London Edition

Urban Jürgensen - Big 8 ‘London Edition’

The Urban Jürgensen Big 8 ‘London Edition’ dial builds on the classic Urban Jürgensen aesthetic, with a twist. It is executed in British racing green, which takes its name from the green international motor racing color of the United Kingdom. Reminiscent of a 1920s Bentleys from Le Mans or a 1950s Aston Martin sports car, the deep green color has become unmistakable today.

The hand-finished, engine-turned guilloché dial requires up to 700 operations and two full days of hand craftsmanship to complete. Manufactured from one piece of solid silver, the racing green color is added thanks to a 3-day coloring process through Physical Vapor Deposition (or PVD). The center section of the dial is finished with a Clou de Paris pattern, instead of the more traditional guilloché usually found on the Big 8. This fine pattern creates a surface ‘shimmering’ effect, owing to a selection of carefully considered grain sizes and geometrical patterns.

In stark contrast to the dark green portions, the dial further features a circular brushed chapter ring, with Roman numerals and a pearled outer-minute track. The font of the Roman numerals has been updated to a curved, slightly more contemporary, design, concealing the 6’clock numeral completely. The small seconds indication is also executed in racing green, with a Guilloché Panier finishing applied. For the sake of simplicity, the date window (usually placed at within the subsidiary seconds at 6 o’clock) has been closed.

The handmade ‘Observatoire’ Urban Jürgensen hands are turned on a precision lathe, thermally blued (to Urban Jürgensen’s unique navy color) and mirror-polished, the canons of the hands carefully riveted, creating a unique visual effect reminiscent of early 18th and 19th century marine chronometers made by Urban Jürgensen. The “eye” of the hour hand is a solid yellow gold insert, eccentrically diamond polished and friction fit.

The Big 8 features 40 mm stainless steel case and the brand’s distinctive teardrop lugs and convex bezel. Forged separately from the case, the classic teardrop lugs are carefully heat-treated, hand-polished and individually soldered into place using mid-century horological methods, with no visible soldering line.

The upgraded Caliber FP 1160, from F. Piguet (now Manufacture Blancpain) is expertly finished and elaborately hand-decorated, featuring a 21k yellow gold guilloché rotor, signed with the Urban Jürgensen crest. This automatically wound movement is adjusted to heat, cold, isochronism and 5 positions, with 31 working jewels. The FP 1160 movement is elegantly discrete, at 5.20mm x 32mm, with a “Swiss Lever” escapement, two barrels and a power-reserve of 48 hours.

The Big 8 ‘London Edition’ comes as a complete set, with box and certificate, and is fitted with a hand-stitched brown nubuck strap and an Urban Jürgensen stainless steel tang buckle.