New Watch! • 30 Aug 2022
URWERK UR-100V Goes UltraViolet
The latest URWERK creation reinterprets the UR-100V in an ultraviolet purple, in an exploration of the limits and pushing the boundaries of the perceivable.
The Far End of Colour
Martin Frei talks about the colour that is so special to him: “I like the fact that a colour is much more than what we can perceive. The colour spectrum visible to our eyes ranges from red to violet. Beyond that shade, colour turns into a waveform that our eyes can no longer detect, ultraviolet. I am fascinated by the idea of creating a watch that celebrates this boundary, this tipping point, this transition from perceptible to imperceptible. The UR-100V UltraViolet is about this exploration of the limits. Our UltraViolet conveys something mystical, it’s a hue that sits on the border of a dimension we call colour.”
Trademark Satellite Configuration
Beneath the distinctive UR-100V dome is the satellite configuration of wandering hours and minutes. Powering this is the new Calibre 12.02 with a redesigned carousel. Reading time is easier than ever, by positioning the hours closer to the minutes as they travel in succession along the 60-minute scale. And in typical URWERK style, the finishing on the is as detailed as the construction. The carousel and the structure on top of the hours are forced from anodised aluminium, then sanded and shot-blasted. The satellite screws are individually circular sanded. The ruthenium carousel, where the satellites sit, are brass-plated and sanded. Keeping things powered is the self-winding rotor, a profiled airscrew known as the Windfänger.
A Journey Through Space and Time
The UR-100V UltraViolet brings one’s journey through space into sharp focus. Once the minute hand completes its 60-minute journey, it reappears on a 20-minute scale of 555 kilometers – the distance one travels in 20 minutes when standing on Earth’s equator. The opposite scale tracks the journey through space around the sun in the same amount of time – 35,740km. The inspiration for these displays come from a clock from Geri Baumgartner, Felix’s father and a noted restorer of antique clocks. The Gustave Sandoz clock, made for the 1893 Universal Exhibition, shows the distance travelled by a point on the equator instead of the time.
The URWERK UR-100V UltraViolet comes in a violet DLC sand shot-blasted titanium case with a white rubber strap and violet titanium clasp. It has a 48 hour power reserve and is water resistant to 30 metres.