Far Beyond A Dress Watch
A dress watch from Isotope? It’s far beyond that. The Isotope X Revolution Mercury marks yet another remarkable collaboration with Revolution. This mirrored masterpiece is strangely reminiscent of an idea I jotted down years ago—a testament to its uniqueness.
José has once again wielded his Isotope magic to create something truly otherworldly, as if from another dimension. Perhaps inspired by Terminator 2? Who can say for sure, but one thing’s certain: this is nothing short of extraordinary.
Photo Credit – Isotope Watches
Photo Credit – Isotope Watches
Photo Credit – Isotope Watches
The Isotope x Revolution Mercury is their latest collaboration, showcasing original design and exceptional polishing techniques. This 150-piece limited edition draws inspiration from the various meanings of Mercury — a liquid metal, a train, and the Roman god known for bearing positive tidings.
Revolution’s Wei Koh and Isotope founder Jose Miranda have created the Isotope × Revolution Mercury Limited Edition. This fully polished stainless steel watch features the first-ever mirror-polished convex dial. Achieving the perfect polish for the case, dial, and hands was an immensely painstaking effort, and the design process is nothing short of mind-blowing. The watch is an abstract exploration of Mercury’s polysemy, reflecting its identity as a liquid metal, an American Art Deco streamliner, and the Roman god of positive tidings.
Much like experiencing art, the great appeal and joy of beholding the Mercury watch lie not merely in its visual impact but in its abstractions. This is made possible only when a watch is authentically designed from scratch with few constraints or preconceptions of how it should look.
Mercury’s Many Faces
A consistent feature across all Isotope watches is the subtle and often playful integration of the brand’s ‘lacrimal’ logo (Latin for “teardrop”) into various elements of the watch, including the lugs, markers, dial, or hands. The teardrop shape was inspired by the Kitchen Clock designed by Max Bill for Junghans in 1956, a piece that José grew up with. Additionally, until now, a subversive dress watch was missing in Isotope’s catalogue, which became the starting point for the Mercury.
Subsequently, the Isotope team began toying with the idea of liquid metal droplets. Mercury, known by its chemical symbol Hg, is famous for its fluidity at room temperature. This concept is reflected in the Isotope logo on the dial of the Mercury watch, serving as the noon marker and featuring a primary droplet accompanied by a smaller residual droplet.
20th Century Inspiration
From there, the creative process unfolded like a mind map, with the team drawing inspiration from the polysemy of Mercury. The case design found its muse in the Mercury train, a set of high-speed passenger trains operated by the New York Central Railroad in the mid-20th century. Offering faster speeds, improved comfort, and a futuristic appearance, the Mercury train was part of a larger effort to make train travel more attractive as railroads sought to compete with the growing popularity of automobiles and aeroplanes.
Inaugurated in 1936, the Mercury train was the brainchild of industrial designer Henry Dreyfuss. It epitomised the Art Deco and Streamline Moderne design movements of its era, characterised by sleek, aerodynamic exteriors with smooth planes, horizontal lines, and curved corners.
Photo Credit – Isotope Watches
Photo Credit – Isotope Watches
The Form
Comprised of three parts, the case of the Mercury watch measures 38mm in diameter and 44.5mm from lug to lug with a height of 10mm. It features rounded, sweeping lines and gentle curves. While polishing often emphasises flat planes and sharp angles, it equally highlights curves and domes, creating a sense of fluidity and a tactile quality that satisfies immensely..
The shape of the lugs is derived from the brand’s logo, each being half of the teardrop’s form. The lugs are slightly raised from the case bank, giving the watch a wonderfully tactile profile. The concave case back fits comfortably around the wrist, and the watch includes a knurled and polished crown with the ‘lacrimal’ logo. Despite being conceived as a dress watch, it offers a water resistance of 100 meters.
The Quest for the Perfect Polish
Another dimension of Mercury that inspired the watch was the Roman god Mercury, also known as Hermes in Greek mythology, who served as the herald of the gods and was the son of Zeus. The designers crafted the distinctive steel hands of the watch with a laurel wreath in mind, symbolising victory and achievement in Greek and Roman mythology. The minute hand features a leaf tip, while both hands come together at each hour to create a large laurel leaf.
