COVER STORY
Left : The mainplate on the RS 14 and RS 16 features sixty pyramids and requires hours of hand-guilloché work by Georges Brodbeck .
Below is a special edition Rudis Sylva pocket watch made to celebrate the company ’ s tenth anniversary in 2016 . of that historic sundial .
“ It ’ s a bit like alchemy , “ Cattin explains . “ And this technique often gives rise to pleasant surprises .”
ROUND AND SQUARE Rudis Sylva surprised many ten years ago with the debut version of the Harmonious Oscillator , placed inside that square-cased RS 05 . Since then , the company has placed the movement into a 44mm gold-cased RS 10 , RS 12 , RS 14 and , finally , this year ’ s RS 16 . There ’ s also a ten-piece limited-edition pocket watch , which debuted earlier this year to help celebrate the firm ’ s tenth anniversary . The RS 16 is a stylistic update of the RS 14 , explains Sarkissian , who notes that the new model ’ s case is a bit more streamlined and polished than the earlier model . The new RS 16 also features “ a multitude of very complicated angles and finishes ,” that could easily attract a different type of collector , in part due to its so-called ‘ glass-box ’ architecture created by acclaimed watch designer Eric Giroud . Giroud essentially removed the gold bezel seen on RS 14 and replaced it with a vintage-inspired bombé crystal that rises above the movement to frame it in glass .
That broad sapphire display case underscores Rudis Sylva ’ s unusual method of tackling the deleterious effects of gravity on timing within a wristwatch movement . The small company ’ s outsized effort , grandly dubbed the Harmonious Oscillator , has in the eight years since its debut attracted much attention among watchmakers . Its placement within the RS 16 is yet another reason for collectors to pay close attention to this company from the Swiss forests .
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WRISTWATCH | 2017