The tenth collaboration with Switzerland’s premier clockmaker L’Epée 1839 and a clock where MB&F plunges into warm ocean waters to create the Medusa, a dual-configuration clock, housed in hand-blown Murano glass, that can be ceiling mounted or stood upon a desk. With its central mass formed by a large transparent dome of hand-blown Murano glass that evokes the bell-shaped body of a mature jellyfish. Two rotating rings, one displaying the hours and the other displaying the minutes, are visible through the dome, and the time is read off a single fixed indicator that extends over the rings. Like a jellyfish glowing in the abyss, Medusa glows in the dark thanks to superluminova. A 2.5Hz —18,000vph— mechanical movement beats underneath the time indication, forming the pulsating heart of this mechanical creature.
The movement of Medusa is entirely new and required over two years of development by L’Epée 1839. Whereas the other co-creations had separate points of winding and setting, Medusa required a combined system for winding and setting, since the surrounding glass dome limits access to the movement. Furthermore, in order to maximize the visual impact of the clock and reinforce the source of its design inspiration, the movement was engineered around a central axis, mimicking the radial symmetry of a jellyfish’s neural column.
Independent designer Fabrice Gonet first proposed Medusa in 2016 to MB&F founder Maximilian Büsser, who immediately saw the appeal of Gonet’s sketch and recognised the essential spirit of an MB&F creation in its lines. Says Büsser: “I’ve known Fabrice for some years but we never had the chance to work together before. When he wanted to show me one of his designs, I accepted, even though I don’t normally say yes to this kind of thing —also because I saw that his design was of a clock and not a watch. The vision was so clear that, in the end, the final clock turned out to be very close to the initial sketch!”
Medusa comes in three limited editions of 50 pieces, each in a different color – blue, green and pink – chosen to reflect the natural hues of a jellyfish. Live Pictures to follow. Stay tuned!
Sticker Price CHF25,500 Swiss Francs —approximately $26,000 USD. For more info on MB&F click here.
