Antarctique Rattrapante R.U.R.

• Limited Edition: 77 pieces
• Case: stainless steel
• Size: 42.5 mm x 15.3 mm
• Movement: Calibre 9: Czapek manufacture tourbillon movement, mechanical with automatic winding
• Function: Split-second monopusher chronograph, hours, minutes & seconds; Indication of the chronograph state by the robot head at 12:00
• Water Resistance: 120 m
• Dial: Open-worked split-second chronograph on the dial side; Robot head indicating the chronograph state: running (yellow), stopped (red), and reset (blue); Grey fumé sapphire glass minutes ring and counters made with PVD evaporation
• Caseback: Sapphire case back
• Strap/Bracelet: Integrated stainless steel bracelet with Czapek • exclusive ‘Easy Release’ system and micro adjustment device • Additional rubber strap
• Factory Warranty: 2 year

In Czapek & Cie’s new Antarctique Rattrapante ‘R.U.R.’, a robot adds a playful animation to the mechanics revealed beneath the grey-metallized sapphire dial. As the chronograph function is activated, the robot’s eyes change color: press start, the eyes turn yellow (recalling Shrikes in the movie Mortal Engines). Stop: they turn red. And on reset they turn blue.

A closer look reveals more details that distinguish the R.U.R. dial from previous Antarctique Rattrapante models: the white chronograph hand, the blue aluminum rattrapante hand with a white tip. On the peripheral chronograph seconds register and the two sub-dials, ‘XX’ symbols represent the robot’s language – a language invented for R.U.R. that takes its roots from the Predator movies’ Yautja alphabet (remember the count-down?) and plays with the X of Xavier (no prizes for guessing who was behind that idea!) The robot’s head, created by Czapek’s valued partner MD’Art is a miniature work of art and technology in its own right. Made of titanium, it was cut, hand polished and laser-engraved; each of its eyes is micro-painted by hand using neon tones of the three colors.

Antarctique Rattrapante ‘R.U.R. is a Tribute to Karel Čapek play, R.U.R. – Rossum’s Universal Robots, about mechanical men that were built to work on factory assembly lines but that rebel against their human masters. Thanks to Čapek, ‘robot’ has come to mean the humanoid machines of science-fiction novels and films and his play paved the way for dystopian sci-fi scenarios such as Terminator and Blade Runner.