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Only Watch 2023: MB&F and H. Moser 

We continue to highlight a few of our favorite watches from among the more than sixty watchmakers that have created timepieces for the Only Watch charity auction, which commences Sunday, November 5, in Geneva. Christie’s will auction these incredible one-of-a-kind watches to raise funds that benefit research in the battle against Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy.

While you may have seen a few of the watches set for auction earlier this year when Only Watch announced them, we thought you’d enjoy seeing many of these impressive designs again just ahead of the event.

The watches are currently touring the globe. After concluding their U.S. visit at Christie’s in New York on September 17, the tour will visit Monaco next, followed by stops in Hong Kong, Bangkok, Singapore, Dubai and back in Geneva. See the Only Watch website for tour dates and details.

The H. Moser X MB&F Streamliner Pandamonium.

Here we highlight the H. Moser X MB&F Streamliner Pandamonium, the Only Watch entry for both MB&F and H. Moser. 

This unusual creation, named to emphasize the ‘panda,’ combines elements we’ve seen in earlier designs from both of these pioneering independent watchmakers. On top of the dial you’ll see a miniature white gold panda, which is already a signature of the Only Watch creations by MB&F.

Here the Panda is the DJ for the minute repeater visible on the fumé dial.

As MB&F founder Max Büsser explains, “Our original panda was created as an allegory for Only Watch 2011, and returned in 2021, before now making its third appearance in 2023. This time, it is an invitation to immerse yourself in the world of music and lose all touch with reality for just a few beats”.

The watch’s dial showcases the large suspended balance wheel characteristic of other MB&F watches, while the stunning aquamarine dial echoes the minimalism found throughout the H. Moser collection. 

The dial’s ‘turntables’ are fitted on the axis of the hammers and are driven by the rotation of the mechanism as it operates. The 5.35mm tall miniature took hours to create and build. The unusual balance wheel required its maker to first bend the gongs in two places to allow them to pass over the balance wheel bridge. Occupying three dimensions, the shaped gongs feature a flat coil and an upper coil, positioned one on top of the other.

Furthermore, H. Moser built the minute repeater’s sliding bolt on a Teflon runner to ensure it slides perfectly smoothly. It’s built into the main plate to save space. The case middle has been completely hollowed out in order to accommodate the movement while allowing enough space to create a soundbox. 

Estimate: CHF 300,000 to CHF 400,000

 

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Only Watch 2023 Favorites: Gerald Genta 

We continue to highlight a few of our favorite watches from among the more than sixty watchmakers that have created timepieces for the Only Watch charity auction, which commences Sunday, November 5, in Geneva. Christie’s will auction these incredible one-of-a-kind watches to raise funds that benefit research in the battle against Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy.

While you may have seen a few of the watches set for auction earlier this year when Only Watch announced them, we thought you’d enjoy seeing many of these impressive designs again just ahead of the event.

The watches are currently touring the globe. After concluding their U.S. visit at Christie’s in New York on September 17, the tour will visit Monaco next, followed by stops in Hong Kong, Bangkok, Singapore, Dubai and back in Geneva. See the Only Watch website for tour dates and details.

In this post we highlight the entry from Gérald Genta. 

In its first participation in Only Watch, Gérald Genta unveils a minute repeater watch with  Disney’s Mickey Mouse. The watch represents the first time a Gérald Genta watch combines a minute repeater complication with a minute retrograde displayed by an animated Mickey Mouse.

The octagonal 40mm white gold watch features a enamel grand feu gold dial with champlevé with an enameled figure of Mickey Mouse indicating the time and holding a birthday cake with one hand to celebrate Disney’s 100th anniversary and the 10th edition of Only Watch.

Mickey’s right arm is animated and displays the minute retrograde on an arch from 0 to 60; a display shows the jumping hour.

From the back an observer can admire an all-new Manufacture caliber GG-001 developed and manufactured at La Fabrique du Temps Louis Vuitton under the supervision of Michel Navas and Enrico Barbasini. Both watchmakers have worked with Mr. Genta himself. A red ruby cabochon is crimped into the winding & time-setting crown at 3 o’clock.

Estimate: CHF 350,000 – 500,000

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Only Watch 2023 Favorites: Bell & Ross  

We continue to highlight a few of our favorite watches from among the more than sixty watchmakers that have created timepieces for the Only Watch charity auction, which commences Sunday, November 5, in Geneva. Christie’s will auction these incredible one-of-a-kind watches to raise funds that benefit research in the battle against Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy.

