MB&F Legacy Machine Flying T Lapis Lazuli
The MB&F Legacy Machine Flying T Lapis Lazuli is the latest feminine creation from the Swiss marque. Dressed in diamonds and lapis lazuli, this new model is breathtakingly beautiful, highly original and rich in mechanical virtue.
The human capacity for imagination diminishes with age. Sadly, youthful optimism and the sense of wonderment invariably transition into a world of mediocrity and resignation. Thankfully, nobody told Max Büsser and friends, they have never lost their youthful curiosity or succumbed to middle-aged conservatism.
MB&F was founded in 2005 and two years later (2007) it unveiled its first watch, the HM1. The name, an abbreviation of ‘Horological Machine’ was assigned to an unusual watch that featured four barrels, a first at the time. A tourbillon cage was positioned centre stage and, most pertinently, it was radically different from anything else on the market. This latter aspect is part of the brand’s paradigm and, despite the firm subsequently releasing numerous additional Horological Machines, MB&F has continued to reject aesthetic convention.
The otherworldly Horological Machines were inspired by children’s fiction, more specifically science fiction. However, in 2011 a second collection of models was released, the ‘Legacy Machines’, which now run alongside the brand’s futuristic Horological Machines.
The LM1 features a prominent balance bridge which arches over the dial (it is actually the mainplate). Two subdials sit aside the balance bridge displaying the time in two different places. In my opinion, it would be a cold heart that did not fall in love with the LM1. This sentiment was shared by others, culminating in the model receiving two GPHG awards in 2012. No doubt buoyed by its success with the LM1, the independent brand released further Legacy Machines, including the LM2, LM101, LM Perpetual et al.
In 2019, MB&F released its first ladies’ watch, the Legacy Machine Flying T. An extraordinary domed sapphire crystal arcs ever upwards virtually kissing passing clouds, affording room for a flying tourbillon and the inclined hour and minutes display. The case features slender lugs and a diamond sits atop the upper tourbillon cage. Three versions were unveiled at the time of launch, each presented in white gold and embellished with diamonds. Once again, MB&F received much praise for this bewitching timepiece and the brand was the recipient of another prize at GPHG 2019.
Now, the high-end brand has released three additional variants for 2020. Two models eschew the diamonds found on the existing models, feature guilloché dials and are available in a choice of red gold or platinum. The third model, the MB&F Legacy Machine Flying T Lapis Lazuli, is my personal favourite. It is housed in an 18-carat white gold case embellished with 120 diamonds and paired with a lapis lazuli dial plate and inclined hour and minute display. A further 48 diamonds adorn the buckle, the crowns and the top of the tourbillon cage.
In summary, the MB&F Legacy Machine Flying T Lapis Lazuli is highly original, wonderfully decadent, beautifully executed and the result of a rare bunch of friends who have never lost their capacity to dream.
The brand’s press release
Even the most unpredictable and audaciously led lives, when observed from a distance, form patterns and fall into cycles. This is a fundamental truth that underlies all human existence, whether individual or collective. For Maximilian Büsser and MB&F, creative energy comes in seven-year cycles. It was in MB&F’s seventh year that the Legacy Machine collection was born, that the first M.A.D.Gallery opened in Geneva and opened the door to the MB&F co-creations.
The 14th year of MB&F unveiled a new avenue of horological exploration, an evolution of creative horizons for founder and company alike: the Legacy Machine FlyingT, first launched in 2019, is the first of MB&F’s three-dimensional horological art pieces dedicated to women.
A round case in gold or platinum, with a steeply cambered bezel and slender, elongated lugs, often fully set with diamonds. A high, extravagantly convex dome of sapphire crystal rises from the bezel. Beneath the dome, a subtly curved dial plate in various finishes: liquidly black with layers of stretched lacquer, guilloche, sparkling in lapis lazuli, or glittering with blazing white diamonds.
An asymmetric ventricular opening in the dial plate frames the heart of the LM FlyingT engine – a cinematic flying tourbillon that beats at a serene rate of 2.5Hz (18,000vph). The tourbillon projects high above the rest of the engine, a kinetic, dynamic column that stops just short of the apex of the sapphire crystal dome. Affixed to the top of the upper tourbillon cage is a single large diamond that rotates simultaneously with the flying tourbillon, emitting the fiery brilliance of the very best quality stones.
At the 7 o’clock position – another reference to the numeric theme that runs throughout LM FlyingT – is a dial of black or white lacquer (or lapis lazuli) that displays the hours and minutes with a pair of elegant serpentine hands. The dial is inclined at a 50° tilt so that the time can be read only by the wearer, an intimate communication that highlights the personal nature of LM FlyingT.
On the reverse, the automatic winding rotor takes the shape of a three-dimensional red gold sun with sculpted rays, providing LM FlyingT with four days of power reserve.
The design of Legacy Machine FlyingT is replete with associations drawn from the feminine and maternal influences in Maximilian Büsser’s life. Says Büsser, “I wanted LM FlyingT to possess the epitome of femininity as reflected by the women in my life, particularly my mother. It had to combine supreme elegance with tremendous vitality. The column-like structure of the flying tourbillon was very important to me as I felt very strongly that women form the pillar of humanity. At the same time, there is another layer of meaning coming in from the sun-shaped rotor, which incorporates the element of life-giving, a source of sustenance which we gravitate towards and around.”
Legacy Machine FlyingT was first launched in 2019 in three editions, all in white gold and set with diamonds: black lacquer dial plate with case set with brilliant-cut diamonds; dial plate and case both fully set with brilliant-cut diamonds; and dial plate and case both fully set with baguette-cut diamonds.
In 2020, LM FlyingT added three new references, first shedding its diamonds with limited editions in red gold and platinum, featuring guilloche dial plates; and now back in an 18k white gold case adorned with diamonds, with a new dial plate in deep blue lapis lazuli.
Further reading