Ornatus-Mundi
[Zenith]
7136
The Master Complication RS 38: World's slimmest Perpetual Calendar Minute Repeater
The 'crown' of the Ellicott collection certainly is the Master Complication RS 38: A (-nother?) homage to John Ellicott's admission to the Royal Society in 1738, this time with a set of complications that can make watch connoisseurs' heats melt: a perpetual calendar with moonphase combined with a minute repeater in such a way that the result is the flatted movement in its class:
The Master Complications follows the design cues of the Royal Skeleton case and combines it with the dial concept of the Majesty. The outcome is a blend of elements that - to my view - works nicely with this timepiece: The watch is in no way overloaded with dials, the calendar functions are well legible and the face has a strong appeal (to me at least).
Admired from a close angle the Master complication unveils its subtle and refined combination of boldness and elegance:
There are a few inconsistencies still in this piece but I think we can attribute this to the prototype version I have seen.
The side presents a double-rim 'dog collar' case band and a very slim and almost fragile minute repeater lever. I have to admit that I find this a very compelling solution (in the context of the this watch, where the complications should speak for itself without shouting out loudly).
Fully turned over we discover a thoroughbred, traditional minute repeater movement. I could not identify it but I could imagine this being based upon a Le Coultre ebauche. Note the traditional click on the mainspring barrel, and the full-bridge design. And of course not to forget the cathedral gongs (we come to that later!):
The finishing is traditional as well and of a high standard. Note the overall flatness of this masterpiece: For a movement comprising a minute repeater, a perpetual calendar and a moonphase display and made out of 388 parts an overall thickness of 5.11 mm is quite an achievement!
Another fascinating aspect is found in the extremely sharp engraving of the inscriptions:
Fully turned over we discover a thoroughbred, traditional minute repeater movement. I could not identify it but I could imagine this being based upon a Le Coultre ebauche. Note the traditional click on the mainspring barrel, and the full-bridge design. And of course not to forget the cathedral gongs (we come to that later!):
The finishing is traditional as well and of a high standard. Note the overall flatness of this masterpiece: For a movement comprising a minute repeater, a perpetual calendar and a moonphase display and made out of 388 parts an overall thickness of 5.11 mm is quite an achievement!
Another fascinating aspect is found in the extremely sharp engraving of the inscriptions:
The following video gives and impression on how the light play with the watch, and of course how well the minute repeater is tuned - remarkably given the company has little experience with such elaborate pieces!
Finally, what do you expect if you have the chance to strap on such a piece? I myself appreciate the fresh look of this complicated timepiece, its superb sound and its relative low-key nature!
Baselworld 2013: Ellicott: Watches Fit for a King...
For most of you (and until I saw them also for me) the brand Ellicott 1738 is unknown territory. However, the name is certainly not new, nor is the philosophy or the people behind it! Ellicott is named after British watchmaker John Ellicott jr. (1706-1772...
The Royal Skeleton: celebrating 275th anniversary of Ellicott's induction to Royal Society
With this watch Ellicott is honouring John Ellicott’s admission into the prestigious Royal Society. This year marks the 275th anniversary of his induction. The watch, called Royal Skeleton , is a powerfully design skeletonised watch driven by a handwound ...
100% sure it is a Concepto movement.
The shape of the spring can't lie... Thanks Magnus! Fx
The Majesty Collection: crowned by an in-house movement with circumferential rotor
The Ellicott Majesty is not exactly a new watch, it was presented already in 2010. In fact, it enjoyed some public attention when it was presented in 2011 to the then Colonel in Chief, His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales. However, its a milestone for E...
The Mach One SkyEagle watch: an unusual monopusher chronograph
The sports-addicted collection in Ellicott's stable, the Mach One collection , gets a new edition of the SkyEagle monousher chronograph: No, I have not photographed the watch upside-down! The movement is modified in that it (i) shows the escapement on the...
The Master Complication RS 38: World's slimmest Perpetual Calendar Minute Repeater
The 'crown' of the Ellicott collection certainly is the Master Complication RS 38 : A (-nother?) homage to John Ellicott's admission to the Royal Society in 1738, this time with a set of complications that can make watch connoisseurs' heats melt: a perpet...
I have mixed emotions here...
The sound seems to be excellent and the movement is superb. But I find the dial a bit too simplist. Thanks a lot for this comprehensive presentation! Fx
Conclusion Ellicott watches: Fit for a King, but also for you?
Instead of a foreword: Drafting my personal summary and conclusions on Ellicott was not an easy task, in fact I tried to procrastinate as much as I could ;-). The reason: I enjoyed a warm and personal welcome at their Basel booth, which makes it even hard...
great review Marcus.
not sure on the chrono, but the others look really nice and just that little bit unusual. best Graham
Magnus - this series of posts is SUPERB!!!!
Thank you for your efforts. I also appreciate your honesty. It is our duty to present all points to the Community and everyone can decide on their own. Visually, I like many of the elements I see in these watches. Certainly enough that I would like to try...
Would the issue of 'relationship' and 'connection'...
be entirely different if - say - the owners of the brand were Ellicott collectors and at some point decided that it would be a great challenge to revive the brand? I guess I have that answer.... Thanks for your comment, Magnus
Ellicott 1738: some good and some bad points
Thanks Magnus for the introduction. Others have already pointed out the incongruence of taking on a British name for a start-up Swiss company run by an Italian. It could be worse if it were a British company taking a Swiss watchmaking name! There are cert...
On the back crystal...
Your comments are of course valid, and I missed one aspect: The crystal echoes the shape of the proprietary screws... On your conclusion ( "the range provides 'choice' to punters who want to be different" ) - yes, I think you have a point here! Cheers, Ma...
Intersting new brand
They seem to know what they are doing! Beautiful design. Would love to see in person to look closer the finishing and the actual size on my wrist :-) Thanks for the article, Magnus. Ken
Thanks for bringing us closer to Ellicott
Great report and commentary. I like the look and feel of the Ellicott dials because it's masculine, simple, and has a lot of depth to it. Thanks for the 2 videos on the minute repeater. It sounds pretty good if you ask me - I like the tempo, tone, and the...
Great Review, Agree on the Name...
Thank you for the detailed review of these watches and the discussion of the brand. This brand is hardly the only one to purchase an obsolete name in hopes of providing gravitas to the company and maybe fool some buyers who don't realize that this is a co...
I don't understand it as well
If I were to make my own watches, poor my heart and soul into this project, and fund the project with my hard earned money, why would I want to name my watch brand after someone else? It's going to have my own name on it or a name I make up. I'd never sla...