Jeweler and watchmaker Harry Winston will make a splash at BaselWorld 2013 with the Histoire de Tourbillon 4 and, likely, a brand new Opus. We do not know yet what shape the Opus will take but Harry Winston has already revealed the Histoire de Tourbillon 4, which boasts a triple axis tourbillon. In simple terms, there is just one balance wheel but it oscillates inside three concentric cages, each operating at different speeds. The idea is to improve on cancelling errors in rate by shifting the balance in multiple planes because the conventional tourbillon improves operation in one plane, which was just what the pocket watch needed but the wristwatch is a different sort of animal.
Harry Winston says it best when it describes the wristwatch as an inhabitant of three-dimensional space and notes that the tourbilon must inhabit this space too. We will be taking a closer look at this watch later this year but for now, here are a few key points. The innermost tourbillon cage completes one cycle every 45 seconds, the intermediate cage does it in 75 seconds and outermost cage rotates every 300 seconds. Despite the elaborate structure, the tourbillon weighs just 1.57 grams. The 47mm watch proper will be quite hefty, being cased in 18k white gold and zalium. Histoire de Tourbillon 4 will be limited to 20 pieces.
