Montblanc has decided to create a special edition timepiece which will be dedicated to and intended for the ever-growing market of the most populated country in the world. The timepiece in question is called Timewlaker World Time Sinoshpere and is characterized with a red gold appliqué that represents the map of China. As hinted in the name, the new 88 piece limited edition is supplied with a world time function with 24 time zones and is available with two different types of wristlets – a metal bracelet and a leather strap.
Montblanc Time Walker World Time Sinosphere Steel Watch
Though original in its appearance and the fact that it is made especially for China and Chinese people, this is more an adaptation than a completely new model by Montblanc. The new timekeeper is a modified TimeWalker World Time Hemispheres model (or more specifically its northern hemisphere version) which was released earlier this year. Furthermore, both Hemisphere and Sinoshpere are based on Star World Time GMT Automatic, the Montblanc that scooped the La Petit Aiguille award at the GPHG two years ago. It is the accolade that is given to the best “low budget” timekeeper whose price does not exceed 10,000 euros. In the essence of each of these three watches there is a patented gearing mechanism featured in their movements which controls all indications with a single stem and guarantees that the timekeeping function keeps running and does not get affected when the time zone is being changed.
Montblanc Time Walker World Time Sinosphere Leather Strap Watch
This mechanism enables the entire world time feature. It includes an inner 24-hour scale disc with gray numerals indicating day, and with red numerals for nighttime. This ring, placed around the red gold appliqué of the map of china surrounded with adjoining land masses, constantly shows time for each of the featured 24 hour zones, and current time in any of these locations can be read simply by comparing the position of the city name on the outskirts of the dial with the according indication on the inner ring. Naturally, the local time is shown with three central hands which are made from red gold (hour and minute ones are sword-shaped, while the second one is with a counter-weight).
1.3 Billion People in a Single Time Zone
Unlike in the vast majority of timekeepers that support a world time feature, new Montblanc TimeWalker World Time Sinosphere does not have inscriptions “Beijing” or “Hong Kong” for UTC +8 time zone, but instead states China and it is the only inscription in red in order to accentuate it further. Even though China extends 2,600 miles from east to west and through five different time zones, the entire country utilizes only UTC +8 zone, otherwise known as China Standard Time – CST, thus enabling the uniformity of the entire nation. Apart from the red inscription for the time zone used in China, there is also an inscription on the dial of the watch that states “China edition”.
Steel & Red Gold
Montblanc TimeWalker World Time Sinosphere is placed inside a two-tone casing where the middle section of the case is made of stainless steel, while the bezel is made of 18 K 5N red gold (the fluted crown with the brand’s logo is likewise made from the latter material). The housing which is round in shape has the diameter of 42 mm and the height of 12.05 mm. It has a solid case-back, while its front is protected with a domed sapphire crystal with a double anti-reflective coating. The supported water resistance is 30 meters. Beneath the curved glass there is a silver colored dial with the map of China in the center, surrounded with an inner ring with a 24-hours scale which is further encircled with gold-plated Arabic numerals and indices and finally, the names of cities at the periphery. It also includes a date display shown via aperture at the six o’clock position.
The mentioned patented gearing mechanism is an integral part of Calibre MB 4810/410 which was used in Sinosphere model. It is a self-winding mechanical movement with 21 jewels, the running frequency of 28,800 vph, as well as with a power reserve which lasts for 42 hours. Furthermore, it incorporates a flat hairspring.
Two-Tone Bracelet or Leather Strap
The China-inspired limited series by Montblanc is available with two types of wristlets. While the model 110323 includes a brown alligator leather strap with a pin buckle made of steel, the 110324 features a stainless steel strap with caps made of 18 K red gold and fastens with a steel triple-folding clasp.
