URWERK revives a house original with the UR-101 Diamond Sky, a 25-piece series that turns its early wandering-hours idea into a luminous statement. Time slides left to right on a 180-degree arc while a gem-set canopy keeps watch. It is less nostalgia than continuation – the brand’s first language, now spoken with a brighter accent.
The steel case is mechanically engraved with a geometric network, each intersection set with a diamond – 214 D-E-F VVS+ stones totaling 1.63 carats – forming an abstract constellation. Light does the decoration here; the structure does the talking. As Martin Frei notes, the hexagonal arrangement seeks balance and clarity, guiding the eye as stars guide a traveller.
The DNA is intact: satellite display, crown at 12 o’clock, angular lugs, radical legibility. The UR-101 Diamond Sky keeps the mechanics honest while letting light roam free. Felix Baumgartner calls it an extension of an intuition – a dial that breaks with habit without breaking the reading of time.
Movement: calibre UR-1.01V, self-winding, 28 jewels, 28,800 vph at 4 Hz, 48-hour power reserve. Materials include copper, brass and ARCAP P40. Finishing is suitably frank and functional – snailing, sandblasting, satin-brushing – with chamfered screw heads.
Indications: wandering hours on two satellites with minutes, hour and minute markers painted with Super-LumiNova®. Legibility remains the point, even when the stars twinkle.
Case: 41 mm steel, 9.33 mm thick, glareproofed and metallised sapphire crystal, pressure-tested to 30 m. The engraving gives depth; the diamonds give orientation. It feels like a technical showcase rather than jewelry for jewelry’s sake.
Strap: textured white rubber with black calfskin lining, steel pin buckle. Price: CHF 85,000 before tax. Edition: 25 pieces.
Born of the 1997 originals, this UR-101 prefers trajectory over spectacle. It is for those who see a watch as an idea in motion – time tracing its path while fixed stars mark the map. No fireworks, just a quiet firmament and a hand that knows where it is going.
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