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The Hysek Colossal Grande a Masterclass in Complexity
Luxury Swiss watch maker Hysek celebrates its 20th birthday this year, along with the 10th anniversary of its ‘manufacture’ status.
And what else for a company renowned for its innovative and intricate complications to do than create a truly stunning complex timepiece to mark the occasion?
Step forward the limited edition Colossal Grande Complication watch, only available in 18-karat rose gold and featuring one of the most complex vertical linear displays ever constructed.
Introduced at the recent Baselworld fair in Switzerland, the Grande Complication contains a total of 1,080 components and is said to have taken three years to develop. The movement itself – called the HW80 caliber – takes 240 hours to assemble.
The tourbillon beats at a fast rate of 4Hz and it has a balance wheel made out of titanium and a balance spring made out of a special alloy called PE4000.
The watch measures 44mm wide, 57mm lug to lug, and is 18mm thick. Instead of a circular display using flat gears, it features roller-based numeric linear displays that use vertical gears, and displays the time in a 24-hour format.
Underneath the time display sits a large three-dimensional moon that also serves as the moon phase indicator. To the left of this is a dual-timezone indicator, and to the right is the leap year indicator for the linear perpetual calendar below at 6 o’clock. A power reserve indicator can be read off the smaller sapphire window on the right side of the case.
The Hysek Colossal Grande Complication is limited to just 8 pieces. Pricing has not yet been revealed yet, but is expected to be in the region of $700,000.