunar New Year with These Dragon-Inspired Timepieces

2024 marks the return of the Year of the Dragon. Returning once every 12 years, this celestial creature is associated with prosperity and is a symbol of luck, strength and wisdom. The dragon is also an imperial icon that embodies life and immortality. In honour of this auspicious creature, LUXUO lists the exclusive festive releases and dynamic timepieces to usher in the Year of the Dragon — from dragon motifs to dragon figurines and every scale inbetween.

Vacheron Constantin

The Grisaille High Jewellery Dragon’s grisaille enamelling technique is objectively rare, and is a first for Vacheron Constantin in this shade of green. Note the 146 baguette-cut diamonds on the bezel and case of the 40 mm white gold watch, which take nothing away from the subtlety at the heart of this unique piece. Absent even a seconds indicator, it might be the most restrained watch on this list…

Ulysse Nardin

To celebrate the Lunar New Year, Ulysse Nardin combines the majestic dragon with the alluring pearl. The Ulysse Nardin Blast Tourbillon Dragon is an embodiment of in-house innovations, métiers d’art and the magic of the Year of the Dragon. This limited edition timepiece is crafted from 5N rose gold with black DLC-coated titanium sections. The two-dimensional enamel dial features an intricate red gold dragon extending across the dial towards a pearl sculpture. The case back’s “X” shape is a signature of the watch and has become a notable feature of the modern Ulysse Nardin.

Piaget

Piaget’s new Dragon & Phoenix capsule collection features 10 daring designs of exceptional watches and High Jewellery pieces – topped off with a pair of extravagantly exclusive, made-to-order high jewellery cuff watches. Each creation brims with emotion and exuberance, joyfully channelling the codes of the Maison while celebrating the house’s unparalleled watchmaking savoir-faire. In the example seen here, the dial features the fine paillonne enamel craftwork of the famed Anita Porchet, framing a engraved gold dragon.

Chopard

Chopard’s L.U.C XP Urushi Year of the Dragon is an 88-piece limited edition in ethical rose gold and boasts a continuation of the brand’s exploration of the traditional Japanese urushi craft; the dial was crafted by a Japanese Maki-e master using urushi lacquer, gold powder and mother-of-pearl inlays. The in-house L.U.C 96.17-L calibre with micro-rotor ensures that a slender profile of just 6.80 mm can be maintained. It mingles technical savoir-faire and artistic flair delivered by Chopard Manufacture.

Breguet

Classique Double Tourbillon Dragon 5345 (Special edition)

Breguet unveils two new exceptional timepieces as a tribute to the emblematic Year of the Dragon. The first is the special edition Classique Double Tourbillon Dragon 5345, which sees a hand-engraved golden dragon twirl between the watch’s twin tourbillons. The dragon is seen clutching a pearl made of mother-of-pearl in its talons. The rhodiumised gold rotating plate is hand-guillochéd with a fan motif. The gold bridge below the mainplate features an anthracite galvanic treatment and Clous de Paris hobnail motif guilloché.

Next is the Classique Dragon 7145 which features a hand-engraved rose gold appliqué dragon standing triumphantly on the dial with the watches Roman numerals, minutes track and clouds finished in a golden powder-pink hue. The manufacture calibre 502.3 beats inside a 40 mm rose gold case which is one of Breguet’s thinnest at just 2.40 mm thick.

Classique Dragon 7145 (Eight Piece numbered limited edition)

Hublot

Drawing inspiration from the traditional Chinese art of paper cutting, the Spirit of Big Bang Titanium Dragon layers its hands, wheels and H-shaped screws to form a 3D silhouette of an eastern dragon. It is a formidable expression of creativity that bridges form and function. Created in collaboration with the Chinese artist Chen Fenwan, this limited edition timepiece of 88 pieces is the perfect fusion of tradition and modernity, combining metaphors and symbols in the spirit of Hublot.

Bovet

Bovet’s artisans combined the art of sculpting miniatures with its established mastery of high horology in the Recital 26 Chapter Two Dragon. The result is a hand-engraved horological objet dárt. A domed blue quartz dial displays the local time zone’s hours and minutes in the upper part of the case. The dome located at 3 o’clock displays a second time zone specifically developed for this timepiece and patented by Bovet.

Roger Dubuis

Roger Dubuis utilised the Year of the Dragon to introduce the Excalibur Dragon Monotourbillon. The timepiece’s watchmaking innovation highlights the dance, complexity, artistry, and symbolism of the festive season all in one. For the sculpture of the dragon, the watchmakers have used 27 individual pieces of brass – each embellished with black lacquer on the sides and a pink gold treatment on the polished top surface. The pieces are then set on 25 different levels, producing a mutli-dimensional vision that is full of volume and vitality, thus enriching the skeletonised movement.

IWC Schaffhausen

IWC Schaffhausen welcomes the Lunar New Year with a special edition release of the Portugieser Chronograph. This timepiece features a 41 mm stainless steel case, a burgundy dial and contrasting gold-plated hands and appliques. Limited to 1,000 pieces, this watch features its rotor in the form of a majestic dragon, visible through the sapphire crystal case back. The watch is powered by the manufacture 69355 calibre.

