Category Archives: Panerai

panerai astronomo movment

L’ASTRONOMO

AND YET IT MOVES…

While this timepiece presented by the Italian brand at the SIHH stands out through its many complications, what really attracts attention is the date display. We take a closer look!

The Astronomo sounds like the title of a novel by the scholarly Umberto Eco, but is in fact an exceptional timepiece made by Panerai and dedicated to the genius, Galileo. Its real name is Luminor Tourbillon Moon Phases Equation of Time GMT, which summarises the complications driven by the calibre. The watch, however, has mysteries that only the lucky few can appreciate. So, although the dial is revealed by an admirable skeleton effect, the attentive observer looking at the various time features will notice that the date counter is particularly unusual. You can see the date, but you can’t see any disc that the date might be placed on! To prevent the disc – which is in fact there – from covering part of the dial’s components, the watchmakers from Panerai have made use of optical effects on hi-tech materials. The result? The figures are invisible except when they are lined up with the date counter. A polarised glass placed above the disc displays them with perfect clarity.

panerai astronomo movmentThe customisation options also involve the case (50mm wide!) and the colour of the hands. If you don’t fancy the polished titanium, Panerai gives you option of changing it for red gold or white gold. Whatever your final choice, the hand-wound P.2005/GLS movement guarantees a generous four days of power reserve. There is no occult science behind the performance, since it is provided with the help of two barrels.

Price: 199,000 EUR (titanium version)

By Dan Diaconu

panerai pam 858 dog year closeup open

PANERAI – LUMINOR 1950 SEALAND 3 DAYS AUTOMATIC ACCIAIO 44MM

LIKE A DOG WITH TWO TAILS

For ten years now, Officine Panerai has maintained the tradition of paying homage to the Chinese horoscope. 2018 will see the year of man’s best friend, the dog.

In 2009, Panerai decided to pay homage to the Chinese horoscope with timepieces decorated with the animal of the year in question. An Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Goat, Monkey and Rooster have already been depicted on the previous watches. The Luminor 1950 Sealand 3 Days Automatic Acciaio has been designed for 2018 and shows man’s best friend, the dog, and is available in 88 pieces, a lucky number in Chinese culture.

panerai pam 858 dog year closeup open

With a 44mm-wide case made of brushed steel, the Luminor 1950 Sealand 3 Days Automatic Acciaio contains the calibre P.9000, a self-winding automatic movement made by Panerai. The mechanical heart of the watch runs at a frequency of 28,800 vibrations an hour and provides three days of power reserve. As well as the hour and minute functions, the timepiece has a small seconds dial at 9 o’clock and a date counter at 3 o’clock. Arabic numerals, stick-shaped indices and luminous dots are revealed when the hand-engraved brushed steel cover is opened. Panerai has designed a simple grey dial, and there is a black rubber or a supple brown leather strap to provide variety.

Price: 23,200 CHF

By Isabelle Guignet

panerai pam 716 mare nostrum closeup

PANERAI – MARE NOSTRUM ACCIAIO

A DIVE INTO THE PAST

The original version of the diver chronograph has finally resurfaced! Panerai has had the bright idea of holding onto the Mediterranean design and mechanism.

1993: Panerai added a new diver watch with a chronograph complication to its catalogue. A major first! 50 years earlier there may well have been a model with a hearty 50mm case but it never got past the prototype stage. This year, the brand has dived back into its archives to update a much sought-after piece: the new Mare Nostrum Acciaio (PAM00716) has the same design features and technical aspects as the original. The intense blue dial bears the chronograph minute counter at 9 and the small seconds at 3. The chronograph seconds are tracked by the large central hand. Two luminescent hands glide over markers coated in beige Super-LumiNova® for improved timekeeping.

panerai pam 716 mare nostrum closeup

In keeping with the first edition, Panerai has kept the same manual-wind mechanical movement. The satin steel case houses the OP XXXIII calibre that’s been tailor-made on an ETA 2801-2 base and a Dubois-Dépraz chronograph module. Once wound up it provides the Mare Nostrum Acciaio with a 42-hour power reserve.

