Not all images were able to load for printing. Please close the print window and try again. The Spellbinding ArtyA Purity Moissanite Curvy Tourbillon
Floating in a golden, luminous moissanite case with rainbow prisms, ArtyA’s Curvy Tourbillon is a sight to behold.
ArtyA is an independent Geneva-based brand founded by Yvan Arpa in 2009, best known for turning unconventional, often shocking materials, into fully wearable watches. The brand’s latest excursion in the vast jungle of materials involves moissanite, an extremely hard silicon carbide with a bright, highly dispersive surface often used as a diamond alternative in jewellery. First used to craft the round case of ArtyA’s Purity watch for OnlyWatch, the brand pushes the envelope further, using moissanite for the more complex contours of a tonneau case, revealing a suspended tourbillon.
Moissanite is the name given to an extraterrestrial mineral discovered by Henri Moissan in 1893 in a meteorite crater in Arizona. Extremely rare in nature, lab-grown moissanite is chemically and structurally identical to natural moissanite. As the second hardest material known after diamond, it is the most scratch-resistant material ever used in horology. However, its innate hardness, combined with its melting point exceeding 2,700°C, makes machining and working with this material a formidably complex endeavour.
The optical behaviour of the champagne-coloured moissanite – with a dispersion index of 0.104, which is double that of diamond – generates a spectacular decomposition of light into a multitude of colours. Each facet acts like a miniature prism, transforming the tonneau-shaped case into a luminous light-reflecting sculpture. The geometry of the Curvy Tourbillon tonneau case accentuates the visual experience as its polished volumes and subtle optical distortion magnify the depth of the mechanism and the rotation of the tourbillon. Enhanced with 65 facets, the champagne-coloured moissanite produces an intense rainbow play of light.
Measuring 41mm across, 42mm in length and 13mm high, the streamlined moissanite case houses the PUR-T3 Curvy Tourbillon manual-winding calibre designed to follow the case’s curved lines. Exposed on an earlier reference with a transparent sapphire crystal case, the skeletonised manual-winding tourbillon movement was developed for ArtyA by high-end movement manufacturer Télôs SA.
With offset hours and minutes on a pink ring at noon and a high-frequency 4Hz tourbillon at 6 o’clock, the moissanite case also reveals the double barrels mounted in parallel, ensuring stable torque delivery and a guaranteed power reserve of 65 hours (max 70-72 hours). It’s worth mentioning that the upper tourbillon cage bridge has a span of 17mm, almost 50% larger than conventional tourbillons. Contemporary finishings, such as sandblasted bridges and plates and shotblasted components – including the tourbillon cage – can be appreciated, complemented by hand-bevelled edges.
The watch is a limited edition of 9 pieces. It is paired with a light brown nubuck leather strap and pin buckle and retails for CHF 170,000 / EUR 189,000.
More information at Artya.com.
