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The inimitable craftsman at MB&F continue to stretch the limits of form and function within watchmaking. Horology can be a conservative art at times, but Maximilian Büsser’s flamboyant brand refuses to conform, favouring mechanical wizardry and crafted madness over tradition.

The latest off-the-wall addition to the collection is The Octopod. A marine chronometer in the loosest sense of the word, this cephalopod-inspired object is every bit as bonkers as you would expect.

Don’t be fooled by its looks, mind, as behind its aesthetics (straight out of James Cameron’s The Abyss), there is an awful lot of elegant watchmaking going on.

MB&F turned to Switzerland’s premier clockmaker, L’Epée 1839, to build its creation. The result is impressively detailed: the sphere is gimballed in the same way a traditional ship chronometer would be for optimal legibility, while the pulsating escapement (which regulates the clock’s precision) is located on the minute hand rather than the mechanically simpler position on the stationary movement plates. Clever stuff.

At its worst, this is an exuberant statement piece, at best it’s an unlikely icon.

For more info, see mbandf.com