Last week, we featured various types of watch faces and dials in these columns. But we missed this one, may be because it is so unique. In fact, it has no hands as such. Instead, the planets literally tell the time.
Bell & Ross’ BR-03 Astro paints a clear picture of what Earth looks like from space. The centre of the dial has a big sphere that looks so realistic—everything that surrounds planet Earth, from the stars to the moon, has been featured on the dial. By placing the Earth at its centre, surrounded by the Moon and Mars, Bell & Ross pays homage to the Blue Planet and offers a fresh perspective on its watchmaking expertise.
Designed to evoke the spirit of space exploration, the watch features the Earth, Moon, and Mars travelling across its dial, connecting the wearer to the wonders of the universe. A small satellite marks the seconds by completing a full orbit around the Earth in 60 seconds, while the Moon indicates the minutes and Mars follows its orbit to display the passing hours.
The famed watchmaker went all out with this new watch and redefined the conventional way of doing things. The watch is actually square, but the dial within is round. Instead of printing a picture in the middle of the dial, it chiselled a 3D sphere on the centre of the watch. Housed in a 41mm-wide, micro-blasted black ceramic case, the glass of the dial is carved into a spherical cap, allowing for a realistic representation of Earth in both volume and decal. The minute hand – the Moon – is in laser-engraved metal to show the craters, and the second hand – the satellite – is also in laser-engraved metal. The weight and positioning of the hands were carefully calculated, especially to support the engraved Moon, ensuring a harmonious and balanced design.
BR-03 Astro is inspired by the Cupola, the observation dome of the International Space Station (ISS), acting as a porthole opening onto the planets. This design required meticulous attention to detail, including a decal process beneath the glass to maintain precision and legibility.
Beating as the watch’s heart, the BR-CAL.327 self-winding movement ensures a continuous running time of around 55 hours. The timepiece will be launched with a black rubber strap, but it will also feature an additional fabric strap. The watch has a depth rating of 100 metres, despite its complexity.
“The magic of this watch lies in its display—not as a technical interpretation of an instrument watch but, for once, in an imaginative dimension,” said Bruno Belamich, Creative Director and Co-Founder of Bell & Ross. Conceptual in spirit, the BR-03 Astro is also highly technical in execution.
This is a limited edition watch (999 pieces) priced at US$ 4,800 (Rs.1.4 million). This is not a conventional watch by any means and most of the first users say they needed some time to tell the time using this watch, but it feels heavenly to wear the cosmos on your wrist.
