Introducing The Grand Planetarium Eccentric by Christiaan Van Der Klaauw

Christiaan van der Klaauw, the Dutch brand renowned for its expertise in astronomical watches, has unveiled the Grand Planetarium Eccentric Manufacture, the most complex watch ever crafted in their atelier. Created to commemorate the company's 50th anniversary, this exceptional timepiece is the only mechanical planetarium watch in the world that displays all eight planets, capturing in real-time the unique, eccentric orbits of Mercury, Venus, Earth, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, and Neptune around the Sun.

The inspiration and mechanics behind this masterpiece trace back to the CVDK Kepler’s Planetarium Clock, originally developed by the master watchmaker Christiaan van der Klaauw in 1995.

The Grande Planetarium Eccentric Manufacture features a 44 mm case with a domed sapphire crystal and uniquely engraved hour markers on the inner side. It is available in rose gold and platinum versions. The bezel’s slim design draws attention to the dial, with its vibrant highlights, while the sapphire crystal case back showcases the intricate movement components.

The aventurine dial resembles a starry sky, adorned with zodiac signs and the Planetarium Eccentric's hand-painted planets. Two central hands indicate the hours and minutes, while a central sun serves as a seconds indicator, rotating gracefully around its axis.

This planetarium complication is the only one of its kind, showing the real-time orbits of all eight planets around the Sun. The planets move along eccentric paths, mirroring their actual celestial courses with remarkable precision. At the heart of the Eccentric Planetarium sits the Sun, positioned centrally. The orbital periods of the planets are as follows:

Mercury: 87.97 days

Venus: 224.70 days

Earth: 365.24 days

Mars: 686.98 days

Jupiter: 11.86 years

Saturn: 29.46 years

Uranus: 84.02 years

Neptune: 164.80 years

The CVDK Grand Planetarium Eccentric Manufacture boasts an impressive network of gears, totaling 3,338 teeth. Its core houses an in-house, self-winding manufacture movement operating at a frequency of 3 Hz (21,600 vibrations per hour) and offering a 60-hour power reserve. A skeletonized, rose-gold-plated brass rotor, shaped like the CVDK logo, is complemented by a rhodium-plated tungsten weight on its outer edge.

Both editions are paired with a blue leather strap and a folding buckle. This remarkable addition to the brand’s permanent collection is priced at EUR 208,000 (approx. AED 823,000) for the rose gold edition and EUR 227,000 (approx. AED 898,000) for the platinum edition.

For more information, visit the official website of Christian Van Der Klaauw.