Vianney Halter, the Swiss watchmaker is known for innovative timepieces and advanced horology. After a mind-bending retro-futuristic watch Antiqua, in 1998, the brand has launched a new timepiece and it’s out-of-this-world!
Twenty-five years into making, the Deep Space Resonance introduces a breakthrough at the heart of his emblematic 3 axis tourbillon. Vianney reengineered the tourbillon cage to integrate two acoustically synchronized balance wheels in the triple-axis tourbillon. The timepiece is a tribute to undulatory physics, galaxy-shaking events and our Universe’s very fundamental mechanisms.
Inspired from the early 1800s blueprints of Abraham Louis Breguet’s attempts to achieve resonance- a physical phenomenon in which an external force or a vibrating system forces another system around it to vibrate with greater amplitude at a specified frequency of operation. Halter began his research in 2007, wherein he used identical Russian deck watches that give him identical gear trains. In 2016 when gravitational waves were detected, confirming the existence of two collapsing black holes, Halter’s research found a breakthrough. Introducing the Deep Space Tourbillon in 2013, a 3 axis central tourbillon to show you the physical dimensions, surrounded by the display of our 4th dimension, time, Halter decided to add the resonance oscillators to this timepiece.
The Deep Space Resonance Prototype works took over the entirety of 2020. The 42 polished curved pillars that hold the bridges are a testimony to Achille Benoît’s beautiful 1939 marine chronometer. With a 65-hour power reserve, every part of the mechanism is traditionally decorated and refined by hand for a breathtaking effect. The dial is inspired by the Vernier caliper – a tool used to precisely measure the distance. The Hours and Quarters can be read in the top aperture. At the bottom aperture, one can read the supplemental minutes by finding where the marks match the best.
The Deep Space Resonance retails for CHF 860,000 (about $972,000), excluding taxes, shipping and insurance, is available now for pre-order. According to the spokesperson, Halter would not make more than two examples in a year.
