A Closer Look at the Hublot Masterpiece MP-02
Hublot is a fine luxury watchmaker responsible for the creation of prototypes, then turning them into magnificent collections. When it comes to uniqueness in styling, the brand excels, perhaps and the top of the pack. One of their most popular creations is the MasterpieceMP-02 which features an uncommon dial that places a spherical window for the time to the upper right corner of the timepiece in its own window, with offset divisions to the left for the power reserve and other functions of the watch. They take a different approach to the display which is oddly attractive, and although it’s not everyone’s cup of tea, the styling is distinct and set apart from the herd. This member of the collection is referred to as the Key of Time King Gold, and to fully appreciate its merits, there is a requirement to take a much closer look and discuss the features and attributes of the MP-02.
The Hublot MP-02 under the microscope
At first glance, the Hublot MasterpieceMP-02 comes across as a trendy iteration that quickly catches the eye because of its interesting design. Also known as reference 902.OX.1138.RX, we begin our dissection of the Key of Time King Gold by discussing the case. It’s crafted of nothing less than high-quality precious metal with a unique treatment. The measurements of the case are 40.20mm x 40.10mm in an 18K King Gold which has been micro-blasted to a satin finish. The inner casing features a sapphire crystal which has been treated with an anti-reflective coating to sharply reduce the amount of glare produced when the watch is exposed to bright sunlight, greatly enhancing its readability in all lighting conditions.
The dial
Also considered to be a component of the inner casing, the dial is a matte black coloring, constructed with a multi-layered design. One of the first things that you notice about the dial is that it has received a combination of gold plated appliques along with wonderfully contrasting red luminescent. The hands are black nickel-plated with red luminescence, also finished with a microblasting process for consistency and a neat tie into its case, with a satin finish. The power reserve is located at the lower-left corner with the time separated into the right upper corner.
The movement
The Hublot MP-O2 is powered by an in-house movement called the HUB9002. This is a manual winding movement with a power reserve tourbillon and a column wheel with a power reserve of 100 hours. The complexity of the mechanics of this watch are truly amazing with a total of 512 components. The crown of this watch offers three unique positions for modulating the speed at which the minutes and hours pass, hence it’s name, The Key of Time. These are represented by three indicators which are arranged in a star shape on the dial, each indicating the current speed of time. These allow you to display conventional time, or to speed up time. The first position is used when you want to slow the speed of the watch hands and divide them by four, making one conventional hour appear in quarters on the display. The second position allows to you go by normal hand speed, also referred to as “standard” time. The third position on the crown allows you to accelerate the hand apeed, which will multiply the speed of the passage of time by four, making a quarter of an hour display as one hour on the dial display. Within the movement exists a mechanical memory feature which is one of the most exquisite complications we’ve seen in a movement to date. Also included in the Key of Time is a vertical flying tourbillon cage featuring a seconds indicator which is placed on the edge.
Other features of the Hublot MP-02
The strap is made of smooth black rubber, which offers a nice contrast to the gold coloring of the case, and it also ties in nicely with the black features. The strap is secured to the wrist via a Deployant buckly style clasp which features a satin finish in 18 K King Gold with a microblasted black PVD titanium material.
The Hublot MP-02 Key of Time King Gold evidences the true genius of Hublot’s design team with a uniquely complicated in-house movement, which offers the wearer the ability to alter time, or at least one’s perception of time by slowing it down or speeding it up, then returning to standard time without the necessity of resetting the watch. It’s made to automatically revert to the correct standard time with a simple crown adjustment to one of three positions and it’s as simple as that. We think that it’s brilliant, and if nothing else, novel.
Final thoughts
The Key of Time King Gold is one of Hublot’s most interesting prototype watches which has made it past the initial criticisms to become a full-fledged part of their collection of high-end luxury watches. If this spectacular timepiece is something you can’t live without, you can own your own example of the timepiece with new models going for approximately $331,000. We’ve also seen several used watches of this reference number being offered or somewhere between $200,000 and $250,000, depending upon their condition, so it’s possible to obtain this highly collectible Hublot for a price that is as low as a third less than the manufacturer’s suggested retail price, which is a bit on the expensive side. The Key of Time King Gold is perhaps one of the most uniquely complicated wrist watches we’ve seen, as there are few timepieces that offer you the ability to either speed up time or slow it down, then return to standard with a quick crown adjustment. This is something that a practical joker would truly embrace, or perhaps the intention was simply to slow down life’s great moments so they last longer, and to speed through the difficult times. At any rate, the MP-02 is a fascinating time piece that is worth at least considering if you’re into high end novel collectibles.