Marcus Hanke
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Basel 2009: Ulysse Nardin's Hidden Marvel
Baselworld 2009: Ulysse Nardin
by Marcus Hanke
by Marcus Hanke
During the past few years, Ulysse Nardin had concentrated its efforts on the development of new material and technologies, with the goal of making modern mechanical watches more accurate and especially easier to service, by reducing the necessity of maintenance and lubrication of specially stressed components. As a result of this extensive research work, UN presented watches and movements with various parts made from different grades of silicium, and also hairsprings made from diamond.
As fascinating these achievements may have been, they have nevertheless been employed in existing watch models, be it UN’s universal movement test bed, the “Freak”, be it the “Sonata”. Radically new watches were not released since the Anniversary 160. This year, however, things are going to change, but I will talk about this a bit later.
Besides "the novelty", the Maxi Marine Diver in polished titanium certainly is a highlight. Titanium is a hard material that is very difficult to polish, especially on such uniquely shaped cases as the curved Marine series case. Polished titanium is not a complete novelty for UN, since from the beginning, the solid case backs (those with the medal cities engraved) were made from titanium, which was brushed in the engraved centre, but polished on the rim. On close inspection, a subtle colour difference could be made out, distinguishing the titanium from the stainless steel of the case. The revolving bezel is still made from steel, since titanium on titanium results in a rather nasty feel of the click when turning the ring.
The new Diver is a lightweight to wear on the wrist, but has the optical presence of the steel original. Besides the traditional rubber/titanium strap, UN now offers also a titanium bracelet with polished and brushed links. I can imagine this to be highly comfortable to wear in hot and humid climates. The bicolor variant with pink gold and matching bicolor bracelet is a lot more conspicious.
There is also a "Black Surf", which is basically a "Blue Surf" in black - got it? Looks great, really.
Another striking novelty is the new Diver Perpetual. While the Acqua Perpetual is discontinued and nearly sold out, and the blue and black limited edition Marine Perpetuals practically impossible to find, UN has released a new variant of the exclusive sports perpetual calendar:
This Diver Perpetual has grown, like most other watches, from 42.7mm to 45mm diameter. To compensate the growth in size, the weight has decreased, as a result of using a polished titanium case, too. The revolving diver bezel is made from 18k white gold. All luminous markers have orange colour pigments, which do not really enhance the glow, but look cool. The Diver Perpetual is limited to 500 pieces.
It is a well established fact that many watches cannot be read in the darkness. A scientific breakthrough has been achieved, when some manufacturers succeeded in building watches that cannot be read in the daylight, too, by combining black hands and black markers on black dials. Ulysse Nardin now proves its capability to master this difficult technology and presents the "Marine Diver that does not disclose the time"; in fact, its official name elapsed my attention, possibly invisible as well.
Beside the Marine series, the Dual Time GMT watch is Ulysse Nardin's long time best sellers. Ludwig Oechslin ingenuously simple dual time zone mechanism is still not beaten in terms of comfort of use and effectiveness, some thirteen years after its first presentation. However, the case shape, already used in the original variant, albeit with smaller diameter, started to become a bit outdated, or old fashioned.
Here, the new Executive Dual Time is a refreshing new coat for this practical mechanism. The case is offered in both, stainless steel and 18k pink gold, and features a black ceramic bezel and ceramic time zone pushers. This material is very hard to scratch, and serves as a good protector for the softer case material, especially of the gold version. Following the current trend, the case has grown to 43mm diameter.
The San Marco is back! Due to its bright blue enamel dial, that is built up in several thin layers above a silver guilloche base, and stunningly flashes up as soon as hit by a light ray, the steel San Marco was one of Ulysse Nardin's most popular watches ever made. However, its small case size of 37mm catapulted it into oblivion in a time, when oversized watches became a global fashion trend. I applaud Ulysse Nardin for bringing back this classic watch in a more timely case size (about 42 mm).
Besides the bright blue enamel dial, there are also variants with silver and black coated dials and gold cases. This simple, yet highly elegant timepiece will most certainly become a favourite of many watch enthusiasts.
Until now, the Sonata style Perpetual GMT was offered as unlimited edition in white gold only. Now, the friends of pink gold also have their turn.
The Lady Dual Time got an attractive version with smoke grey dial.
Now for the timepieces you possibly have waited for: First of all, the marvellous table clock "Planet Earth".
At first sight, it appears smaller than expected; a nicely finished mahogany cube in maritime style, crowned by a large crystal ball. The latter and its delicacy also is the reason why the "Planet Earth" could be admired only in a showcase. Therefore, I add some of the official press pictures as well.
Ludwig Oechslin developed a display of the Earth, projecting its continents onto the ecliptic of the sky. This permits a rather exact reading of the position of the sun and moon above the continents, and also the probability of solar and lunar eclipses. A wonderful and stunning timepiece, that will certainly make its owner very happy. The only concern I have is the risk of dust-sweeping the crystal ball ...
Of course the most eagerly awaited highlight of Ulysse Nardin this year was the Moonstruck, an astronomical wristwatch, that displays a most accurate moon phase, the current solar time and the tides and tidal tendency on any place of the world. I was just inspecting the watch up close, when I was very surprised to find Rolf Schnyder asking me to neither take any pictures, nor to write anything about this watch. Naturally, I respect his wish, even if I do not understand it.
