Spotlight on Basel

01. Omega Seamaster Exclusive Boutique Singapore Limited Edition

You have to flip this simple but elegant timepiece over to see what's so special about it. Laser- engraved on the grey inner ring of the case back are iconic sites Singaporeans will immediately recognise - Raffles Hotel, Merlion, ArtScience Museum and Marina Bay Sands Hotel. This 3-hand, blue and diamond-polished, time-only watch in 39.50 mm diameter stainless steel, wrapped around a white lacquered domed dial, was launched on Jan 28, 2019 - precisely 200 years after Sir Stamford Raffles first set foot on Singapore. Only 200 pieces of the watch are produced - and sold exclusively here - to celebrate Singapore's Bicentennial. The watch, which retails at S$10,500, features a matching blue leather strap and is powered by the Omega Master Chronometer Calibre 8800, one of the most advanced movements in the market today.

02. Urwerk UR-105 CT Maverick

This rugged time machine left the workshop in the raw. "It's on the owner's wrist that the watch acquires its finish," explains Martin Frei, Urwerk's chief designer and co-founder. "It will be transformed through symbiosis with its hosts."

The self-winding Maverick in bronze and titanium is the latest version of Urwerk's signature wandering hour complication, which combines a digital and an analog way of telling time. In the watch, the hours on satellites progress in turn along a track of minutes. The timepiece is called the Maverick because it is "made in honour of mad artists, eccentric inventors, people who think up world-changing ideas". It's priced at 67,000 Swiss francs (S$90,450) before taxes.

03. De Bethune DB28 Kind of Gold USA Limited Edition

The iconic DB28 comes in two tones with a case made of pink gold in its latest incarnation. Only 10 pieces of this moon-phase timepiece have been made and they're only available in the US, to celebrate the second edition of the Miami Watches & Wonder event. The patented spherical moon-phase is located at six o'clock. Made of steel and palladium, it offers precision that varies only one lunar day every 122 years. The hand-winding movement features an in-house high performance escapement which has a silicon annular balance. It's protected by a triple parachute shock-absorbing system. A self-regulating twin barrel stores enough energy to ensure a power reserve of six days.

04. Romain Gauthier Prestige HMS Stainless Steel

The name says it all - the independent watch-maker's first watch in a stainless steel case showcases a stunning dial crafted from a meteorite discovered in 1931 in Australia. Intersecting bands of nickel-iron crystal adds sparkle to the meteorite when you turn the timepiece. Housed in the 43mm in diameter case is an impressively engineered, hand-finished in-house movement which keeps the watch ticking for 60 hours non-stop once fully wound. The unusual "flat" crown, visible only when you flip the watch over, is more efficient than the traditional crown and easy for winding. Prestige HMS Stainless Steel is a 10-piece limited edition.

05. Ulysse Nardin Classico Jade

The Classico Jade, in a larger 37mm in diameter case, was launched in 2013 in tribute to a revered gemstone that the royal court in China considered "crystallised magic" - the link between heaven and earth. In its latest guise, the timepiece appears in a smaller 34mm case and carries a subtle message of love - when pronounced in Chinese. The 8, 7 and 6 hour-markers on the white mother-of-pearl dial are replaced by the numerals 5, 2 and 0. Said in Chinese, "520" means "I love you" ("Wo ai ni"). The timepiece, with an automatic movement at its heart, is sold in steel (5,900 euros), diamond-set steel (7,900 euros), diamond-set rose gold (17,900 euros) and a limited edition (7,900 euros).

06. H Moser & Cie Pioneer Tourbillon and Pioneer Centre Seconds

Coming from the brand's Pioneer family, which makes watches with a sturdy case, the two new timepieces are designed to be "elegant, audacious and contemporary, with references to the industrial world". The watches are created for everyday heroes and fit into every situation, be it in the city, at the beach or in the mountains. Both are water-resistant to 120 metres and have a 42.8mm-diameter case made from 5N red gold and black DLC-finished titanium inserts. The watches, which come with a rubber strap, feature a blue fume dial and partially skeletonised hands. They are powered by automatic movements. The movement of the Pioneer Tourbillon is equipped with a double flat hairspring designed and produced in-house. This improves precision. The tourbillon (limited to 50 pieces) is an "interchangeable module". It's assembled and regulated independently of the movement, which allows for easy servicing.

07. F P Journe Titalyt Elegante

This latest version of the Elegante boasts a grade 5 titanium case, 40 or 48mm set with 38 diamonds, that's been given the exclusive Titalyt treatment - in which titanium is subjected to electro-plasma oxidation. This improves the hardness and resistance to wear and corrosion of the material. Elegante, which is equipped with a revolutionary electromechanical movement, provides more than eight years' autonomy. It allows time to be stopped and started again - the dream of all watchmakers. After remaining motionless for 35 minutes, the watch switches to standby mode to save energy. Its hands stop turning, but the microprocessor specially created for the watch continues to measure time. When the motion detector, visible on the dial at 4.30, is activated, the Elegante automatically sets itself to the correct time.