The intriguing, 42mm collectable features a total of 16 diamonds and sits on a classic alligator watch strap. Photo courtesy Van Cleef & Arpels.

BY KAREN AANONSEN

The glittering night sky never ceases to capture imaginations — including, that of Van Cleef & Arpels. The brand’s new Midnight Nuit Lumineuse timepiece brings the heavens to discerning wrists, complete with glowing orbs. Six diamonds on its constellation-painted dial are back-lit on demand thanks to piezoelectricity. When caused to vibrate by the watch’s automatic movement, a strip of ceramic contained within the creation mechanically generates electrical energy, which in turn powers six electroluminescent diodes. Those tiny devices are what emit the unearthly light from beneath the Midnight Nuit Lumineuse’s aventurine glass dial, punctuating the outline of one of the watch’s various star groupings: Monoceros, the unicorn. The starry sight to behold shines for four-second intervals with a simple push of the crown.

—March 2016