While you may have seen a few of the watches set for auction earlier this year when Only Watch announced them, we thought you’d enjoy seeing many of these impressive designs again just ahead of the event.

The watches are currently touring the globe. After concluding their U.S. visit at Christie’s in New York on September 17, the tour will visit Monaco next, followed by stops in Hong Kong, Bangkok, Singapore, Dubai and back in Geneva. See the Only Watch website for tour dates and details. 

The Bell & Ross BR 03 Cyber Rainbow.

In this post we highlight the BR 03 Cyber Rainbow, the Bell & Ross entry to Only Watch 2023. The colorful model is a new take on the watchmaker’s own Cyber concept series, 

It offers a black DLC case measuring 42mm x 43.7mm and a full 3D skeleton movement with an oscillating weight with bridges made from DLC micro-blasted metal.

The movement is suspended by bridges filled with colorful varnish; the watch’s micro-blasted metal hands are enhanced with white SuperLuminova. All indices are metalized inside the sapphire.

Bell & Ross has even colorized the rubber strap using varnish, resulting in an eye-catching mosaic pattern. 

Estimate: CHF 45,000 -CHF 55,000.

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Only Watch 2023 Favorites: Ulysse Nardin  

We continue to highlight a few of our favorite watches from among the more than sixty watchmakers that have created timepieces for the Only Watch charity auction, which commences Sunday, November 5, in Geneva. Christie’s will auction these incredible one-of-a-kind watches to raise funds that benefit research in the battle against Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy.

While you may have seen a few of the watches set for auction earlier this year when Only Watch announced them, we thought you’d enjoy seeing many of these impressive designs again just ahead of the event.

The watches are currently touring the globe. After concluding their U.S. visit at Christie’s in New York on September 17, the tour will visit Monaco next, followed by stops in Hong Kong, Bangkok, Singapore, Dubai and back in Geneva. See the Only Watch website for tour dates and details.

In this post we highlight the entry from Ulysse Nardin. 

For Only Watch 2023 Ulysse Nardin create the Freak S Only Watch (above), an iteration of the Freak S launched in 2022. This one-of-a-kind edition features a colorful interpretation of the watch’s UN-251 caliber, with red, pink, blue, green, yellow and orange coloring based on the Only Watch colors.

To review, the Freak S is a 45mm carrousel watch in a black DLC titanium case with no hands, no dial and no crown. Two bridges rotate around its center to indicate the hours and minutes. An arrow shows the hours while the nose cone of the spaceship indicates the minutes.

Furthermore, while a classic tourbillon balance wheel makes one rotation per minute within a cage, here entire movement makes a complete turn on itself in one hour. To set the time the wearer rotates the bezel in a clockwise or counterclockwise direction.

Estimate: CHF 160,000 – CHF 200,000.

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Only Watch 2023 Favorites: Hublot 

We continue to highlight a few of our favorite watches from among the more than sixty watchmakers that have created timepieces for the Only Watch charity auction, which commences Sunday, November 5, in Geneva. Christie’s will auction these incredible one-of-a-kind watches to raise funds that benefit research in the battle against Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy.

While you may have seen a few of the watches set for auction earlier this year when Only Watch announced them, we thought you’d enjoy seeing many of these impressive designs again just ahead of the event.

The watches are currently touring the globe. After concluding their U.S. visit at Christie’s in New York on September 17, the tour will visit Monaco next, followed by stops in Hong Kong, Bangkok, Singapore, Dubai and back in Geneva. See the Only Watch website for tour dates and details.

In this post we highlight The MP-15 Takashi Murakami Tourbillon Only Watch (pictured above) by Hublot and the artist, another exceptional piece in the auction this year. Like many in this year’s auction, it glows with bright color and requires a high technical level of workmanship.

This sapphire-cased watch showcases a unique central tourbillon especially conceived for this watch. In addition to showing Hublot’s technical acumen, the idea here is to show that the tourbillon represents the heart of the person who buys it at the auction.

Murakami explicitly requested the inclusion of a central tourbillon, which is now Hublot’s very first central tourbillon.

In this design, the cannon pinion and the hour wheel had to be pivoted around the tourbillon support by creating a co-axial construction. This was made possible thanks to the central flying tourbillon that is seemingly suspended in mid-air with two hands passing under its cage to indicate the hours and minutes.

These hands gravitate towards twelve luminescent indices that echo the colors of the 2023 edition of the Only Watch. And with two barrels, the manual movement offers an incredible 150-hour power reserve. Mounted in series but on a single plane, these barrels can be admired through the sapphire case back.

Estimate: CHF 350,000 – CHF 400,000.

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