Bell & Ross

Envoking tattoo artistry, the BR 05 Artline Dragon watch takes on this bold personality, with its own exclusive laser engraving. By adopting this graphic code, the timepiece visually plays on light and shadow through the relative fineness and thickness of each stroke honing in on the precision of line work that is crucial to “transcending the realm of drawing to that of a metal tattoo”. On the BR 05 Artline Dragon’s dial and integrated bracelet, the decorative motif is finely engraved.

Jaeger-LeCoultre

Jaeger-LeCoultre adds a new chapter to this story of craftsmanship and artistry with the Reverso Tribute Enamel ‘Dragon’. The new timepiece pays tribute to the Year of the Dragon, and to the talents of the master enamellers and engravers in the Métiers Rares atelier of the Manufacture Jaeger-LeCoultre. Created to celebrate the Zodiac Year and made only to order, the Reverso Tribute Enamel ‘Dragon’ is testament to La Grande Maison’s vision of culture and creativity, where the artistic crafts merge with the technical expertise of the watchmakers.

Blancpain

In 2012, Blancpain achieved a world-first when it debuted its Villeret Traditional Chinese Calendar wristwatch that spanned East-West with its combination of a complex Chinese calendar and a Gregorian date and moonphase. This year, the Manufacture enters its second 12-year cycle with the introduction of a new limited edition of this grand complication featuring a dragon engraved on the red gold winding rotor in honor of the symbol of the new lunar year. This special limited edition for the first time is executed in red gold with a green enamel dial against a frosted background; the dragon is flanked by a red ruby and a Chinese character engraving of the words “dragon” and “wood”, the element of 2024.

Franck Muller

Franck Muller’s release of special edition timepieces comes every Lunar New Year to mark the procession of animals in the Chinese zodiac. Honouring the mythical dragon, the new Vanguard Dragon Slim Skeleton Limited Edition bears a customised rotor that has been engraved with a dragon, which appears to coil around and protect the timepieces’s movement like a “mystical guardian”. The Vanguard Dragon Slim Skeleton Rouge and Vert are accented in red and green respectively, with the pops of color coming from its tinted sapphire caseback – the special bright hues reflected in said caseback mirror that of the dial. Only 10 pieces will be available of each reference, including the Colour Dreams version (which is distinguished by a transparent caseback) exclusively at Franck Muller boutiques in the Asia Pacific region.

Parmigiani Fleurier

Maison Parmigiani celebrates the Year of the Wood Dragon with a magnificent restoration of a masterpiece from its Métiers d’Art collection, the “Tempus Fugit”. Inspired by the legend of the Dragon and the Pearl of Knowledge, the piece incorporates powerful symbols anchored deep in traditional Chinese culture. This piece is a reference to Parmigiani Fleurier’s vast experience in the restoration of antique clocks and its fascination with kinetic art.

L’Epée

The movement “Swiss Made Caliber 1853” was created entirely by L’Epée 1839, has 124 parts meticulously assembled by the L’Epée 1839’s master watchmakers. Two dragons “protect” on either side of the most precious part of a kinetic object — the gearing mechanism. The dragons with golden or palladium scale adopt mirrored postures, their serpentine body coils protectively around the horological craftmanship.

For more on the latest in luxury watch releases, click here.

Urwerk’s latest addition to their Time and Culture series of watches travels to the ancient city of Ur

As Martin Frei, one-half of the founding members of Urwerk puts it “To make watches, one must first be interested in time.” Indeed, Urwerk is a brand that not only pushes the boundaries of timekeeping from the mechanical sense but also from a philosphical perspective. Previously they made a device with a 1,000-year indicator and today, they offer up a timepiece that pays tribute to one of the pioneering civilisations to keep time, the Sumerians, inhabitants of Ur.

This watch, the Urwerk UR-100V “Time and Culture II” is particularly important to the brand as the ancient city of Ur is where the Ur in Urwerk comes from. Interestingly, when we had a conversation with Frei on one of his visits to Kuala Lumpur, he mentioned that the whole “Time and Culture” collection was actually inspired by a customer from Singapore who requested from Urwerk a timepiece that looks back at the history of timekeeping. From there, the Time and Culture I was born. This first watch reproduced a replica of an actual Mayan calendar that was engraved in stone on the dial. And now, for the second watch in this collection, they travelled to the heart of the Mesopotamian civilisation.

The main engraving on the dial of this watch bears an insignia which the Sumerians used to represent the sun god. Here, depicted in its original 2,000-year-old form, it is still surprisingly contemporary bearing four points that today represent the four cardinal points: North, South, East and West. Throughout the dial, the intricate engravings mirror authentic Sumerian sky charts, highlighting their observation of the night sky and also some say the base foundation of Astronomy as we know it today.

Just as with the first watch, the etchings on this version have also been engraved by laser and the ridges are satin-finished. The entire dial has also been given a blue tint as a reference to lapis lazuli, a stone that is linked to Innana, the goddess of Love, War and Fertility.

Powering the watch is the Calibre UR 12.02 movement but a nice touch for this timepiece is that two additional indications have been added to the dial. When the arrow disappears from the minute counter at the 6 o’clock position it will next show up at the 10 and subsequently 2 o’clock position. These two counters track first the 477.29 kilometres covered every 20 minutes indicating the distance travelled by each inhabitant of Ur as the earth rotates around its axis; next is the 35,742 kilometres that the earth travels as it rotates around the sun within a 20-minute window.