Venice and New York are more than 6,000 kilometers apart, yet they have something in common: they are both port cities, shaped by water, whose histories have been built around the people who arrived and those who departed. This shared identity inspired Redentore Two Harbors, the watch we created together with our friends at Worn & Wound for Windup New York.
This limited edition of 800 individually numbered pieces is the result of months of discussions, visits, calls, and a shared vision. Rather than representing a single place, it tells the story of a journey: the one that takes us from Italy to the United States, time and again. Here, we look back at how the project began, how the watch came to life, and what happened when it was unveiled to the public for the first time in New York.
Venice and New York: Two Harbors, One Shared Route
A friendship across the Atlantic
Behind Two Harbors lies a relationship built over the years. Founded in 2011, our friends at Worn & Wound have grown into a leading voice in independent watchmaking, while Windup Watch Fair has become a gathering place for this community. For us, it has long been one of the most meaningful stops on our American calendar.
In April, we welcomed their team to our Atelier in Venice, as we shared in Worn and Wound in Italy: A Journey Reversed. Those days together, and the conversations that followed, gave rise to a shared concept, which took shape in a project document circulated in mid-June.
The result was a watch conceived specifically for Windup New York: not simply another variation of an existing model, but a timepiece with a story to tell, built around what the two sides of the Atlantic have in common. Windup Watch Shop is also one of our retail partners and opened a showroom in Brooklyn in July. The idea grew naturally out of a relationship that was already well established.
Alberto Morelli, CEO of Venezianico, and James Helms, CCO & Partner at Worn & Wound
Two Harbors, one shared route
The two harbors in the name are Venice and New York. One overlooks the Venetian Lagoon, the other the Hudson River and the Atlantic Ocean, yet both have grown through trade and the arrival of people, goods, and ideas from distant places.
Between them, we traced a route: a journey by sea from Venice to Gibraltar, the Azores, and finally New York. Four stops brought together on a single dial, from the Venetian Lagoon to the Manhattan skyline.
Bringing these places together in one timepiece was our way of expressing how distance can also bring people closer. Before taking shape in metal, the idea began as a hand-drawn sketch, in pencil and color: the Statue of Liberty on the dial, the light blue strap, and the warm tones of a sunset sky.
The original pencil and color sketch that inspired the dial
The dial, layer by layer
Every layer of the dial tells a different part of the journey. The background features a four-color print with a deliberately visible grain, inspired by the magazines and printed imagery of 20th-century America. Its vintage postcard aesthetic transforms the Manhattan skyline into an illustration reminiscent of ink on paper. The color palette follows the route, from the light blue of the Venetian Lagoon to the deep blue of the Atlantic, ending in the warm hues of sunset.
In the foreground, the Statue of Liberty and the skyline rise from the surface in sculpted brass relief, finished with aged, darkened silver plating over a printed and treated brass base. The raised metal elements stand out against the background, while the aged finish catches the light differently with every movement of the wrist.
Balancing the composition, an off-center mother-of-pearl subdial displays the hours and minutes through two slender hands. Its soft, iridescent glow contrasts with the sculpted relief, giving the rest of the dial room to breathe.
The Statue of Liberty and skyline in relief, alongside the mother-of-pearl subdial
New York, the first encounter
On October 13, the watch was unveiled online. Three days later, on October 16, it stepped off the screen and met its audience at Windup Watch Fair in New York, held at Center 415 on Fifth Avenue through October 18.
We wanted our booth to continue telling the story, rather than simply displaying the watch. The setup brought the two harbors to life, with the Statue of Liberty and Manhattan skyline on one side, and St. Mark's Basilica and the winged lion on the other, connected by the Windup emblem. Behind the team stood a large Redentore Two Harbors poster.
For us, this was the moment of truth: after months of sketches, renderings, and prototypes, people could finally see the watch up close and try it on their wrists for the very first time.
At our New York booth: the watch alongside the original dial design
From Sketch to Timepiece
Alongside the watches, we displayed original sketches and design drawings to show how the dial came to life: from the overall composition to its individual elements, including the printed background, sculpted relief, and mother-of-pearl subdial. Before reaching the wrist, a design like this passes through the hands of those who envision it and those who bring it to life.
Beyond its visual identity, the watch features carefully considered technical specifications: a 40 mm 316L stainless steel case, measuring 46.7 mm lug-to-lug and 11.5 mm thick, a sapphire crystal with anti-reflective coating, 5 ATM water resistance, and an NH05A automatic movement with an off-center hours and minutes display. The strap is crafted from handmade Italian leather in a light blue shade.
On the caseback, the New York skyline appears inverted above Venice, like two shores reflected in the same water, alongside the Windup New York emblem and each watch's individual number, from 1 to 800. Visitors who wanted to secure their own piece had the opportunity to place a pre-order directly at the fair.
The caseback: New York inverted above Venice
A Journey that continues
For us, Two Harbors is, above all, a story of connection. For years, we were the ones crossing the ocean to meet the American watch community. This time, however, the idea was born in Venice, at our Atelier, together with the friends who had come to visit us.
The story of Two Harbors doesn't end in New York. On Monday, October 26, at 3:00 PM Italian time (CET), the remaining pieces following the fair will become available worldwide, priced at €850 / $975, as part of a limited edition of 800 individually numbered pieces.
Our thanks go to our friends at Worn & Wound, the Windup team, and everyone who stopped by our booth. The journey has taken a new direction, and now it continues from here.
