The Haldimann H11 Central Balance Pure
Beat Haldimann makes timepieces like no other. New for BaselWorld 2013, the Haldimann H11 may at a first glance appear to be uncomplicated, but it is in fact anything but....
Mmmm, perhaps you are familiar with the name Haldimann? ... the pirouette of floating flying tourbillons, or the timeless, glass-case perspectives of time - from beneath his loupe some of the most extraordinary, unexpected and beautiful timepieces have been designed, developed and hand-finished.
- But the H11 has hands, pencil slim and seductively tipped - and it has numerals, elegant and slightly diminutive - so it has the ability to tell time, and it has a (dare I say it.. ) face-on plainness.
There is of course an illusory quality, it would not be a Beat Haldimann watch if there was no challenge to overcome. Turn the piece over, and the caseback reveals an unusual calibre with the balance wheel positioned in the centre (below the hour and minute hand location) not in its usual recessed position but raised up so that it appears to levitate over the mainplate - brilliant.
The H-ZEN.KH11 manually wound movement which provides this unusual panorama is unadorned and marginally industrial entirely in-keeping with the overall restrained aesthetics of this unique watch which combines modernism with the Haldimann family traditions of watchmaking to superb effect.
See the Haldimann H11 Central Balance Pure at BaselWorld 2013.