Benoît Mintiens, founder of Ressence, doesn’t like to take the easy route. Perhaps because he’s not a watchmaker, but a designer. He is not Swiss either, he is Belgian. And for him, function comes first, not form. These are just some of the attributes that have given Ressence its very special character – a UFO on the watchmaking planet if you like, from the company’s very beginnings 13 years ago.
A Little History
Watches showing the time using rotating discs are not new, but they have never been common. There were a few micro-collections from Seiko, Swatch, and later Harry Winston. But in each case, the exercise was always a one-off. Only Ressence made it a fundamental trademark.
Another Belgian-Swiss singularity is the series of the brand’s collections, its famous “Types”. Ressence has hijacked the names that are traditionally used for military watches (TYPE XX, TYPE XXI, TYPE XXIII, for example) and turned them into chapters of its creativity. But the arithmetic progression is a little confusing: TYPE 3 in 2013, TYPE 1 in 2014, TYPE 5 in 2015, and so on until the TYPE 1° Round that was unveiled this year. Could this be a return to the roots?
Yes and no. Yes, because the timepiece is minimalist. It returns to the core foundation of the brand. But no, because it is a new piece, imbued with a host of details that will (perhaps) sway the undecided towards the functional side of watchmaking.
Extreme Simplicity
Of all the Ressence creations with hours, minutes, seconds and a day of the week display, the TYPE 1° Round is the most uncluttered. This is because, like all Ressence timekeepers, it has no crown, and is adjusted at the same time as it is wound by a rotating caseback.
Secondly, because it has a case that is softer with more progressive lines. The lugs are hollowed out and refined, and the case is thinner and more curved. The proportions are just right, at 42.77 mm in diameter and 11 mm thick. Comfort is enhanced by the use of titanium, which makes the watch particularly light, gaining 0.2 mm on its predecessor, the TYPE 8, which shares the same streamlined design.
ROCS off
As for the movement, the TYPE 1° is powered by Ressence’s favourite combo: an ETA 2892 base calibre topped by version 1.3 of the Ressence Orbital Convex System (ROCS) module, which converts the display from central hands to rotating eccentric discs. The automatic system guarantees 36 hours of autonomy. You’ll need to anticipate when you are going to stop the watch, as it has no power reserve indicator. Like many of its counterparts, the TYPE 1° Round is limited to 10 metres of water resistance.
One timepiece, two versions
Two versions are already available: N for Night Blue, and B for Black. The first offers a darker, more saturated blue than previous iterations. The circular satin-finishing is appreciated for its obvious emphasis on the round shape of the four perpetually moving discs. While this N model has a slight touch of colour for the two days of the weekend, the B version is entirely black, playing on the contrast of its indications and hands. The two pieces share the same price of CHF 16,800 excluding tax.
