Every once in a while a watch comes along that makes me seriously reflect on where my life has gone so terribly wrong. You know, the kind of watch that you fall head over heels for on first sight, yet immediately know that you’ll probably never be able to afford it. A brand with which this happens to me pretty often is Ulysse Nardin, with this year’s object of desire being the Imperial Blue from Baselworld 2014.
Why do I think it’s so great? Well, you really have to look back at Ulysse Nardin’s previous complicated pieces to understand just why the Royal Blue stands out. On one hand, you have the brand’s super-complicated chiming pieces, like the Genghis Khan featuring Westminster Carillon Tourbillon Jaquemarts Minute Repeater. While there’s nothing not to live about its complexity and exuberant finishing, the animation of the Jaquemarts figures may not be to everyone’s liking.
Then you have the Royal Blue Tourbillon (I reviewed the Royal Ruby version here), a watch with a visually captivating movement consisting of transparent and blue sapphire bridges and plate. But unlike the Genghis Khan or Alexander the Great, the Royal Blue was just a tourbillon, albeit a handsome one. And while it’s not really fair to say “just a tourbillon”, you have to admit that given the number of tourbillons offered by brands in a wide range of price segments (not to mention the advent of the Chinese-made tourbillon) the complication has become somewhat lackluster over the past decade. Still, I’ve always been a fan of the Ulysse Nardin Royal Blue Tourbillon for its original execution of a transparent sapphire movement, which was far less common back in 2005 when it first came out. It has the kind of over-the-top looks that are eye-catching without being gaudy.
And that’s precisely what I love about the Imperial Blue: it combines the mechanical complexity of the brand’s signature chiming pieces with the killer looks of the Royal Blue Tourbillon. Sonically speaking, the Imperial Blue has a Sonnerie Westminster Carillon, meaning that the minute repeater chimes the on-demand time using four different chimes (Mi-Do-Re-Sol), while also ringing these four notes for every passing hour.
Because minute repeaters and chiming pieces aren’t exactly the most energy-efficient complications out there, the two barrels are cleverly designed so that the right one provides power for the timekeeping side of the movement, while the left one provides the power required by the minute repeater. To ensure that the repeater always has enough power for one complete set of chimes, the left barrel rotates several times when the sliding activator on the left of the case is pushed up, winding the barrel just enough to sound the minute repeater’s four gongs. The right and left barrels can be wound by rotating the crown clockwise or counterclockwise, respectively.
Aesthetically speaking, the Imperial Blue has tremendous volume (no pun intended), as evident from the four hammers stacked in twos. The blue sapphire bridge partially veils the two barrels, with a double-window big date aperture just above them, which can be quickset using the pusher at 2 o’clock.
Needless to say, there’s a lot of blue here. Besides the blue sapphire bridge, the flying tourbillon case is set with a faceted blue sapphire gemstone. And If you look closely, you’ll notice that even the repeater’s gongs have been blued.
Turn over the watch and the case back reveals the underside of this astonishing movement, with the metal bridges finished with Côtes-de-Genève stripes and finely beveled and polished edges, also given the blue treatment. A nice touch you definitely don’t see very often. From a more technical perspective, the case back is fitted with an “ON/OFF” watch for the Carillon to stop it from chiming at every passing hour, thus conserving energy.
So you see, the Ulysse Nardin Imperial Blue has got it all: one of the most impressive chiming movements in a gloriously handsome package. Of course, all this horological bliss would set you back a considerable sum, a tad over $850,000 USD to be precise. Hey, a man can dream, can’t he?
More information on www.ulysse-nardin.com
