DIVIDO Bracelet Model [VM14-M01GBK-SSB]

At arm’s length this dial reads black. Turn it toward a window and a silver-gray starburst opens out of the center, pushing the darkness back toward the rim. That behavior is the argument the MINASE DIVIDO makes for itself.

DIVIDO arrived in 2013 and was rebuilt as version 2.0 in 2018. MINASE calls it “otherworldly simplicity,” and the case supports the phrase: a set of built-up polyhedrons whose luster changes with the viewing angle, split across the middle by a four-lug partition structure. The lugs sit above the case rather than growing out of its flanks.

The gradated black dial is formed by electroforming rather than printing, the method MINASE uses to raise the traditional yukihira pattern out of the dial plate. The case-in-case measures 40.6 mm wide by 40.6 mm tall and 11 mm thick including the sapphire crystal, worn here on the MORE stainless steel bracelet at roughly 134 g. Inside runs the self-winding caliber KT7002 with date, built on a Swiss ETA 2892 / Sellita SW300 base and finished by MINASE in Akita.

Rated 5 atm, so rain and splashes rather than swimming. Made to order, for someone who wants a dial that never looks quite the same twice.

Perfect for: gradient dial watch collectors, Japanese independent watchmaking enthusiasts, sculptural steel bracelet watches.