The timepiece comes in an elegant wooden box in which collectors will be delighted to find a miniature reproduction of the Italian Navy’s destroyer, the Durand De La Penne. The Mare Nostrum was unveiled on this ship in 1993. This special edition (1000 available) by Panerai comes on a blue leather strap.

Price: €9,900

By Dan Diaconu

panerai luminor oracle team chrono flyback closeup

PANERAI – LUMINOR 1950 ORACLE TEAM USA 3 DAYS CHRONO FLYBACK AUTOMATIC CERAMICA

SETTING SAIL FOR BERMUDA!

Panerai has taken the plunge to become the official watch for the America’s Cup and for two teams, including Oracle Team USA. For Oracle, the Italian brand has created three timepieces, including a black ceramic chronograph with a flyback feature.

2017 is an important year for lovers of sailing, especially with the America’s Cup, the most prestigious and most followed sailing race in the world taking place in Bermuda. Panerai, the Italian brand with workshops in Neuchâtel, Switzerland, figures among the race’s partners as official watchmakers. For the occasion, the firm is presenting five new timepieces, including three for Oracle Team USA, the winner of eight consecutive races and two cups. Among the trio is the Panerai – Luminor 1950 Oracle Team USA 3 Days Chrono Flyback Automatic Ceramica (PAM00725).

panerai luminor oracle team chrono flyback closeup

The matt black ceramic case on the Luminor 1950 Oracle Team USA 3 Days Chrono Flyback Automatic Ceramica is 44mm in diameter. It is equipped with a crown guard with a lever – a typical features of Panerai collections – two pushers (start/stop at 10 o’clock and flyback/reset at 8 o’clock) and a black titanium background. The background features the words “America’s Cup”, the Oracle Team USA logo and the silhouette of the team’s famous trimaran.

At the heart of this black setting is the P.9100 calibre, an automatic mechanism made by Panerai, providing a power reserve of 72 hours (3 days) and driving the chronograph with the flyback function. This feature is used to launch the timer for a new event without having to press stop/reset. A precious timesaver during a race where each minute, and even each second counts.

The black watch face is encircled with a chapter ring featuring a nautical tachymeter (measurement in knots). In the centre, a set of stick-shaped luminescent hands display the hours and minutes around the hour rim made up of slender markers and large Arabic numerals for 6 and 12. The seconds are shown in a counter equipped with a small blue hand at 9 o’clock. Also in the centre are two slim coloured hands: a blue-coated hand to count down the seconds on the chronograph and a hand with a red finish for the minutes. The hours, meanwhile, are shown in a at 3 o’clock.

A black leather strap with the America’s Cup logo rounds off the sporting look of the Luminor 1950 Oracle Team USA 3 Days Chrono Flyback Automatic Ceramica. Like the watch dial, it is adorned with the colours of the famous regatta on the stitching: blue topstitches near the buckles and red stitches along the sides of the leather.

Price on request.

By Sharmila Bertin

panerai luminor submersible bmg tech soldat

PANERAI – LUMINOR SUBMERSIBLE 1950 BMG-TECHTM 3 DAYS

A GLASS AND METAL LADY

Two years of development were needed to perfect the new material from which the case is constructed in this timepiece from Panerai which was presented at Geneva at the SIHH (Salon International de la Haute Horlogerie – International Fine Watchmaking Exhibition).

This year, the “think tank” used all its creative energy to develop highly technical products in the Luminor 1950 collection, and more particularly in the Luminor Submersible family of sports watches. One of these watches, called Luminor Submersible 1950 BMG-TECHTM 3 Days, uses a material unprecedented in watchmaking: metallic glass. Its development at Panerai took two years, designing a complete case at the Neuchâtel factory – that is the body, bezel, crown and crown protection device – produced in BMG-TECHTM metallic glass.

panerai luminor submersible bmg tech soldat

In the centre of the blue dial, whose brilliance offers the same kind of luminosity, depth and translucidity as enamel, two large, luminescent, regatta hands with cut-outs sweep past an hour rim made up of applied markers and dots. The seconds are counted down by a recessed counter at the 9 o’clock position that has a small blue hand, and the date is shown in a display at the 3 o’clock position.

