Japanese Independent Minase Lets the Light Shine on Latest Project
The 7 Windows replaces stainless steel elements with sapphire crystal panes.
Japanese watch brand Minase has taken its Windows concept to the next logical step, adding more sapphire crystal panes to its rectangular case to flood its dial with natural light.
Building on the brand’s existing Five Windows watch, which features two panes along either flank, the new 7 Windows adds extra panes around the top and bottom of the dial.
The idea is not only to allow extra light to fall onto the dial, to best showcase Minase’s formidable Sallaz polishing technique in the best possible light, which makes sense when you realise the brand spends 20 hours mirror polishing elements of each case, but to allow the owner the opportunity to continually discover their watch from different angles.
As with every other Minase watch, the 7 Windows’ movement (in this case a calibre KT7002 based on an ETA 2892/A2 ebauche) is placed inside a steel cover, to which an index ring and hands are then fixed to form the watch’s dial. The whole assembly is then suspended inside the case using just four screws.
Minase is an offshoot of Japanese toolmaking company Kyowa, which spent decades making tools for watchmakers before going on the produce complete cases and bracelets. Minase’s company logo is a drill head that reflects the company’s origins.
The first pieces will drop in May/June and are available to pre-order now via Minase’s webstore, priced from 4,300 CHF ($4,640 USD).
In other watch news, Seiko has released a pair of Prospex divers to honor the first Japanese to summit Mount Everest.
