I vividly remember at the age of 10 gathering with all my mates to see the premier of ‘Star Wars’ (Episode IV). Amazingly, back in 1977 parents were a bit more relaxed about their kids going on unsupervised trips. Certainly, the film lived up to the hype and it still is my favourite of the franchise. As a massive fan of Ealing Studio comedies, it is great to watch Sir Alex Guinness’s superb performance (retrospectively) as Ben Obi-Wan Kenobi. Apparently, he earned more in royalties for this film than all of his others combined. Another interesting fact is that creator and writer George Lucas actually directed this film. Other sequels and prequels were assigned to other directors.
It’s fair to say that George Lucas has made an absolute fortune from all the ‘Star Wars’ film and merchandising. A few years ago, Californian brand Devon (who are synonymous with their innovative belt-driven movements) collaborated with Lucasfilm. They produced a wonderful limited $28,500 edition version of their Tread One. However, as exclusive as this watch is it doesn’t come close to the magnificent ‘Death Star Tourbillon by Kross Studio. In my opinion, this has to be one of the most distinctive timepieces I’ve ever seen.
Kross Studio is the brainchild of Marco Tedeschi who was the CEO of RJ Romain and a regional director for Hublot. Utilising his experience as Micro technical engineering background has enabled him to conceive projects like the 1989 Batmobile clock and ‘Death Star Tourbillon’ timepiece. The latter has received an enormous amount of press coverage because of its incredible aesthetic. Ingeniously Kross Studio has faithfully replicated the complicated architecture (Northern Hemisphere) of the death star in miniature form. This sensational feature houses the tourbillon carriage.
Dimensionally the ‘Death Star Tourbillon’ has a diameter of 45mm and is fabricated from Grade 5 titanium, which has a black DLC (diamond-like carbon) treatment. The timepiece has an innovative integrated D-ring crown system to create a minimalistic silhouette. Powering the watch is a sophisticated Swiss-made 27-jewel manual mechanical movement tailored to Kross Studio’s specifications. The Calibre MKS7000 comprise 203 individual components, has a 5-day power reserve and oscillates a frequency of 21,600 vibrations per hour.
The limited-edition (10-pieces) ‘Death Star Tourbillon’ comes with a bespoke Kyber crystal container, 3 removable capsules and 3 additional straps.