Over the past five years, independent powerhouse MB&F and historical clockmaker L’Epée have built a reputation on enormous and complex creations, making horological spiders, robots, rocket ships and UFOs. This year, the duo has teamed up once more to create yet another eccentric tabletop timepiece – a cycloptic T-Rex.

The T-Rex was first unveiled earlier in the year as a one-off creation that was customised with a rider atop for Only Watch. The T-Rex minus its passenger has now gone into production and is available in three iterations with either green, blue or red glass dials.

While the earlier co-creations had more explicit influences, the T-Rex’s odd form requires some explanation. According to the brand, the source of inspiration was an ornament found on the desk of founder Maximilian Büsser that comprised of a Christmas bauble perched atop two chicken legs.

Like the Medusa launched earlier in the year, the T-Rex strikes a balance between mechanical and organic forms. The 26.5cm tall body of the T-Rex is fashioned from stainless steel, palladium-plated brass and bronze, while its translucent “eyeball”, which also serves as the dial, is made of hand-blown glass from the same Murano producer that crafts the bodies of the Medusa.

The jointed legs of T-Rex were designed to suggest motion, while its alternating sandblasted and polished finishing give it a sense of realism. In fact, the legs were modelled on actual Tyrannosaurus Rex bones, using 3D scans of fossilised dinosaur skeletons as references.

Made up of 201 components including the movement, the T-Rex is less complex and significantly lighter than its previous co-creations, weighing approximately 2kg.

Behind the dial is L’Epée’s eight-day movement, which is essentially the same movement used in their previous clocks such as the Destination Moon 8-Day Rocket Clock and the Medusa, but with a more conventional display.

Time is indicated via two curved hands instead of stacked rotating drums. Thus, the movement is anchored horizontally, with the escapement lying flat and the massive barrel situated at the back.

Time is set with a key, fitted through the center of the Murano glass dial, while the power reserve is maintained separately with the same key at the rear of the movement.

Key facts

Dimensions: 265 mm tall x 258 mm x 178 mm
Weight: Approximately 2kg
Material: Stainless steel, palladium-plated brass and bronze, with a hand-blown Murano glass dial

Movement: L’Epée 1839 movement
Functions: Hours and minutes
Frequency: 18,000bph, or 2.5Hz
Power reserve: 8 days

Time-setting: Winding key to both set the time (in the centre of the dial) and wind the movement (on the barrel axis at the back)

Price and availability

The T-Rex is available with either a red, blue or green dial, each limited to 100 pieces and priced at 22,500 Swiss francs including VAT.