World Of Watches

A detailed look at the Bell & Ross BR01 Laughing Skull

Celebrating its 10th anniversary of the Skull concept, Bell & Ross unveils the new limited edition BR01 Laughing Skull timepiece.

Jun 01, 2018 | By Calvin Chong

When we talk about Bell & Ross, one of the staples we are most fond of is the iconic Skull series and this 2018 marks the 10th anniversary of the legendary timepiece.

First launched in 2009, we have seen many variations of the Skull silhouette, one that extends beyond the BR01 aviation aesthetics, like the BR01 Burning Skull and the BR01 Tourbillon Skull.

And to celebrate its 10th birthday, Bell & Ross unveils yet another iconic masterpiece – the BR01 Laughing Skull –, which is also the watchmaker’s first venture into the field of automata.

Unlike all its predecessors, the new BR01 Laughing Skull brings a new surprise to your wrist, one where the mandible moves and have the skull grinning back at you with mischief.

Powered by the Br-CAL.206 calibre, which is also entirely produced by Bell & Ross, the skull’s mandible gets animated during its winding process and features 4 bridges that secure the main plate to the casing to create a floating effect at the centre.

And all these are made possible with Bell & Ross’s savoir-faire in applying the same technology used in 14th-century mechanical clocks to create the laughing mechanism of the skull.

For the BR01 Laughing Skull, the piece de resistance of the timepiece is the intricate dial design, which is created using metal appliqué and embossed beautifully. And adding to that is the revised sword-shaped hands, a staple within the Skull series, that are now skeletonised and coated in SuperLuminova.

And to finish it off, Bell & Ross cases this masterpiece in microblasted steel and decorating it with “Clous de Paris” finishing, a type of guilloché pattern that is made possible only with a special machinery.

 

Limited to only 500 pieces worldwide, the Bell & Ross BR01 Laughing Skull is one made with connoisseurs who desire unique and original timepieces in mind.

And with the new techniques and concepts applied to the Laughing Skull, the timepiece makes the perfect celebratory creation to further showcase Bell & Ross’s pioneering stand in the world of Haute Horlogerie.

 

 

The Bell & Ross BR01 Laughing Skull timepiece is limited to 500 pieces worldwide and is now retailing at RM43,400.

For more information, please visit your nearest Bell & Ross boutique or www.bellross.com.

 
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