Description
In the modern era of watchmaking, it takes something truly special to stand out from the crowd. Despite an array of materials available in seemingly endless configurations of color and design, the basic elements of a watch have remained largely unchanged over the last two centuries.
So to behold a Ressence watch is a bit of a puzzlement. At first glance it seems more of a display than a watch and in that respect, you’d be correct. However inside, a modified ETA movement – rechristened as a ROCS proprietary movement – powers timekeeping functions, just like any other automatic. But that is essentially where the similarities end because Ressence watches are clearly an entirely different breed of watch. Turning the nature of wristwatches on its head, Ressence timepieces utilize flat discs instead of conventional hands that rotate and spin on both their own individual axes as well as around a central point. Put another way, everything on the watch’s dial is always in motion. Look at the dial once, wait an hour, check the time again, and everything will have changed position. This dance is made possible by Ressence’s leverage of magnetic transmission to ensure that every component is both finely tuned and able to move smoothly.
All Ressence watches are unique for another reason – they are oil filled, giving them an appearance like that of a smartwatch. No, it’s not a digital display, it simply appears that way because all the dial components are flush with one another and when set upon a dark background, any refraction is eliminated thanks to the special oil. This oil will naturally contract and expand but Ressence has thought of that too – a special bellows system to adjust to outside pressure to prevent the formation of bubbles. And as part of this ingenious system, an oil temperature gauge on the dial shows at a glance and in a colorful way just how warm the oil is at any given moment.
Finally, the absence of a crown drives home the point that this is a watch unlike any other. Cleverly using a rotating caseback to adjust the time, the theme of objects in motion is maintained here as well. To top it all off, the Type 5N is fitted with a rotating bezel to help with timing, including dives as it is depth-rated to up to 10ATM.
Featured as part of our “The Ressence Type 5—a Simple But Revolutionary Idea” post! Learn more over at Feldmar’s Blog!
