The most convex: Arnold & Son Globetrotter
Despite its height of 17.2 mm, the new universal hour watch from Arnold & Son in no way resembles a saucepan. Its highest point is indeed a point – the zenith of a broad sapphire dome, above a wide arched bridge, which in turn supports a half-globe. The rest of the case is a normal thickness.
The reddest: Hublot Big Bang Unico Red Magic
Red strap, bezel, hands, dial accents – so far, so conventional. But an entire case in bright red? That’s a first. Hublot has succeeded in dying an impressive quantity of ceramic “in the mass”, and made a watch case out of it. The difficulty, apparently, lies in firing the ceramic at exactly the right temperature to ensure the red doesn’t turn brown.
The classiest: Patek Philippe Ellipse d'Or
There was no shortage of simple, understated three-handed watches at Baselworld 2018. But none of them could outclass the new Ellipse. In the biggest size, it has hitherto been available only in platinum. But now it also comes in rose gold with a sunbrushed black dial, an unusually beautiful and incredibly classy combination.
The most complicated: Jacob & Co. Twin Turbo Furious
With the Twin Turbo, Jacob & Co. succeeded in incorporating two triaxial tourbillons and a minute repeater in a timelessly stylish case. The Furious version adds a chronograph, enabling the wearer to compare a lap time with a reference time.
The most enormous: Rebellion T2M
Figures alone don’t tell the whole story. But they come close. It’s 58 mm tall, 53 mm wide and 23 mm deep. It’s so huge that I didn’t take any photos with it on my wrist, because it would look too obviously disproportionate.
The thinnest: Bulgari Octo Finissimo Tourbillon Automatic
This is by far the slimmest tourbillon watch in the world. But that’s not all it is. With a thickness of just 3.95 mm, it is a mere 0.3 mm deeper than the thinnest watch on the market, and that one hasn’t got a tourbillon! It is also 10% thinner than the thinnest automatic, which also doesn’t have a tourbillon. In short, it’s quite an achievement.
The coldest: Chopard Happy Snowflakes
Is the dial made of some frozen liquid? No, it’s diamonds – snow-set all over the bezel and dial. Nestled among the precious stones are snowflakes made of mother-of-pearl marquetry. Plus there’s another free-falling snowflake, as you would expect in a Happy. To finish things off, engraved on the underside of the sapphire crystal are even more snowflakes, to add depth. Brrrr.
The most mauve: de Grisogono Cascata
The watch industry’s chromatic repertoire is broadening considerably. But it may now have reached the final frontier: mauve. De Grisogono has smothered its Cascata model in a lavish coating of amethysts. Careful, they’re fragile.
The most oxidised: Chronométrie Ferdinand Berthoud FB 1R Edition 1785
The five unique watches in this sub-collection by Chronométrie Ferdinand Berthoud pay tribute to 18th-century marine navigation instruments, and are inspired by the ill-fated voyage of La Pérouse. The extreme (albeit stabilised) patina of this bronze regulator is modelled on that of a sextant recovered near to the site of the wreck.
