March 19, 2024
Bell Ross BR03 Horograph front
With the aircraft cockpit clock-inspired watch designs, Bell & Ross has turned to the clean lines, right angles, and function-first aesthetics of the Bauhaus school to inspire two new timepieces, both of which made their debut at Baselworld 2017: The BR 03-92 Horograph and BR 03-92 Horolum.Bell & Ross BR03-92 Horograph - front

The clear and uncluttered dial of the Bell & Ross BR 03-92 Horograph (above and below) is meant to evoke the look of clocks in airport terminals. Its micro-blasted, matte-finished stainless steel case, in Bell & Ross’s classical “circle in a square” shape, measures 42 mm in diameter. The case’s gritty, gray-tone texture comes from a process of spraying tiny glass beads onto the metal’s surface to roughen it and impart a uniform, matte finish that is highly anti-reflective. The dial of the Horograph (from the Latin “Hora” for hour and “Graph” for graphics) provides a very legible black-and-white contrast; its baton-shaped hands and indices are coated with Super-LumiNova for greater nighttime legiblity. The watch contains the automatic BR-CAL.302 (based on the Sellita SW300-1), which powers the hours, minutes, and seconds display, along with a date indication at 4:30. It comes on a black rubber or black synthetic fabric strap with bead-blasted steel pin buckle and is priced at $2,990.

Bell & Ross BR 03-92 Horograph - Dial CU

While the clocks inside of airports inspired the Horograph, the BR 03-92 Horolum (below) takes its cues from the airports’ outdoor areas. Its dial has a Super-LumiNova coating that glows in the same intense green color as the lights on airport runways (hence the name “Hora” plus “Lum,” short for “Lumen” or light). The 42-mm bead-blasted steel case is reminiscent of those used in the brand’s early BR-01 models. The dial — made of micro-blasted brass-rhodium that makes it homogenous with the case — is made of two superimposed metal plates, with cutaway numerals and indices on the gray upper plate and green-tinted, long-lasting Super-LumiNova C3 coating covering the lower plate. In this “sandwich” construction — favored by brands such as Panerai — the luminescence shines through the cutouts for a brilliant glow and easy nighttime legibility.

 

Bell & Ross BR 03-92 Horolum - front

 

Green Super-LumiNova is also used on the hands, and the calfskin leather strap, with stainless steel pin buckle, is in a gray-green color. The BR 03-92 Horolum is also outfitted with the Sellita-based, self-winding BR-CAL.302 and includes a date window at 4:30. Both new watches’ cases are water-resistant to 100 meters and feature nonreflective sapphire crystals over the dials. The Horolum is a limited edition of 500 pieces, priced at $3,400.

Bell & Ross BR 03-92 Horolum - NIGHT
Bell & Ross BR 03-92 Horograph