Ressence and The Armoury Team Up for the TYPE 9 Scattering Sun (Live Pics)
There’s something exciting about seeing two brands you admire collaborate, especially when those brands represent relatively different aesthetics, if shared sensibilities. So, when we heard that Ressence, the independent watch brand known for its unique ROCS dial displays and futuristic aesthetic, was teaming up with The Armoury, a traditional menswear retailer and tailor, our collective interest was piqued. And the result is, well, oddly exactly what one might expect: a more formal take on Ressence’s most wearable watch to date, the TYPE 9.
Called the TYPE 9 Shattering Sun, it meets the two brands in the middle. The TYPE 9, which came out at the end of last year, is the smallest Ressence in diameter, and very thin at 39mm x 42.5mm x 11mm. Additionally, it’s one of the lightest at 39 grams for the head. Unlike other Ressences, it pushed the minute index from under the glass to an external bezel, which further compresses it visually. I reviewed that watch earlier this year and was taken with its wearability. It puts the unique aesthetic and dial display Ressence is known for into a form that would be easy to wear daily.
Identifying this, the ever sartorially-savvy and horologically inclined Mark Cho, founder of The Armoury, took the TYPE 9 and remixed it to lean toward dress watch aesthetics, and, more importantly, work with a suit. The dial, originally in silver or teal, has been rendered in warm, copper-toned salmon with a subtle sandblast finish. The explorer-esque hour layout on the floating index surrounding the orbiting hour hand has been replaced with an array of lines emanating outwards. An unusual hour index, characterized by long lines at the hour and shorter lines between, creating a sort of “star” shape. As there are four lines, this is a bit confusing from a time-telling perspective; however, each line would indicate a 12-minute interval. One less line would have aligned better with how we read the time for 15-minute intervals, for example.
The more immediately noticeable change is to the external bezel, which has dropped the flat and sporty brushed ring of the original and replaced it with polished fluting. A classical and familiar bezel design, it immediately brings to mind Rolex Datejusts, though other watches have had similar designs as well. The intention here was to utilize the fluted bezel for its dynamic lighting interaction. Anyone who has seen such a bezel outside can testify that they have an opulent effect, which is where the name “shattering sun” comes from.
As the bezel is used for the minute index on the TYPE 9, there are lines at intervals of five minutes, presumably milled into the bezel surface and white filled. There is also a triangle at 0/60. A strange inclusion, it doesn’t really seem necessary to have this in the context of a dressier take on the design, especially since the flutes do align with the minutes.
Paired with a brown suede strap, the design comes together for a new, if not entirely shocking, take on the TYPE 9 that successfully pushes it into the dress territory it sought. In the context of The Armoury’s materials and designs, the watch makes all the more sense. It takes the ROCS dial and puts it into a context that blends with traditional menswear, particularly celebrating warmer tones as well as interesting textures and patterns.
Priced at $19,000, the Ressence x The Armoury TYPE 9 Shattering Sun is limited to 20 pieces worldwide, available exclusively through The Armoury’s boutiques in NYC, Hong Kong, and online. The Armoury
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