Miniature Sculpture Hidden Inside $1.5 Million Watch

Photo: Gruebel Forsey.

If you’re a one percenter looking for tiny artwork with a huge price tag, this one’s for you. Complex reports that Swiss watchmakers Robert Greubel and Stephen Forsey have teamed up with English sculptor Willard Wigan on a watch with an unusual twist. In addition to standard high-end watch features like a platinum case, a 72 hour reserve, and a 30 degree double tourbillon, this timepiece houses a gold sculpture of a ship so small, a special lens had to be installed in order to make it visible to the naked eye.

Art Piece 1 by Gruebel Forsey and Willard Wigan.
Photo: Gruebel Forsey.

Wigan currently holds the world record for creating the smallest sculpture—a gold motorcycle that fits inside a single strand of hair. His works are typically displayed in the eye of a needle or on the head of a pin. To ensure the miniature creations are not harmed by a twitch or breath, he has trained himself to enter a meditative state in which his heartbeat is slowed, allowing him to reduce any hand tremors and work between heartbeats. His sculpting tools, many of which are homemade, include a shard of a diamond attached to a pin.

The spectacular watch, entitled Art Piece 1, is currently on display at Trinity House in New York, along with an assortment of other works by Wigan.