The advent of the now nearly ubiquitous smartphone is slowly making watches and clocks obsolete, which is a crying shame because these both have a long and rich legacy of beautiful decoration and artistic craftsmanship. These 24 watches, whether homages to the grand-master clock makers of old or innovative new designs for the modern era, seek to keep our love of watches and timepieces alive.

One of the most enchanting things about watch design, especially when talking about mechanical watches, is the scale at which everything happens. Not only are these designs absolutely beautiful, they are all also constrained to a tiny disk strapped to your wrist. And yet, despite this limitation, there are round tables surrounded by knights, whirling planets, beautiful birds and poetic fairy-tales. Many of the world’s greatest watchmakers also no longer limit themselves to simply documenting a 24-hour day, either. Weeks, months, and the time in other cities around the world can all be monitored, and even the moon’s phases and the movement of celestial bodies.

On the other hand, digital watches have opened up a new world of opportunities for watchmakers that just weren’t available before. Sleek modern designs, lights, and the lack of moving parts are just a few of the basic hallmarks of the digital watches on this list. The lack of moving parts especially allows digital watchmakers to move in new directions – their faces can display information in totally new ways, and they can be made flexible or even see-through.

If you know of a cool watch we should see, you can upload its photo at the bottom of this post!

Astronomical Watch Accurately Shows The Solar System’s Movements On Your Wrist

creative-watches-1-1 creative-watches-1-2 creative-watches-1-3Designed by Van Cleef & Arpels

Salvador Dalí’s Persistence of Memory-Inspired Melted Wristwatch

creative-watches-3-2 creative-watches-3-1Available here

Eye Of A Storm: A Watch Without A Face

creative-watches-15-1 creative-watches-15-2Designed by Yiran Qian

ZIIIRO Mercury Watch

creative-watches-29-1 creative-watches-29-2Available here

Excalibur Watch

creative-watches-18-1 creative-watches-18-2Designed by Roger Dubuis

Whatever, I’m Late Anyway Watch

creative-watches-10Available here.

The Ora Unica Watch

creative-watches-11-1 creative-watches-11-2Designed by Denis Guidone

This Bird Repeater Watch Is Worth Half A Million Dollars

creative-watches-12 creative-watches-12-2 output_p3ogTG Designed by Jaquet Droz

Free Time Watch

creative-watches-25Available here

Earth And Moon Watch

creative-watches-13-4 creative-watches-13-5Designed by Alexander Sorokin

Dragon Gate Legend Watch

creative-watches-20Designed by Cornelius & Cie

SOH – A Second Of Happiness Watch

creative-watches-17-2 creative-watches-17-3 creative-watches-17-1Designed by Mathilde Ampe

Time Traveller – This Watch Allows You To See The Time All Over The World

creative-watches-4Designed by Mr Jones Watches

Hand-Painted Poetic Wish Watch

creative-watches-5-1 creative-watches-5-2Designed by Van Cleef & Arpels

Ora Latea Watch

creative-watches-27Available here

Geeky Equation Watch

creative-watches-6Available here

Skull Watches

creative-watches-2-4 creative-watches-2-2 creative-watches-2-3Designed by Fiona Kruger

Nadir Watch

creative-watches-16-1 creative-watches-16-2Available here

Wingt Mille Watch – The Two Men Being Held By The Squid Indicate The Hours And Minutes

creative-watches-7 creative-watches-7-2Designed by: Mr Jones Watches

Digital Destruction Watch

creative-watches-21-2 creative-watches-21-1Designed by Ross McBride

Boombox Watch

creative-watches-9-1Designed by Flud Watches

Angular Momentum Handmade Timepieces

creative-watches-22-1 creative-watches-22-2 creative-watches-22-3

Designed by angularmomentum.com

 

The Accurate Watch – Designed To Remind Us That We Should Seize The Moment While We Can

creative-watches-14Designed by Mr Jones Watches

The Bradley – A Timepiece Designed For The Blind

creative-watches-23-1 creative-watches-23-2 creative-watches-23-3Image credits: Eone Timepieces

24 Of The Most Creative Watches Ever originally appeared on Bored Panda