It’s one of the most amazing horological sculptures to date, offering the perfect blend of tradition, kinetic art, and high-tech horology.

Shown for the first time at Baselworld 2009, Jaquet Droz’s La Machine à Ecrire le Temps or “The Machine That Writes the Time” is an automaton designed to relate to the 21st century. It took eight years to develop this ingenious masterpiece, which contains more than 1,200 components, including 84 ball bearings, 50 cams, and nine belts. Protected by an elegant aluminum cage and fitted with liquid crystal glass, possessors of the masterpiece can cover or unveil the whole movement to their liking. With a simple touch of a button, La Machine à Ecrire le Temps’ inner workings are activated and a stylus writes the time in hour and minutes by converting analogue time into mechanical digital time.

La Machine à Ecrire le Temps is the fruit of phenomenal technical performance and deep philosophical reflection. At $342,275, it’s the ultimate luxury any passionate watch collector or horological machine lover could own.