Grand Seiko’s Masterpiece Collection is in a league of its own within the Seiko ecosystem, and this new SBZ009 Spring Drive Limited Edition is a hand-engraved timepiece inspired, as many Grand Seikos are, by the passing seasons of forests and lakes near the Micro Artists Studio. In this instance, and this has been an inspiration before, especially for dials, white birch forests in wintertime.

How so? Well according to Grand Seiko, the hand-engraved platinum case is inspired by these trees of the Yachiho Plateau of the Kita-Yatsugatake Mountains. The dial too, has this inspiration.

The hour and minute hands, as well as the indexes, are made of 14K white gold, with the engraved minute markers and logo mark drawing out the delicate brilliance of the dial. This limited-edition model imparts the feeling of the tranquil flow of time through a sublime, snow-covered landscape.

The Platinum 950 case is 38.5mm with a thickness of 9.8mm. It is fully-engraved by the engravers of the Shinshu Watch Studio, and mirror-finishing through the use of Zaratsu polishing.

The white birch-inspired dial has a carved Grand Seiko logo, Spring Drive, and the star mark at 6 o’clock denotes solid gold markers. The hour and minute hands and the indices are 14k white gold and the tempered seconds hand, grey. The minute and seconds hands are slightly curved. Also on the dial, there is a star mark at 6 o’clock. This is an indication that the watch features solid gold markers. The minute track, lettering and the mark at six o’clock are all carved into the dial.

Visible through the sapphire crystal case-back, the manually-wond Caliber 9R02 features the familiar hall marks of the Micro Artists Studio. The most decorative and noteworthy of these is, of course, the bellflower barrel. An 18k gold plaque set on the lower bridge is engraved with the words ‘Micro Artist’. On the case back is it ‘LIMITED EDITION’ (of fifty pieces) designation plus a serial number.

Coming on a crocodile strap with a Platinum 950 clasp, the Grand Seiko Masterpiece Collection SBGZ009 Spring Drive Limited Edition has an RRP of EUR 80,000/ ¥9,515,000 and will be available at Grand Seiko boutiques from June 2023.

This is a beautiful watch and for those who are familiar with Grand Seiko’s Masterpiece Collection, its familiarity means that you have a clear indication of what you are going to get. It sits well on the wrist and the finishing is as good as you would expect. These are niche watches and they are intended to be, but there is still an all-round quiet quality to them that deserves to be broadly appreciated.

Categories: Hands-on, Japanese watches, Seiko, Spring Drive, Watch Profile, watches, Watches & Wonders Geneva 2023, Women's watches