MB&F Legacy Machine Split Escapement 'The Jungle Book', Reference 04.SL.BL3...
Dial: 18k white gold deep relief engraving
Calibre: cal. LM SE manual winding, 35 jewels
Case: stainless steel, sapphire crystal display case back secured by 6 screws
Case number: 04'A00'001
Closure: stainless steel MB&F double folding clasp
Size: 44.5 mm diameter
Signed: case signed MB&F, dial signed MB&F and Jaquet, movement signed MB&F and Stephen McDonnell
Accessories: MB&F warranty, instruction manual, leather document holder, drawing of the dial in a leather roll, Loupe System loupe, 2 branded caps, book and presentation box with outer packaging
Please note the leather strap derived from endangered species is for display purposes only and is not sold with the watch. The watch will be shipped with a Sotheby’s branded calf leather strap.
Catalogue Note:
Perhaps The Jungle Book was always destined for Singapore, a city where the jungle still finds its way between the glass and concrete.
Created in collaboration with master engraver Eddy Jaquet, the present Legacy Machine Split Escapement transforms Rudyard Kipling’s The Jungle Book into a miniature world in white gold. Mowgli, Baloo, Bagheera and Shere Khan emerge from dense vegetation across the dial, each figure conceived and engraved entirely by hand. Look closer and new details continue to appear, hidden between the indications, beneath the balance and among the mechanics of the watch.
The relationship between MB&F and Eddy Jaquet began in 2011, when the Neuchâtel based engraver was asked to inscribe the names of Kari Voutilainen and Jean François Mojon on the movements of the first Legacy Machines. Nearly a decade later, that relationship evolved into a series of eight unique LM Split Escapements inspired by the novels of Jules Verne.
Four years later, MB&F and Jaquet returned to the bookshelf. This time, Jaquet selected eight stories that had captured his imagination, among them Moby Dick, Treasure Island, Robinson Crusoe, The Three Musketeers and The Jungle Book. Rather than working from existing illustrations, he reread each book and imagined the scenes himself, effectively becoming illustrator as much as engraver.
For the present watch, the jungle unfolds across an 18k white gold dial plate. The mechanics do not interrupt the picture, but seem to become part of it. Leaves, animals and figures appear around the date and power reserve displays, while the enormous suspended balance beats above the scene. MB&F even reworked the architecture of the LM Split Escapement to give Jaquet more room, enlarging the dial plate, slimming the bezel and opening the indications to reveal more of the engraving beneath. In places, Jaquet was working with just 0.35 mm of metal, making the sense of depth he achieved all the more remarkable.
At the centre is the Split Escapement developed for MB&F by Stephen McDonnell. Its 14 mm balance appears to float above the dial, while the anchor and escape wheel are concealed beneath, leaving the balance to beat almost theatrically above Jaquet’s jungle. The manually wound movement is composed of 296 parts, with 35 jewels and twin mainspring barrels providing a 72 hour power reserve.
The present Jungle Book is a true Pièce Unique, one of eight individually conceived watches from the second collaboration between MB&F and Eddy Jaquet. Offered as part of The Lion Collection, it brings together many of the qualities that define the collection itself: imagination, individuality and, above all, a willingness to venture beyond the familiar.
Dial: 18k white gold deep relief engraving
Calibre: cal. LM SE manual winding, 35 jewels
Case: stainless steel, sapphire crystal display case back secured by 6 screws
Case number: 04'A00'001
Closure: stainless steel MB&F double folding clasp
Size: 44.5 mm diameter
Signed: case signed MB&F, dial signed MB&F and Jaquet, movement signed MB&F and Stephen McDonnell
Accessories: MB&F warranty, instruction manual, leather document holder, drawing of the dial in a leather roll, Loupe System loupe, 2 branded caps, book and presentation box with outer packaging
Please note the leather strap derived from endangered species is for display purposes only and is not sold with the watch. The watch will be shipped with a Sotheby’s branded calf leather strap.
Catalogue Note:
Perhaps The Jungle Book was always destined for Singapore, a city where the jungle still finds its way between the glass and concrete.
Created in collaboration with master engraver Eddy Jaquet, the present Legacy Machine Split Escapement transforms Rudyard Kipling’s The Jungle Book into a miniature world in white gold. Mowgli, Baloo, Bagheera and Shere Khan emerge from dense vegetation across the dial, each figure conceived and engraved entirely by hand. Look closer and new details continue to appear, hidden between the indications, beneath the balance and among the mechanics of the watch.
The relationship between MB&F and Eddy Jaquet began in 2011, when the Neuchâtel based engraver was asked to inscribe the names of Kari Voutilainen and Jean François Mojon on the movements of the first Legacy Machines. Nearly a decade later, that relationship evolved into a series of eight unique LM Split Escapements inspired by the novels of Jules Verne.
Four years later, MB&F and Jaquet returned to the bookshelf. This time, Jaquet selected eight stories that had captured his imagination, among them Moby Dick, Treasure Island, Robinson Crusoe, The Three Musketeers and The Jungle Book. Rather than working from existing illustrations, he reread each book and imagined the scenes himself, effectively becoming illustrator as much as engraver.
For the present watch, the jungle unfolds across an 18k white gold dial plate. The mechanics do not interrupt the picture, but seem to become part of it. Leaves, animals and figures appear around the date and power reserve displays, while the enormous suspended balance beats above the scene. MB&F even reworked the architecture of the LM Split Escapement to give Jaquet more room, enlarging the dial plate, slimming the bezel and opening the indications to reveal more of the engraving beneath. In places, Jaquet was working with just 0.35 mm of metal, making the sense of depth he achieved all the more remarkable.
At the centre is the Split Escapement developed for MB&F by Stephen McDonnell. Its 14 mm balance appears to float above the dial, while the anchor and escape wheel are concealed beneath, leaving the balance to beat almost theatrically above Jaquet’s jungle. The manually wound movement is composed of 296 parts, with 35 jewels and twin mainspring barrels providing a 72 hour power reserve.
The present Jungle Book is a true Pièce Unique, one of eight individually conceived watches from the second collaboration between MB&F and Eddy Jaquet. Offered as part of The Lion Collection, it brings together many of the qualities that define the collection itself: imagination, individuality and, above all, a willingness to venture beyond the familiar.
