Ten years ago Roger Dubuis took an interest in Celtic mythology and converted it into a series of watches quite unlike any other.
The Knights of the Round Table series feature tiny little figures in place of hour markers.
Judging by the ongoing evolutions, Roger Dubuis buyers can’t get enough of them.
The latest version is a tribute to Merlin, the (possibly) Welsh wizard of many different myths.
The 6mm tall figures are cast from 18k pink gold, then engraved by hand.
This is the first in a series of three watches dedicated to Merlin.
The finishing work on the figurines is very intricate and it takes between one and three days to engrave each one.
The figurines can be viewed from all angles, thanks to the addition of an innovative side window underneath the bezel.
The dial is inspired by the Giant’s Causeway, the columns of volcanic lava that cooled to form an interesting tourist attraction on the Northern Irish coast.
The Causeway was created millions of years ago and has found its way into many legendary tales.
In one story, it was the remains of a sea bridge built by a giant – hence the name; in another, Merlin used his sorcery to fly some of the stones to Salisbury Plain, making Stonehenge.
On the dial, 28 of the little hexagonal columns on the watch dial are made of basalt, the same volcanic rock found in Giant’s Causeway.
The little volcanic columns are mixed with others of gold, and of varyingly black and transparent glass.
The pink gold case is 45mm in diameter, and the watch is powered by a hand-finished automatic movement.
Knights of the Round Table, the Omniscient Merlin is a limited edition of 28 watches and is available at rogerdubuis.com