Price: 9,900 EUR

By Sharmila Bertin

panerai lab id luminor 1950 carbotech front and caseback

PANERAI – LAB-IDTM LUMINOR 1950 CARBOTECHTM 3 DAYS

50 – THE LUCKY NUMBER

The “laboratory of ideas“ has deployed all its innovative energy to design a watch that is full of contrasts, between the coal black case and the blue turquoise display.

50 as in Luminor 1950, as in a limited edition of 50 pieces, as in a 50-year guarantee and as in 50 000 euros. 50 is Panerai’s new magic number with the release this year of a completely new timepiece developed in its Neuchâtel workshops, and which comes as a surprise in terms of look and technology. With a design revisiting the famous Luminor 1950 collection, the LAB-IDTM Luminor 1950 CarbotechTM 3 Days model (PAM 00700) is what might be called innovation in a concentrated form, both inside and out.

panerai lab id luminor 1950 carbotech front and caseback

Its large cushion case measures 49mm in diameter and is made of carbotech, a composite material produced using fine layers of compressed carbon fibres. The result is a slightly veined, matt black look, with improved resistance and less weight. The crown-guard features a locking lever and is also made of carbotech.

This solid case contains a manual wind movement that is partially on display. The P.3001/C (C as in “carbon“) calibre provides three days of power reserve – the indicator is on the back of the watch – and drives the hour/minute/second functions. Some parts of the mechanism, such as the plate, the bridges, the double barrel, the escapement and the anti-shock system (Incabloc®) are made from a composite material including carbon or are coated in DLC (Diamond-Like Carbon), thus limiting friction and rubbing, and eliminating the need for additional lubrication. This technical-technological innovation means Panerai can exceptionally guarantee the LAB-IDTM Luminor 1950 CarbotechTM 3 Days for 50 years.

The intense black colour on the dial with its famous sandwich structure is obtained using a light-absorbing carbon nanotube coating. The markers and hour numbers, the seconds dial at 9 o’clock, as well as the edges and tips of the hands are all highlighted in electric blue turquoise Super-LumiNova®. As for the Panerai logo, and the collection name, they are both engraved directly on the sapphire crystal that protects the dial.

Price: 50 000 EUR

By Sharmila Bertin

panerai luminor due 3 days closeup

PANERAI – LUMINOR DUE 3 DAYS (PAM00676 PAM00677)

A subtle makeover

Panerai has a flair for designing contemporary watches with a vintage look. The brand has delved back into its iconic Luminor collection to bring us two new models.

Officine Panerai brings Italian style and Swiss expertise together. The brand makes its own P.9000, P.9001 and P.9002 movements and is highly sought-after among watch enthusiasts.

Panerai’s Luminor Due 3 Days collection treats its fans to a new take on its signature Luminor. Panerai has remained true to the original model’s design but given it modern functions with a slimmer case.

The Luminor Due 3 Days case design is inspired by the 1950s and a model made for the Italian Navy between the 1930s and 50s. It has all the Luminor’s signature features such as the reliable cushion-shape case, large dial rimmed by a slim bezel, integrated lugs and the bridge system that keeps the crown waterproof with a lever protecting it from shocks.

panerai luminor due 3 days closeup

The 42mm Luminor Due 3 Days case is just 10.5mm thick making it the slimmest Luminor case ever. It comes in stainless steel (PAM00676) or stylish polished rose gold (PAM00677).

Sapphire crystal protects the traditional low-key Panerai dial adorned with baton-shaped markers and a small seconds counter at 9. The dial’s sandwich structure (black on steel and anthracite grey on gold) makes the time easy to read and highlighted by the sunburst satin finish.

