hristopher Ward team up once again with seconde/seconde/ to celebrate the Year of the Snake with The Twelve Snake. Following the success of their 2024 collaboration with the Parisian designer and esteemed horological vandal (also known as Romaric André), the C65 Deskdiver, work began on CW’s first special edition to celebrate the Chinese Lunar New Year.

“The 12 animals of the Chinese Zodiac have been well-celebrated in the watch industry. But, with its name, its somewhat pixelated dial, and its logo, the Twelve was sending us strong (non-zodiacal) signs that it could be a wonderful framework for an unorthodox ’Snake’ celebration. Of course, this low-res aesthetic brings us back to the late 90s era. But more than just nostalgia, I was also looking to bring back the feeling of ’hope’ we had back then. The kind of hope that is always welcome when projecting yourself in a New Year. So here we are. Cheers to the Snake year(s),” said André.

The Twelve’s trademark textured dial presents the perfect, 8-bit backdrop to a well-fed snake as it makes its way through right-angle turns to devour its next pixelated meal - in this case, the Swiss side of CW’s twin-flags logo.

Retro gamers will remember the ‘bonus bites’ - larger, time-limited treats which would appear randomly and disappear if not consumed quickly enough. In a slightly less random way, The Twelve Snake displays the ‘bonus bites’ through a ‘no-date’ date window, located between the seven and eight o’clock positions.

True to its inspiration, The Twelve Snake features a dial free from indices to maximise focus on the retro reptile and to ensure the snake’s journey to its next meal remains unimpeded, wherever it might appear. Exclusive to The Twelve Snake, the ‘Venom’ green dial hue emulates the backlit nostalgia of early LCD screens.

“Working with Romaric is always an inspiring experience," said Adrian Buchmann, Board Member and Design Consultant at CW. “He has an uncanny ability to spot the unseen, to reframe the ordinary in ways that feel extraordinary. What’s truly fascinating is how his creative vision makes you wonder how you never saw it that way before - it’s as if he unveils something that was hiding in plain sight all along. Every collaboration with him brings a fresh and unexpected spark,” he continues.

The Twelve Snake’s unique case back features commemorative printing on the inside of the rear sapphire crystal. Beneath this, the snake reappears on a coated custom rotor. In a world-first for this legend of retro gaming, the snake travels in a curve as the rotor spins with movement.

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS

• Case: Steel
• Diameter: 40mm
• Height: 9.95mm
• Case Weight: 65g
• Lug to lug: 44.5mm
• Water resistance: 10 ATM / 100m
• Movement: Sellita SW200-1
• Timing tolerance: +/- 20 seconds per day
• Power reserve: 38 hours
• Snakes: 2