Horological Meandering

Ornatus-Mundi
[Zenith]
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Baselworld 2013: Highlights from Romain Jerome

And a power reserve indicator at 6 o'clock. But what is the strange element at the left?

The rotor is not the only strange element. The entire tourbillon bridge simulates a spacecraft launch platform.

Its really worth to inspect the naked movement in detail. It clearly has character, a strong polarising one. The very technical finish eliminates any doubt:

The dial side is more in line of what one expects from a complication. Fine perlage throughout.

The real interesting part however is the tourbillon assembly. An elaborated construction suspends the cage in mid-air:

Note how massive all the elements are!

It is refreshing to see how apparently simple the entire movement layout is. It is not, for sure, but the overall design just focusses on creating a stage for the tourbillon. And the tourbillon itself demands just the right level of attention and does not dominate the watch.

The case is crafted from stainless steel and alloyed with real parts from the Apollo 11 spacecraft (RJ certainly would not do it without...). 

As can be easily imagined the case is not exactly tiny. In fact, 44.5mm x 48.5mm have to be matched to the wrist. The larger the watch the more difficult it is to find a one-fits-it-all design. RJ kept this in mind and came up with a really well executed flexible system.

I could barely wait until Mr Emch had finished his explanations on the machine and I finally could strap it on. Boy does this have presence!

Whatever angle you look at it gives the impression of a compact, powerful deus-in-machina.

The dimensions are well balanced with the design features and give it a - relatively! - non-obstructive character.

I could to help but this watch seems to talk to me.... Fasten your seat belts and put your space-seat in an upright position...!

A highly original watch stemming from the joint endeavours of Manuel Emch, Eric Giroud and Jean-Marc Wiederrecht - the latter two well-known suspects when it comes to unusual horological objects or machines...

So, what does to produce?

“The combination of these four functions – lateral, linear, jumping and retrograde hours – is unprecedented”, says Jean-Marc Wiederrecht. Its also not very difficult to grasp if I may say so.

The corresponding fine-tuning, i.e. the read-out of the minutes, is located on the back. Its a comparatively conventional continuous minute disk: 

The case itself is a modern interpretion of the 'futuristic' watches watches from the 60s and 70s like the GP Casquette or - even closer! - the Synchronar:

"An unusual trapeze-shaped model featuring a black PVD-coated titanium case, the Spacecraft both surprises and intrigues. Its rectilinear profile and its facetted surface echo the aesthetic of spacecraft." [Press Kit]

 

 "A black rotating disc with a red indicator transferred on the sapphire crystal indicates the minutes on the top of the case, while the linear hour display is read off laterally, thereby giving time a whole new dimension." [Press Kit]

"Time-setting is done via a screw-lock crown at 12 o’clock." [Press Kit]

Certainly not where the text describes...

Again Manuel Emch had something under his sleeve - the uncased movement! And like the Moon Orbiter's clockwork its outer appearance belies the technology within (which is where the third mastermind behind the project comes into the picture: Jean-Marc Wiederrecht and his team at the Geneva-based manufacturing facility Agenhor):

The movement features a kind of spring-driven carriage that drives the hour display visible on the side of the watch by means of a red-lacquered cursor moving beneath the metallised sapphire crystal every 60 minutes.

The carriage glides (better: jumps) on two finely polished rails. Note the tiny rubies that precisely position the carriage and reduce movement friction:

If you ever come into contact with this watch please do yourself a favour and set the time! The tactile feeling as well as the sound is that of a rugged, well-damped precision mechanism. It has some 'column-wheel' quality to it if you know what I mean.

One small criticism here: I found the strap (some nylon-type cloth) very comfortable but I think it does not do the watch justice. Its optically somehow disconnected to the watch and looks like an afterthought.

"Space pilots of the world, prepare for lift-off! The Spacecraft will carry you off on an intergalactic mission to explore uncharted territories…  " [Press Kit]

Bottom line: Under Manuel Emch Romain Jerome immensely sharpened its profile and set out to offer specially themed watches that do not only communicate through their (exotic) choice of materials and designs but also (increasingly!) through their indigenous, proprietary mechanisms. RJ made very informed and conscious decisions about the structure and the degree on integration the brand needs to best deliver on this profile, and came to the conclusion to rely on outside experts (design as well as technology) as they deem fit.

This year's offerings which are, and I should point this out clearly, only the two highlights of their novelties. Time constraints unfortunately did not permit any extensive look at the collection. The two watches shown each fascinate in their very own way, deliver original technical and aesthetic solutions and therefore without doubt will help tremendously to shift up the image of the brand amongst collectors. One may like the style or not, they are concise both in themselves as well within the broader collection of RJ timepieces. Thus, its encouraging to see where the brand is going. 

I hope you liked this report!

Thanks for reading,

Magnus

P.S.: This is a report that almost, by a very, very thin line, wouldn't be - but thanks for the efforts of all involved and particularly due to the flexibility of the RJ team it happened in the end. Thank you for that!