You can watch the manual wind P.1000 calibre through the Luminor Due 3 Days’s transparent case back. This is the first time the large satin-finish bridge protecting half the calibre’s surface has been openworked to reveal the movement’s parts and two barrels fuelling the 3-day power reserve.

The balance wheel in both pieces (28,800 vph) is held in place by a double-support bridge providing improved safety and stability. The movement also features a system which stops the balance wheel and resets the seconds hand when setting the time so the watch is perfectly in sync with a reference signal.

The steel (PAM00676) Luminor Due 3 Days comes with a black alligator strap and the rose gold version (PAM00677) comes with a pale blue alligator strap. Both are waterproof to depths of 30m.

Price: 7,600 CHF (PAM00676) – 20,700 CHF (PAM00677)

By Inès Aloui

panerai-luminor-1950-equation-time-gmt-closeup-watches-news

PANERAI – LUMINOR 1950 EQUATION OF TIME 8 DAYS GMT TITANIO (PAM00656 PAM00670)

Introducing the Panerai Luminor 1950 Equation of Time 8 Days GMT Titanio (PAM00656 & PAM00670)

The equation of time is a rare yet poetic complication to calculate and display the approximate difference of 15 minutes between solar time and conventional time. Panerai has instilled the bond between timekeeping and astronomy inside one of its models: the Luminor 1950 Equation of Time 8 Days GMT Titanio available with a chocolate (PAM00656) or blue dial (PAM00670).

panerai-luminor-1950-equation-time-gmt-closeup-watches-news

The hours and minutes appear in the centre along with the luminescent arrow-tipped GMT hand. Two counters face each other: small seconds with an AM/PM indicator at 9 and the month at 3 above the date display at 4. The equation of time appears in a linear display between 5 and 7.

The 47mm titanium case with a lever crown protector houses the powerful manual wind P.2002/E calibre fuelling a 192-hour power reserve whose indicator appears on the back of the watch.

Price: 20,300 CHF

By Sharmila Bertin

panerai-radiomir-1940-pam00659-watchesnews

Panerai – Radiomir 1940 10 Days Gmt Automatic Oro Rosso – 45mm (PAM 00659)

Introducing the Panerai – Radiomir 1940 10 Days Gmt Automatic Oro Rosso – 45mm (PAM 00659)

2016 is all about blue be it on dials (including hands and markers) or straps. The supposedly “cold” colour is ever poetic as it brings to mind azure waves in a calm sea and the blue sky on a summer’s day. Panerai has splashed it over the dial of the Radiomir 1940 10 Days Gmt Automatic Oro Rosso – 45mm (PAM 00659), exclusively available from its stores worldwide.

panerai-radiomir-1940-pam00659-watchesnews

The sunburst satin-finish dial glows with hints of gold that add warmth to the ocean hue: hour rim with Arabic numerals and markers, hands (hours, minutes and second time zone), small seconds in an AM/PM indicator (at 9), date (at 3) and linear power reserve indicator (at 6).

The 45mm rose gold case houses the self-winding P.2003/10 calibre which is the first skeleton movement to be made by Panerai. Its three barrels fuel a 240-hour power reserve.

Price: 33,700 CHF

By Sharmila Bertin

PANERAI – Radiomir 1940 3 Days Acciaio (PAM 00662)

The Switzerland-based Italian brand Panerai is expanding its vintage collection with the limited edition Radiomir 1940 3 Days Acciaio (1000 available). Its milk chocolate dial is super smooth and so different to the pitch black on most Panerai watches. It has the same hue as vintage dials which were discoloured from black to brown by radium-based powder, used to make them luminescent. The design of the two central hour and minute hands is reminiscent of the brand’s first pieces. They glide over an hour rim featuring curvy Arabic numerals and markers all rimmed by Super-LumiNova® and shielded by Plexiglas®. The timepiece comes with an extra glass. The time functions are fuelled by the manual wind P.3000 calibre which provides a 72-hour power reserve. Price: 9,500 €. Sharmila Bertin