I had been surprised already by the complete lack of specific presentation of the "Moonstruck". Unlike the launches of the Freak, the Sonata or the Anniversary 160, there was no evening event, no prominent display, nothing that would demonstrate the great importance of this revolutionary timepiece. All that was shown was a prototype and a movement in a small display case in front of the booth, with barely any commentary added.
My very personal and speculative assumption on the reasons of this very disappointing "launch" of the Moonstruck is that Ulysse Nardin had spread the first rumours on the "Chairman" cell phone, in order to create a certain brand awareness in circles that hitherto had no particular interest in fine watches. However, this was a bit too successful, stimulating intense discussions in all kinds of fora, blogs and other online and print media. Things threatened to get out of hand, and Ulysse Nardin would be noted as a design cell phone label, rather than a traditional manufacturer of state-of-the-art watches. Before the press and the dealers would ask only for the phone, the staff of UN decided to show the Moonstruck earlier than originally planned, already at Basel. Since it was too late to organise any special event, it was shown without further comments. I repeat, these are my very personal assumptions, maybe things were completely different.
Of course I asked Rolf Schnyder why I should not inform our readers about the Moonstruck, and he mentioned he would make a special presentation event later this year, since he did not want to "waste" the Moonstruck on Basel, making it but another new watch among many other new watches. However, by not keeping it in the closet, but also not presenting it in a worthy event, it became exactly that: just a new watch among many other new watches.
Since it was on display outside, I show you the pictures I made of the prototype in the display case, and all I can do further is to promise that I will do a full and extensive report when the watch has been officially and definitely presented.
Moonstruck
The new cal. 106 movement for the Moonstruck features several silicium movement parts, including hairspring, balance and escapement wheels
And the phone? Oh yes, I forgot the phone. Well, it was there, in a display case besides the Moonstruck. Apparently it was still a non-functional prototype, and I did not take any pictures of it.
Regards,
Marcus
This message has been edited by Marcus Hanke on 2009-04-22 16:01:43 This message has been edited by AnthonyTsai on 2009-04-30 19:50:19
More posts:
Basel 2009: Ulysse Nardin's Hidden Marvel
Baselworld 2009: Ulysse Nardin by Marcus Hanke During the past few years, Ulysse Nardin had concentrated its efforts on the development of new material and technologies, with the goal of making modern mechanical watches more accurate and especially easier...
Fantastic report!
The carbon dial of the UN Diver Perpetual is awesome! Thanks for the great report! -MW
Awesome report
I especially like the photos of the MMD Titanium, my favorite by far (and your opening shot was perfect). I can drool for awhile looking at those photos until I order mine. Thanks very much!
Wow the Acqua Perpetual is now in 45mm!
I like it! Can't wait to see one in person. I've always felt the 42mm version was just a tad too small for its thickness, so this 45mm should be perfect for my taste. Thanks for the write-up Marcus! Cheers, Anthony This message has been edited by AnthonyT...
Will be left to real evaluation ....
While you are right that the former Acqua appeared rather thick in relation to the diameter, 45mm are quite a lot. Yet I am less worried about the case itself, but about the new crown design. It is very attractive, but a) highly difficult to get a grip at...
Thanks, Marcus!
Some great looking watches in your post today! I really like the titanium Maxi Marine Diver with the light-colored dial. That model really caught my eye! Just curious, but do you personally prefer the surf-type dial or the hobnail-type pattern? Thanks ...
I now prefer the wave pattern on the dial ....
.... since I feel it to be more appropriate on a diving watch. However, I still like the "gulf ball" pattern a lot. For me personally, the issue of the second and power reserve hands is more important. I am not a big fan of the "surfboard" designs adopted...
Mixed feelings, Marcus
Your report is awesome, of course. But U.N Communication gives me a bit of ..Frustration. The only real novelties this year were the Planet Earth, and the Moonstruck, the other watches being less or more good evolujtions of already existing watches. The "...
Well, I think we have to understand UN ....
.... and accept this as an unlucky constellation of various coincidents and spontaneous decisions. I had the impression that specifically at UN people were a bit worried about this year's Basel fair to be compromised by the poor economic climate. The news...
FYI -bracelet has polished SS center links and brushed Ti outer links.
The bracelet is not entirely made of titanium, so I was told via an email communication with UN's customer support.
Good report, Marcus.I could have used more information...
on Planet Earth and Moonstruck. Better not to have them released untill all of the information can be posted. Time for my usual complaints about increasing case size with the no movement size increase.
Great Review Marcus
thankyou for the helpful info i like the perpetual myself the others i have to agree with nicolas that alot of the pieces are more evolutions to what UN already has but great nonethe less, do you have a RP on the perpetual and when will they be available,...
Sorry, no price info on the perpetual ....
... and about the availability, I think that most of the watches will be available within the next months, depending on market. Regards, Marcus
The new San Marco looks great! Question,
What is the case material for the version with the blue dial? Do the silver and grey dial versions come in stainless steel or white gold cases? Many thanks,
The blue enamel version has a stainless steel case ....
Generally, there are variants in steel and pink gold, no white gold. If I recall correctly, there was also a white enamel variant, also with guilloche base. This looks nice in a pink gold case, but does not have that stunning shine of the blue one. Unfort...
Nice...
Hi Marcus, Thanks for sharing the photos. The new San Marco with blue enamel and guilloche is beautiful. And that clock is impressive piece of mechanism. Regards
I am sure this new enamel San Marco will be a bestseller ...
... in spite of its small size, the predecessor was highly popular, and due to the high demand even had to reenter production, after it was internally discontinued already. In its more contemporary size, I am positive that many will be interested in it. t...
