Discover MB&F's and L’Epée 1839 
New "Flying" Clock, Albatross

 Available at Provident Jewelry
 

August 28, 2024

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Who Wouldn't Want a “Flying” Clock?

MB&F has turned watchmaking into something so much more! Taking craftsmanship, manufacturing, and engineering to create futuristic timekeeping machines. These three-dimensional machines are rare, limited editions and after a decade of making those machines anew collection was made with L’Epée 1839 called Albatross. The designer Eric Meyer was inspired by the “Albatross” airship in Jules Verne’s novel Robur the Conqueror, but more generally by the rockets and hot air balloons imagined by the French author, who had a fascination for flying objects.

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The Albatross airship has many components that you can see at work. There are two distinct movements and winding systems. One system, driven by two separate barrels, powers the timekeeping and striking hour functions. The other system, energized by a third barrel, operates the propellers. To wind the time and striking mechanisms, you turn the propellers at the front: clockwise for the striking hour and counterclockwise for the time. The back propellers are used to wind the automaton. The clock has a power reserve of about eight days, regardless of whether the chiming function is active, while the automaton runs for one day. The intricate mechanisms within the Albatross allow you to independently control these functions: you can operate the propellers without activating the hour chime, or vice versa. There are also "on-demand" buttons to separately activate the chime and propellers. It is the most technically audacious clock with 1,520 components with the world’s first “hélices au passage”: an automaton composed of 32 propellers that launch into action every hour. With manual winding to the front and rear propellers and two separate movements, 3 barrels influence the revolving hour on the hour chiming. 


The clock’s dimensions are equally impressive: it weighs 17 kg and measures 60 cm in length, 60 cm in height, and 36 cm in width. A charming detail awaits you—if you look through the porthole at the top of the airship, you'll find a miniature cockpit complete with a dashboard and ship’s wheel.

 

Learn More About the Albatross

Ring Size Guide
Find your size by measuring either a string you've wrapped around your finger or by using a ring that fits.

Take a piece of non-stretchable string, ribbon, thread, or a thin strip of paper. Wrap it comfortably around your ring finger, close to the knuckle.

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