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Hyt Skull Vida: viva la vida!

HYT Skull Vida
Only five Skull Vida pieces will be released in HYT's most restricted limited edition ever

Never before has an Hyt creation been so exclusive. Never before has one gone so far in playing with the codes of life and death to celebrate the passing of time and to seize the day. Never before has a timepiece used such materials. Only five “Skull Vida” pieces will be released in Hyt’s most restricted limited edition ever. In fact, rather than a limited edition, Hyt prefers to call them five unique pieces; each one is different as they call on living material in a real watchmaking first: mammoth ivory from many millennia ago.

“Our first Skull collections fell within the tradition of Memento Mori, reflecting in particular the Mexican culture of Dia de los Muertos, where death is celebrated in the same way as life, in a celebratory communion of the passing of time,” recalls Grégory Dourde, CEO of Hyt. “However, we felt that we could go even further still by literally combining life and the unique flow of time with our fluid technology and a dial made from an authentic material, a true living sculpture. The Skull Vida was born from this all-encompassing, holistic vision.”

Today, in the Siberian plains, mammoth skeletons are beginning to surface. The majority are exceptionally well-preserved as they have been held captive in ice for 15,000 to 30,000 years. Their bones have been preserved, but are far from inert; they are almost alive, reacting to their exhumation like the living witnesses of a past when they walked alongside Neanderthal man. These remnants of the past come from an extinct species, thereby protecting modern wildlife, which HYT is committed to conserving. The Hyt Skull Vida comes in a 51 mm black DLC titanium case with polished, micro-blasted and satin-finished finishes. It is powered by Hyt’s exclusive mechanical hand-wound movement which provides a 65-hour power reserve.

Siberian mammoth ivory

Its dial is shaped like a skull and is crafted from Siberian mammoth ivory. This living material had to undergo a stabilisation phase over the course of several months. It was sculpted and embedded in the Skull Vida thanks to a series of particularly delicate operations carried out by specially trained artisans. Each dial is completely unique and offers different textures, variations and designs. HYT’s Skull was entirely redesigned to highlight the properties of the mammoth ivory as much as possible. The seconds are displayed in its left eye, the power reserve in its right. The entire artwork is surrounded by an HYT capillary specially folded into the skull shape, in which the separation point of two immiscible liquids indicates the hours. The bezel indicates the result on a black background, with Arabic numerals in a font specially created for the Skull Vida. It is also the first time that Hyt has developed a fabric-based strap, which features fine embroidery in an abundant floral theme – a symbol of life!

Specifications

Functions: Black retrograde fluidic hours, seconds, power reserve. Case: Black DLC titanium with brushed • micro-blasted and satin-finished finishes • Diameter: 51 mm • Height: 17.9 mm • Black rubber coated screw-down crown • Black DLC titanium dome at 6 o’clock • Convex sapphire crystal with anti-reflective coating on the dial side • Screw-down sapphire case-back • Water resistant to 50 metres. Movement: Mechanical with manual winding • exclusive HYT calibre • 28,800 Vph • 4 Hz, 35 jewels • Bridges hand-bevelled and adorned with Côtes de Genève • 65-hour power reserve. Micro-fluidic module: Two multi-layer metal bellows • Capillary tube in medical grade glass • with interior nano-coating • Two immiscible liquids; one transparent and the other coloured with a highly resistant dye • Thermal compensator with dedicated bellow containing a special liquid • Ceramic fluid restrictors. Dial: Unstructured with beige varnish, fluid hour display • Handmade engraved skull made from Siberian mammoth’s ivory • Black hour dial, beige numerals • Diamond-tipped offset black indexes • Seconds indicator (left eye) • Power reserve indicator (right eye). Strap: Beige embroidered fabric • black DLC titanium deployant buckle. Ref.: 151-DL-48-NF-BB; 5-piece limited edition

Tags : HYT
Lex Stolk

The author Lex Stolk

Lex Stolk studied Journalism in Utrecht and it was during his time as a student he developed a passion for mechanical watches. He has spent his entire career in the publishing industry working for a wide range of publications before entering the watch world professionally seven years ago. His work for several watch publications made it possible for him to combine his love for both watches and magazines.