retrograde
REH-truh-grayd
Definition
Describing a mechanism, specifically a hand on a clock or watch, that moves along an arc to indicate a value and then snaps back to its starting position.
Etymology
Derived from the Latin 'retrogradus', meaning 'moving backward'. It entered English in the 15th century and has historically been used in fields like astronomy and biology to describe backward or reversed motion.
In the news
The article uses the term to describe how the watch's minute hand functions, traveling across a scale and then jumping back to the beginning of the next hour. This mechanical movement is a hallmark of the brand's unconventional approach to displaying time.
Urwerk's wildest creation yet is a one-of-a-kind titanium pocket watch engraved for 500 hours by hand, hiding beneath that Baroque artistry a mechanism that counts the days, the centuries and an entire millennium, for $561,000.
Read the full article ↗Luxurylaunches