New Ulysse Nardin Blast Tourbillon Dragon Model

Ulysse Nardin, an independent and integrated manufactory, embarks on an exciting journey in the year of the dragon, filled with creative energy, exciting craftsmanship and watchmaking.

Since its debut in 2020, the Blast Tourbillon has established itself as a symbol of Ulysse Nardin’s unconventional nouhau and design. With its angular, revolutionary style, high-tech mechanism and iconic X-shaped structure, it symbolizes the visionary spirit of Ulysse Nardin. In honor of the Lunar New Year, this innovative creation has been intertwined with the ancient magic of Chinese folklore, where a majestic Dragon meets a charming Pearl.

According to traditional Chinese culture, 2024 is the year of the Dragon. These revered creatures symbolize strength, might, and luck. They are often associated with pearls, which represent purity, wisdom and wealth. When these two symbols are combined together, as in countless fairy tales, they signify a harmonious combination of power, providence, and prosperity.

These traditional images depict a dragon symbolically guarding a magical pearl. The same can be said about the new Ulysse Nardin Blast Tourbillon Dragon watch: a dazzling mythical creature, hand-sculpted from 5N rose gold, wriggles around a skeletonized X-shaped structure, as if slipping out of the mechanism itself. In front of him, protected by two paws with five claws, the mythical pearl occupies an advantageous position on the carriage of a soaring tourbillon. The choice of five claws is not accidental: associated with imperial dynasties, dragons with five claws are traditionally considered to signify the highest prestige.

In 2012, during the last year of the Dragon, Ulysse Nardin presented an impeccable limited edition of 88 copies of the Classico Enamel Champlevé Dragon featuring a beautiful enamel dragon image, decorative art made by a handful of craftsmen and immortalized by Ulysse Nardin. Fast forward to 2024, and this creature abruptly exploded into life in three-dimensional form.

Creating a 3D dragon that seemed to glide under the hands of the clock and sit between the planes of the gear train and the X-shaped structure presented a major challenge. During the two-year development process, a unique watch face was developed and individual adjustments were made to the design of the case, bezel and glass of the Blast Tourbillon to accommodate this unique creation.

The rose gold dragon, engraved and painted entirely by hand, is a testament to elite craftsmanship and craftsmanship that requires four days of work – three days to engrave and one day to painstakingly apply graduated shades of red, orange and yellow. Every 3D aspect is modeled and visualized with the utmost precision, from the scaly tail to the shiny whiskers and individual details of its claws.

Worlds collide as this fantastic creature wraps around a masterpiece of high-tech avant-garde watchmaking: the Ulysse Nardin Blast Tourbillon. The manufactured Blast Tourbillon movement, UN-172 caliber with a spectacular dragon-shaped structure and a skeletonized dial, is as unusual as it is ingenious. The first skeletonized Ulysse Nardin self-winding tourbillon caliber, released in 2020, is equipped with a platinum microrock visible at 12 o’clock, a tiny but wonderful device that provides a power reserve of up to three days.

As in the most modern Ulysse Nardin watches, the floating tourbillon at 6 o’clock embodies the innovative silicon manufacturing experience at Home. First introduced in 2001 with the revolutionary Freak model, this material used for the anchor wheel, fork, and balance spring provides additional performance and strength benefits.

The rose gold dragon, engraved and painted entirely by hand, is a testament to elite craftsmanship and craftsmanship that requires four days of work – three days for engraving and one day for painstaking application of graduated shades of red, orange and yellow. Every 3D aspect is modeled and visualized with the utmost precision, from the scaly tail to the shiny whiskers and individual details of its claws.

The Ulysse Nardin Blast Tourbillon combines movement and body in both concept and design – strikingly architectural, ruthlessly modernist, and symbolic of the independent Manufactory’s enduring mission to reinterpret and reinterpret High-end watchmaking.