Their unique form necessitated entirely crafting and polishing them by hand, a practice virtually unheard of at this price point. Additionally, a polished domed hub elegantly adorns the hour and minute hands, as well as the subsidiary seconds hand. Thus, enhancing the handset with an unusual amount of depth and detail.
Perfecting the Convex Mirror
Mirrored Mayhem
The mirror dial presented the most demanding challenge in the project. Revolution founder Wei Koh proposed it after being inspired by José’s striking Mercury concept for the case and hands. The domed shape of the dial added to the complexity, making it even more difficult to achieve a flawless mirror finish. The curvature tends to distort reflections, necessitating precise polishing techniques to maintain consistency.
It Couldn’t Be Done
Creating an impeccable convex mirror dial was a novel endeavour in watchmaking. Despite various dial makers giving discouraging feedback, claiming it couldn’t be done, José remained unfazed. He meticulously directed his engineers, exploring imaginative solutions and experimenting with innovative polishing techniques. After more than six months of dedicated effort, they finally achieved the desired flawless polish.
Photo Credit – Isotope Watches
Photo Credit – Isotope Watches
All Manually Polished
Furthermore, the dial comprises three distinct parts, a rarity in this price range: a convex main dial, a flat subsidiary seconds dial insert, and its upper ring. Creating these components required the development of three separate stamping moulds. After stamping, the dial parts underwent grinding processes to refine their surfaces, correct any imperfections, and ensure dimensional accuracy. Subsequently, each part underwent Sallaz polishing, a method involving the use of progressively finer abrasive compounds to create a smooth, uniform surface.
Afterwards, they soldered all three parts together before subjecting them to another round of Sallaz polishing. Finally, the main dial underwent manual polishing, where circular motions with an abrasive compound ensured a distortion-free surface. This meticulous manual polishing step allowed for precise control, addressing any remaining irregularities. The result is a pristine, crystal-clear mirror finish across the convex dial surface, a groundbreaking achievement in watchmaking.
An Exhaustive Journey
The process is undeniably exhaustive, with a rejection rate exceeding 50 per cent. More than 350 dials were crafted to yield 160 satisfactory ones, out of which 150 were ultimately assembled. Moreover, maintaining a dust and humidity-free environment during assembly was crucial to minimise the risk of contaminants on the delicate surface. It’s important to note that all this effort was solely dedicated to perfecting the dial, underscoring the remarkable value offered by the watch.
A domed sapphire crystal protects the dial, while the sapphire case back reveals the hand-wound calibre I-7. This movement, a modified ETA/Peseux 7001 produced by Swiss Landeron, has a rich history.
Operating at 21,600 vibrations per hour (3Hz), it offers a power reserve of 42 hours.
Photo Credit – Isotope Watches
My Thoughts
“Mercury couldn’t be a more fitting name or inspiration for this exceptional watch. While this watch may seem divergent from Isotope’s current narrative, their commitment to evolution and pushing boundaries shines through in this new release. It’s incredible what can be achieved from a mere vision or thought. Undoubtedly, the process of creating this mirrored marvel was fraught with quality issues, but the outcome makes it all worthwhile.
While this style of watch may not align with my personal preferences, I deeply appreciate its significance and the remarkable accomplishments of such a small brand. Kudos to José for continuing to excel in his craft.”
Specifications
- Case: Mirror finish case, 316L stainless steel
- Dimensions: Case diameter 38mm x 10mm / 44.5mm (with lugs)
- Crystal: Anti-reflective domed Sapphire Crystal, Screw-in Sapphire Crystal exhibition case back
- Crown: Mirror Mirror-finished push-down crown at 3 o’clock with Lacrima logo
- Dial: Pure Mirror Finished convex dial with flat small seconds frame at 6 o’clock
- Hands: Mirror Finish, hand-crafted Stainless Steel Mercury Leaf hands
- Water Resistance: 100m / 10 atm
- Strap: 20mm Quick-release Off-White Suede leather strap with signed Mirror finish Steel Buckle
- Movement: Calibre I-7, Swiss Made
- Power Reserve: 42 Hours
- Limited Edition: 150 pieces
- Price: £1,990.00
For More Information On the Isotope X Revolution Mercury – Click HERE
Read Our Thoughts On The Old Radium Black Ink Bronze – HERE
Comment
Love this watch, great to see something different