Not to be overlooked, of course, are the Freak Vision's technical achievements--from its grinder automatic winding system, a more efficient system of energy transmission, to its
anchor escapement made of silicium, the revolutionary material used for the first time in the original Freak, marking it and its successors as icons of high watchmaking.
Featuring the proprietary Silicium
anchor escapement crafted in-house at the Swiss manufacture, it boasts both COSC certification and the Ulysse Nardin certificate, a double guarantee of the highest performance standards.
However, the single weight-driven mechanism with
anchor escapement and long pendulum made it an extremely accurate timekeeper, a vital factor for travellers passing through a coaching inn, for example.
Early clocks had fusee movements with verge escapements, and this early form continued until the end of the Georgian period when it was entirely superseded by the technically superior
anchor escapement.
In a book that blends history and physics, Denny introduces five lesser-known machines that also changed our world: the bow and arrow, the waterwheel, the counterpoise siege engine, the pendulum clock
anchor escapement, and the centrifugal governor.