Harry Winston Histoire de Tourbillon No.3

“Gravity cannot be held responsible for people falling in love.” said Einstein.
It could, however be the cause of your attraction to the Histoire de Tourbillon No.3 .
Its visual spectacle is all about gravity.

An arsenal of Three tourbillons combat the adverse gravitational effects on time with this the third in Harry Winston’s series focusing on the tourbillon.

Each has been offset by intervals of 36, 40 and 120 seconds in order to create the most accurate regulation of the movement.

Its two predecessors were large watches and No.3 is even more so with dimensions of 65.9mm x 45.9mm, a substantial case no doubt needed to accommodate the array of tourbillons.

Functionally, time is shown using two discs and sapphires that go from dark to light coloured indicate the power reserve and add a touch of glamor.

Limited to 20 pieces it will probably be priced in a similar range to the preceding models which were in the $700k area.

Hublot La Clé Du Temps

Do you want to have the power to slow down and speed up time? Well with the “La Clé Du Temps” -in English “The key of time”- Hublot have devised a watch that gives you this highly unusual function.

You can make the watch go faster or slower than normal time by using a crown on the left of the watch.

Using this, the speed of time is increased or decreased, the watch meanwhile keeps track of the correct time and can be returned to it any moment. How this novel function is used is up to the owner, and may be more of a symbolic novelty than anything, but will definitely be a cause of intrigue and a conversational topic.

Manufacture Royale Opera

Voltaire, a French Enlightenment writer famous for his wit and advocacy of civil liberties, including freedom of religion and free trade was apparently the inspiraion behind Manufacture Royale’s “Opera”. Would he have approved? Hard to know. Its quite an extravagence, given the time in which he lived , probably only Louis XV could have afforded to buy one of these. To paraphrase Voltaire, if this watch didn’t exist would it be necesary to invent it? Well I’m sure there probably was a void for a $1.2m watch with the unique capability of creating a hollow chamber to improve the accoustics of its minute repeater..

Parmigiani Bugatti Tourbillon

Parmigiani teamed up with Bugatti to create a watch for their 16C Galibier car and the Bugatti Tourbillon Watch was the result. Its a convertible watch designed to be four timepieces in one.

The 16C is a four seat luxury sedan which shares the W16 8.0L engine of the Bugatti Veyron, but with two superchargers instead of four turbochargers for improved torque. Its still in prototype stage and a version proper is expected to reach the market in 2013.

Greubel Forsey Invention Piece No.2

The third “Invention Piece” – (Invention Piece No 3 was released prior to this one) by Greubel Forsey is another technological marvel with a movement comprised of 594 components and featuring no less than four tourbillons.

Two double tourbillons are displayed on opposite sides of the asymmetrical case and can be viewed from all angles by way of sapphire crystals at the front and rear as well as a lateral window.

Hours and minutes are indicated by a red triangle and a rotating disk on a sub-dial at 5 o’clock.

Price:CHF 700,000
Source:Greubel Forsey

Corum Golden Bridge Tourbillon

The pioneer of the baguette movement, Corum, celebrates the 30th anniversary of its classic Golden Bridge model with the caliber CO213, a masterpiece of micromechanics.

The company has created a tiny baguette with a tourbillion, all housed in the world’s tiniest cage, only 8.5 mm across.

This movement lies on top of the watch in the famous Golden Bridge style. Only 30 of these fantastic pieces have been made.

Source:Link

Volna Volnatomic Liquid Tourbillon

Volna’s stunning creation is visually fascinating and features Cold War inspired shapes resembling cut-out bridges, high-powered tanks, and an atomic reactor.

This is a watch that can really be appreciated in the dark, yellow paint adorns the watch face containing Super-LumiNova pigment, reminiscent of uranium storage pools and two vials of blue liquid are embedded in the movement and visible at the side of the watch through the sapphire crystal.

The “tanks” embedded in the face contain blue fluid. In the dark, the paint and fluid illuminate the face like a carnival of symbols, simulating the dangerous, glowing interior of a Cold War-era nuclear submarine. The little yellow man with the arrow comes alive during the winding and setting of the watch.

The cold war theme of the watch is probably due to the watches Russian designer Yvan Arpa. The hand wound movement features a 72 hour power reserve and is housed in a PVD titanium case of diameter 46.5mm.

Source:Link [company dissolved]

Louis Moinet Jurassic Tourbillon

Part of an actual fossilized dinosaur bone found in Western North America from about 150 million years ago is contained within the dial of the Jurassic Tourbillon.

A particularly exceptional example was chosen by specialists due to its beautiful colouring and veining. The watch box comes with a genuine fossilized dinosaur egg to complete the theme.

Limited edition of 12 watches to be released.

Price:CHF310,000
Source: Louis Moinet

Haldimann clocks and watches are all individual and unique pieces, they are all made in-house (except for crystals and straps). Their philosophy is “to focus on the essence, and above all on simplification”

With the H8, Haldimann has taken this philosophy to a radical and uncompromising conclusion, creating a timepiece that has been reduced down to a Tourbillon alone. Its full name is H8 “Flying Sculptura” and its a sculpture for the wrist and symbolizes their concept of reduction.

“A creation is brilliant when it is reduced to its core elements” states Beat Haldimann and the “H8 embodies our efforts to focus on the essential”.

The Tourbillon is the central focus, according to Haldimann the Tourbillons from pocket watches of very important watchmakers made a special sound and Haldimann recreates this with their watches.

Bovet Ottanta

To mark their 80th anniversary Pininfarina teamed up with Bovet to create the Ottanta Tourbillon watch.

A very versatile timepiece it has the unique ability to be transformed into both a pocket watch and miniature table clock through the use of a convertible case which allows the owner to switch styles without use of tools.

The highly complex automatic movement is made of 514 pieces and features a tourbillon that in tribute to Pininfarina`s 80th anniversary moves in an 80 second revolution instead of 60.

Along the edges of the watch are engravings which epitomise 8 decades of Pininfarina.

In a limited edition of just 80 pieces and with a coffer cracking price of $300,000

Price:$300k
Source:Bovet