Konstantin Chaykin Joker Selfie Only Watch-2019 Piece Unique

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On Saturday, November 9, 2019, in Geneva, with the assistance of Christie’s auction house, the 8th Only Watch charity auction will be held. A collection of unique masterpieces of watchmaking created especially for this event by the world’s leading watch brands will be on sale. The Only Watch auction is considered one of the main events in the schedule of the luxury watch industry. It was established in 2005 by Luc Pettavino, president of the “Association Monégasque Contre les Myopathies”, with the aim of raising money for research into Duchenne’s myopathy and for ways to treat this dangerous disease. The high reputation of the event and its noble mission attracted the attention of Konstantin Chaykin. He decided to take the opportunity to help the charity and use this chance to reveal his creativity and an extraordinary approach while developing a unique piece for the Only Watch auction – Konstantin Chaykin Joker Selfie Only Watch-2019 Piece Unique. The debut of Konstantin Chaykin’s creation at the seventh Only Watch auction two years ago was an unquestionable success – the unique Joker Only Watch-2017 watch, with a case of exotic zirconium, rarely used in watchmaking, was sold for 45,000 Swiss francs from an estimate of 10,000–15,000 francs. The formula “Konstantin Chaykin & Only Watch” has proven to be a winning combination.

New challenge? Konstantin Chaykin raises the stakes!

The impressive result shown by the Joker Only Watch-2017 left no choice for Konstantin Chaykin: the partnership with Only Watch should continue. While considering the 2019 auction, he decided to surpass his zirconium Joker by creating an even more extravagant watch. It should be a Joker again, but even more emotive. It seems impossible, because the already incredibly charismatic Joker was taken as the starting point. However, in the imagination of Konstantin Chaykin there an ambitious plan was formed, a new formula for the Joker, which includes the portrait of the watchmaker, the traditions and history of watchmaking art, as well as some pages of the chronicle of his own watch manufacture, Konstantin Chaykin. Perhaps the most unexpected element is the first component of the magic formula, the portrait of the watchmaker. Acting in a manner peculiar only to him, Konstantin Chaykin has made an unpredictable move, endowing the face of the Joker dial with his own personal features. In fact, this is the first mechanical watch in the world with a selfie dial, a new invention by Konstantin Chaykin. That’s why the watch got the name “Selfie” – Joker Selfie Only Watch-2019 Piece Unique. To strengthen the portrait of the Joker-watchmaker, Chaykin decided to set above the Joker’s right eye, which is designed to be the hours indicator, a stylized watchmaker’s magnifying glass, provided with real magnifying sapphire crystal – the first in Konstantin Chaykin’s collection, and possibly ever.

Recalling the early years of the development of his brand, when he used Soviet-produced calibres as the basis for developing his unique watch movements, Konstantin Chaykin decided to turn to the heritage of the great Soviet watchmaking industry again. Especially for the Joker Selfie Only Watch-2019 Piece Unique he decided to develop a new movement, based on the famous precision Caliber 2809 of the Chistopol Watch Factory, known as “Vostok”. The solid technical features of Caliber 2809 are complemented by high-quality design and finish, provided by Konstantin Chaykin manufacture. The newly-developed movement is a great choice to use in haute horlogerie collectable watches. The platina was heavily modified, especially for the installation of a proprietary Joker display module. The barrel bridge, engrenage bridge, escape-wheel cock, pallet cock, balance cock, barrel wheel, index and index spring were newly manufactured. In addition, the movement is endowed with typical signs of high watchmaking art – polished caps of the escape-wheel cock and engrenage bridge, and a newly-designed spring-held pawl of the barrel wheel. Movement parts are decorated in accordance with the high standards of the Konstantin Chaykin manufacture – a glimpse through the sapphire-crystal caseback will reveal all the details.

Another hint from the history of the Konstantin Chaykin brand is the case made of genuine stainless bulat steel. This is an extremely tough, hard to work and exotic steel alloy, previously used by Konstantin Chaykin in his famous Lunokhod watches. Bulat steel has been used for many centuries by sword makers to produce the best quality blades, which can’t be surpassed by any modern high-tech alloy. Sword makers preferred to keep the exact recipe of bulat steel secret, so it has been lost and re-discovered again and again.

Joker Selfie Only Watch-2019 Piece Unique: selfie with a secret

Konstantin Chaykin also could not resist the temptation to hide a new secret feature inside the Joker Selfie Only Watch-2019 Piece Unique. To reveal the secret, you should take the watch and slowly turn it. While the case is in a horizontal position, a special curtain underneath the dial will keep the right eye of Joker Selfie (with the hours indicator) closed, so you will not read the hours. Instead in a special window in the upper section of the dial, you will find the unique Emoji Day of the Week indicator with special joker-style emojis, conceived by Chaykin, representing days of the week. Turn the case vertically and the day indicator will be hidden, but the eye will open up. To find out the day of the week presented in the window you should consult the watch manual, containing the key to reveal how the seven joker-style emojis correspond to the days of the week. While the watch is not in a horizontal position, the unique Emoji Day of the Week indicator is hidden and the right eye of Joker Selfie with hours indicator is opened – the watch looks simple-minded with no secrets at all…

The Joker Selfie Only Watch-2019 Piece Unique comes in a one of a kind luxury wooden presentation box, designed as a painting frame and supplied with Konstantin Chaykin’s autographic painting, with the brand logo also painted by the hand of the master.

Connoisseurs of haute horlogerie all around the world will get a unique chance to follow the rise of the Joker Selfie watch online. Konstantin Chaykin has launched a special website, www.jokerselfie.com, dedicated to this unique piece. The site will regularly publish new episodes of the rise of the Joker Selfie up to the video of the auction bidding at the Only Watch-2019, that will take place on November 9, 2019. This is a very rare, and possibly the first example of a watchmaker creating a special website for a unique piece, and may be the first manifestation of a new trend of emotional information that connoisseurs of high watchmaking will surely highly appreciate.

Konstantin Chaykin Joker Selfie Only Watch-2019 Piece Unique technical Specifications

Unique piece for Only Watch-2019 charity auction

Calibre

Konstantin Chaykin Manufacture Caliber K.21-0, hand-winding, developed on the base of Soviet precision Caliber 2809 of Tschistopolsky factory; highly modified by Konstantin Chaykin according to haute horlogerie standards and equipped with Joker indication module

Movement dimensions