Ulysse Nardin Marine Mega Yacht
Watches & Wonders: Ulysse Nardin Introduces The Marine Mega Yacht (Hands-On and Pricing)
Today at the Miami Yacht Show, Ulysse Nardin made waves with their new Marine Mega Yacht.
By Vincent Daveau
Contributor
Ulysse Nardin has long maintained a certain spirit of independence. Almost since its founding, the brand has specialized in marine chronometers. Whether they were marine chronometers or officer's bridge watches, Ulysse Nardin has long guaranteed the safety of the world’s navigators. Ulysse Nardin is a company who is always looking for technical solutions which push the limits of functionality while preserving readability. Today at the Miami Yacht Show, Ulysse Nardin has unleashed The Marine Mega Yacht. This piece has a strong aesthetic and an atypical caliber, which fits perfectly in the spirit of the house.
A watch dedicated to prestigious yachts owners
Produced in only 30 pieces, the Marine Mega Yacht is a 44mm platinum watch which continues a logical extension of the Marine Grand Deck Tourbillon launched in 2016. This novelty intends to make waves in the small world of yachting and the world of watchmaking. With a unique dial showing a 3D representation of the bow of a luxury yacht cracking a sea of foam made by hand in enamel "Grand Feu." To maintain nautical consistency, the manufacture has created a tourbillon cage whose structure is inspired by a superyacht with a profile of a propeller. Also, the piece also displays the phases of the moon and tide in a very original way.
Sailors have long used the moon as a navigational tool, the moon’s influence on the tides on this piece is well represented with the help of a realistic sphere at nine o’clock. With a blue treated face representing the new moon and a silver portion for parts exposed to the light. This display is associated with two other indications, which are essential for mariners sailing near the shores of areas subject to tidal effects. The display in the oval window offers a real-time view of the tide height in the area considered, once it has been adjusted following the information provided by the zone's nautical almanac or by the harbor master's closest office.
The other indication will allow the sailors to know the coefficient of the current tide, thus displaying low or high tide. Adjustments can be made with the help of the winding crown. In the intermediate position, the moon phase and the tidal range are adjusted by turning the crown in a counter-clockwise direction (1 round crown corresponds to 4 days) while in the clockwise direction, the operator sets the level of the tide according to the place where it is (1 turn of crown corresponds to 0.25 turn of the disc meaning 9.5 hours).
Cast off the moorings of the concrete while climbing anchor
In this watch, the reading of the time remains with the traditional hour/minute hands. However, because Ulysse Nardin's habit is never to do like everyone else, the power reserve display is highly unusual. A special hand-wound mechanical power gauge indicator was developed in-house. Through a collaboration with the team of the Christophe Claret manufacture (ref Cal UN-631).
For this piece, it is the organeau - aka the point of connection between the anchor and the chain which serves as a reference point to indicate the remaining time of operation. And this display will not be useless since its power reserve lasts eight days. The purists and lovers of playful mechanics will particularly appreciate the treatment of the indication because, when the watch is wound up by hand, the power reserve starts to work and seems to raise the anchor chain and so, the anchor itself.
But all this is an illusion and to achieve this effect it has required watchmakers to find innovative solutions. Once the watch has gone back to the bottom (proverbial “sea”) the windless (i.e., the anchor hoist) pulls the anchor by a small chain. To ensure a constant tension of links, watchmakers found a watchmaking strategy and coupled it with a (very) strong spiral.
Mega watch for your mega yacht
In the end, this atypical creation with a unique caliber offers a new approach in watchmaking. The Ulysse Nardin Marine Mega Yacht is priced at $310,000 USD. This piece promises to meet the expectations of superyachts owners that, until now, had not found watches that equal their ship. With this exceptional piece, the deal is sealed.
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