Romain Jerome has been making waves with its recent forays into pop culture, thanks to watches featuring icons like Batman and Super Mario, but the brand hasn’t neglected the universes its other timepieces inhabit. Case in point: the Moon Orbiter GMT, which is the latest addition to the Air collection themed on outer space. This watch is an evolution of the rectangular Moon Orbiter released in 2013, and echoes its predecessor with an avant-garde design that contains steampunk influences.

The outsized Moon Orbiter GMT measures 48mm across, and is dominated by metallic grey surfaces, but avoids looking drab thanks to the array of contrasting finishings on them. This is further enhanced by the play with depth and geometric shapes on the dial, beginning with two fan-shaped sections that occupy a lower layer at six and 12 o’clock. The section on top tracks a second time zone via a retrograde jumping hour indicator and an engraved day/night disc, while the one at the dial’s bottom shows the power reserve.

Meanwhile, the time is displayed at three o’clock and balanced by the flying tourbillon, with its quirky angular cage, at nine o’clock. Traces of steampunk can be spotted in various design elements on the Moon Orbiter GMT, such as the pivoting, spring-loaded lugs that mimic pistons, and the exposed wheels on the dial. The “X” motif common to many Romain Jerome watches makes its return here, and stretches across the dial to the flanks of the case. The section of the “X” at two o’clock is more than decorative – it’s actually a pusher hiding in plain sight, and serves as the corrector for the second time zone display.

It’s par for the course for a Romain Jerome timepiece to be embedded with bits of a historically significant object, depending on the subject matter at hand, and the Moon Orbiter GMT is no different. In fact, the watch contains not one, but two “memorabilia” of significance: the case contains bits of the Apollo 11 spacecraft, which was the first successful manned mission to the moon, while the movement’s oscillating weight has moon dust in it. For the collector who’s hoping to own a piece of history, this would be it. This watch is, however, produced in a very limited run of 25 pieces worldwide.

Specifications:

Dimension 48mm
Functions  Hours, minutes
Power Reserve 45 hours
Movement Self-winding RJ7813L movement with flying tourbillon, retrograde jumping hour second time zone indicator and power reserve display
Case Steel
Water resistance 30 meters
Strap Black alligator with steel ardillon buckle

This article was first published in World of Watches.