A supernova marks the end of one era, but it also signals the birth of another. By naming this watch "Supernova," I’m signaling a pivotal moment in Sarpaneva Watches - one where everything changes, and nothing is quite the same again.

Stepan Sarpaneva - Year 2006

“I cannot explain how it looks and feels to me, but it is impossible to get 
the same feelings with wood or glass. I have always liked, even preferred the ‘essence’ of steel-cased watches, as it fits with my desire for simplicity and the beauty you find in basic materials and designs – whether inspired by manmade or natural elements.”

 The small dial opening challenges us to traditional methods, while still prioritizing legibility. It’s a delicate balance, much like the gold Moonfaces, which makes its return in the Supernova model for the first time. The half-smiling, half-scowling Sarpaneva Moon takes shape over a complex process. 

 “ The Moon bothers me; even if I cannot see it, I can feel it. During the Full Moon  
and New Moon, I’m especially sensitive... I sleep badly. Am I cursed?”

 The first step requires creating a drawing six-times actual size, followed by cutting a rough model from plate stock, one piece corresponding to each level of elevation of the oversized model. These parts are then fixed together to form the model plate for the pantograph, which will mill the various shapes into a small piece of copper the actual size of the Moonface. This copper version, which will serve later as an electrode, is then cleaned up and ‘fine-tuned’ by a master engraver before the contours are electro-etched into a steel-pressing block, creating a negative image of the face. Last but not least, the eyes are modelled by hand into the negative image and the whole is finished by a master engraver and diamond-polished before undergoing hardening, followed by yet another polishing. 

“Simple, really!

Big, powerful machines are used to prototype and eventually make small, painstaking details in Stepan’s watches – many at engineering firms in Helsinki itself, rather than the usual route of outsourcing component manufacture to Switzerland. The dial parts are made by us, the hands are Stainless Steel and finished to perfection without cutting corners. Well, we do – but then it is about polishing, beveling, black polishing and matting.