A domed case made of sapphire houses a spinning 288-sided diamond, which in turn goes around a hand-painted model of the Earth while both are revolving around the center, signifying the sun, every 20 minutes.
This quirky contraption, a £370,000 design, has a tourbillon — the watch's brains — that projects in a different direction and spins on three simultaneous axes. There is a fourth arm that also revolves.
Dubbed the Astronomia, the timepiece is just one of the hundreds showcased at this year's ongoing Baselworld, a watch and jewellery trade show held in Basel, Switzerland. Different chrono companies like world renowned Omega and Bremont, along with independent watchmakers, participate to celebrate and show the world how they plan to combine exquisite designs with today's smart wearable revolution.
Former Louis Vuitton and Tissot designer Francois Quentin's 4N is an example of how independent watch makers plan to apply old-world charms to today's smartwatches. His designs are conformist with today's wearables, displaying digits and telling time in a rectangular watch face. However, how he manages to come out with every piece is intricacy at its best.
"Collectors want very complicated watches with high finishing," Quentin told BBC. "To make each watch I need two months to assemble it and one month to test its 10-day power reserve."
On the other end of the Baselworld spectrum, Omega flaunts its diamond-encrusted Seamaster Ploprof 1200M Co-axial Master Chronometer. This timepiece is the company's premium flagship, and the $760,000 might be justified — the watch is encased in hardy titanium and the ceramic bezel is uncrusted with 40 carats of diamonds.
Other watchmakers also flaunted their premium timepieces, making this year's Baselworld much more exquisite, and blurring the lines between fine jewelry and function-based wearables. There is Blancpain's Bathyscaphe at $20,200; Rolex's Yachtmaster Everose, with a price tag of $24,950; and the limited edition Seiko Marine Master 300m.
