The Ulysse Nardin Classico “Year of the Monkey” takes a different approach on its decorative dial, with its more cartoon-like depiction of an impishly grinning monkey leaping through a brush of palm fronds. The technique used here (as in last year’s “Year of the Goat” Classico edition) is champlevé enameling, a rare, centuries-old art form in which cells are carved directly onto the dial with a chisel and filled with enamel, with different colors generated by different metallic oxides. The dial is then fired until the enamel melts. This piece, like others in Ulysse Nardin’s Classico series, was executed in-house at Donze Cadrans, the brand’s own dialmaking firm.
The watch, which is limited to a “lucky” 88 pieces, has a 40-mm rose-gold dial with an exhibition caseback to display the movement, the COSC-chronometer certified Caliber UN-815, with automatic winding and a 42-hour power reserve. The strap is black leather, with a rose-gold tang buckle.
