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MICRO MONDAYS: The Sovrygn Calendar delivers multiple complications and a super-fresh look MICRO MONDAYS: The Sovrygn Calendar delivers multiple complications and a super-fresh look

MICRO MONDAYS: The Sovrygn Calendar delivers multiple complications and a super-fresh look

Fergus Nash

Few watches can claim to be truly unique designs, except for those within the wild west that is Kickstarter. Instead of massive brands guessing at or even manufacturing the latest trends, the world of crowdfunding simply exists to give people what they want, and nothing that they don’t. Sovrygn is a great example of this, with the Sovrygn Calendar unlike anything I’ve seen in recent memory.

Instead of picking a gimmick to run with, the Sovrygn Calendar is just all-out wacky and embraces that maverick spirit. There’s no specific design influence, no fake origin story and, although the brand Sovrygn definitely carry themselves with poise, it’s refreshing to not be pandered to as a watch enthusiast.

The case

The case shape is octagonal, and dare I say even Bulgari-esque, although it definitely carries a more masculine bravado than the Octo Roma. It also delivers serious wrist presence. Due to its distinctive shape and thin bezel, I would say that this watch wears much more like a 42-43mm watch than a 39mm as its true diameter suggests. The lug-to-lug distance is only 47mm, but they end in quite a stubby manner that lets you feel their presence all the way to the tip. The thickness isn’t shy either, with the case measurement at 12.6mm, but the protruding caseback and domed crystal bringing it up to roughly 15mm total.

The dial

The dial is available in either a wine-red sunburst finish, a matte white, or a matte Tiffany blue, each surrounded by either raw stainless steel or black or gold PVD coatings. Their photos seem to be a bit more saturated than the real-life watch, but they especially highlight the nice contrast of the orange highlights on the blue dial. Each dial variant is available with either the plain steel finish or a rose-gold PVD coating, with the exception of the red dial which is either rose gold or stealth black.

The dial itself is fun to explore, with the power reserve indicator that satisfyingly sweeps up as you wind the watch, and the many complications spread out harmoniously. There’s a date window cutout at 4:30, but the date wheel is colour-matched to the dial and does a great job of blending in when you’re not actively checking it. The blue dial is slightly different in that the date wheel matches the darker tone of the subdials to increase legibility. The pusher at 2 o’clock advances the month display, while the date and day displays can be advanced using regular crown operation. The 24-hour indicator is linked to the main time-setting function. As far as legibility goes, the thin baton hands aren’t exactly bold, but they allow the dial to be read more clearly at any time of day.

The movement

The movement is a Miyota calibre 9100 from their premium category, and it’s a real delight. There is some lovely decoration on the movement itself, but the really impressive part comes from its list of complications. As you can see from the dial layout, the power reserve, date wheel, 24H indicator, and month and day indicators make a frankly insane list of features for a watch at this price. Add to that hacking, hand-winding, 40 hours of power reserve and a beat rate of 28,800vph and you’ve got yourself a spec monster.

The stainless-steel bracelet is fantastic quality, and although the prototype didn’t allow much inward flex of the links, we’ve been assured that the production models will be much more flexible when conforming to the wrist.

That said, the leather strap option does make the watch a lot more versatile for those without beefy wrists, so experimenting to find what’s most comfortable for you is highly encouraged.

The verdict

All in all, the Sovrygn Calendar is a great choice if you’re just looking for something completely different to add to the collection. If you’ve got the wrists for it, the bracelet is quite possibly the best quality I’ve seen from a microbrand, with the butterfly clasp even having an enamel-filled ’S’ logo at its centre. It’s also worth mentioning that the travel case it comes with is phenomenal.

Pricing and availability

The retail price will be $700 USD, but the early bird special for Kickstarter backers is $515 USD – click here to find out more

Case Material Stainless Steel
Case Dimensions 439mm x 47mm x 15mm
Water-Resistance 100m
Dial White, blue, red
Straps Steel bracelet
Movement Miyota 9100
Power Reserve 40 hours
Complications Hours, minutes, seconds, date, day, month, power reserve, 24H
Price $700 USD RRP, $515 USD on Kickstarter