Luminosity has a storied history in watchmaking, a prized quality that allows for easy reading of the time day or night, and no matter how treacherous the conditions. Radium was first discovered in 1898, quickly finding favour within the industry in the following years for its long-lasting, fluorescent nature. By the 1970s, it was banned after being deemed too dangerous to use due to its radioactive qualities, and in the decades since has become superseded by other, safer materials including the SuperLuminova we popularly see today.

Bell & Ross’s new watch, the Vintage BR V2-94 Full Lum, takes the brightness up another notch with a dial fully lit in this glow-in-the-dark substance. It achieves a vintage look by including subtle variations in colour to great effect. The metal dial is completely coated with a paint made of green Super-LumiNova C5 luminescent pigments, while the numerals, indices, hands, and counters are filled with pale yellow Super-LumiNova C3. In daytime, it lends an understated and interesting green tone to the dial. As night falls, it lights up in intense fluorescent hues, contrasted with similarly bright blue highlights on the 30-minute counter and chrono seconds hand.

The watch itself has a strong heritage feel, with its classic circular silhouette and large and legible counters and numerals. Limited to 250 pieces, the watch comes fitted with a strap made from weave black rubber, known as ‘tropic’, for a final vintage finishing touch.

bellross.com