Ulysse Nardin’s Freak Vision showcases maison’s know-how of silicium

Ulysse Nardin is not afraid of breaking rules. The luxury Swiss watchmaker unveiled the Freak Vision today at Salon International de la Haute Horlogerie (SIHH). The watch features a superlight silicium balance wheel with nickel mass elements and stabilising micro-blades housed in a new case design made even thinner by a box-domed sapphire crystal.

The timepiece boasts astounding visual aesthetics, which echo its name the “Freak Vision”. The 3D carved upper bridge inspired by a boat’s hull as well as the “flying carousel” rotating around its own axis create a statement dial design that is unmistakably Ulysse Nardin.

Ulysse Nardin first embraced silicium in 2001 with the earliest Freak timepiece. The Freak Vision is its first watch to mix silicium with solid nickel elements for an ultralight balance wheel as well as silicium micro-blades to increase accuracy.

The watch, which comes in a 45mm-diameter platinum case, is priced at 95,000 Swiss francs (HK$760,210).