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54 watchmakers participated in this year’s edition of Watches & Wonders, which runs until April 15 in Geneva. Watches showcased at the world’s most popular watch fair ranged from the Vacheron Constantin Les Cabineturiers Berkeley Grand Complication to the popular Tudor Black Bay 58, now available in yellow gold with an 18 karat gold bracelet. With 63 different complications and 2,877 components, the Berkeley Grand Complication, Vacheron’s exclusive pocket watch weighing close to a kilo, is the most complicated watch in the world. The shiny Black Bay 58, on the other hand, is another sign of the end of quiet luxury, at least in the world of luxury. Vacheron Constantin and Tudor were not the only watchmakers to create extraordinary – and fascinating – timepieces.
Here, we take a look at six other watches that made us stop and take a closer look.
Cartier Santos Rewind
Among the many gems displayed by the Parisian jeweler and watchmaker, the Santos Dumont Rewind particularly caught our attention. With its distinctive Roman numerals marked in reverse on the carnelian dial, the Rewind is a watch that literally runs counterclockwise. Its 31.5 x 43.5 mm case is made of platinum and features a ruby cabochon crown. This watch is powered by a reverse inhouse handwound movement and comes with a color-matched leather strap. No one does classic – and quirky – better than Cartier. $38,400 ( 32 lakh)
IWC Portugieser Perpetual Calendar 44
Many watch manufacturers equip their watches with perpetual calendars, but the complication seems particularly suited to the Portuguesier. IWC’s iconic line, which originated in the 1930s but was revived in the 1990s, has now been “revived” and comes with ‘Horizon Blue’ and ‘Dune Dial’ in 18k white gold as well as manufacturer’s proprietary And available in Strong Armor Gold. With obsidian or silver-plated dial. The color of the dial, which is achieved with 15 layers of transparent lacquer, references the different hours of the day. The ‘reengineering’ also focused on giving the big watch a slimmer profile, which meant, among others, a thinner case ring combined with a box-glass sapphire crystal on the front and back. The new models are powered by the IWC-made 52616 caliber with the acclaimed Pelleton winding system and 7 days of power reserve. $49,000 ( 41 lakh)
Tag Heuer Monaco Split Seconds Chronograph
Italians find the quotidian delicious, and they use it to great effect. Case in point: the Maserati Quattroporte, where the second word means ‘four doors’. Similarly, ‘ratrapante’ in French means roughly ‘to catch’, and in the world of horology, it refers to a special type of chronograph movement that enables the wearer to record multiple time intervals that are the same. Begin in time but do not end together. And, to celebrate Monaco’s 55th year, TAG Heuer has equipped one of its most iconic watches with a Split Seconds (or Rattrapante) complication. Made from a combination of titanium and sapphire crystal, the Monaco is incredibly light (85 grams) and the red lacquer rattrapante hands are a particularly lovely touch. The mechanical split-seconds chronograph calibre, the lightest automatic chronograph movement ever made by TAG Heuer, is also made from titanium, and was jointly developed with movement manufacturer Voucher. In addition to the bold Racing Red option, the watch will also be available in blue and titanium-grey and will come with color-matched calfskin straps that are embossed with a textured fabric pattern. $138,000 (Rs 1.15 crore)
Gerald Charles Masterlink
Gerald Charles Genta had a great influence on watchmaking. Genta, who died in 2011, designed many true classics in his heyday, including the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak, Patek Philippe Nautilus, Universal Polerouter, Omega Constellation… along with his namesake brand, the Gerald Charles , launched in 2006. Genta produced crackers like the Maestro which had a highly distinctive asymmetric integrated bracelet case, and which has now inspired the all-new Masterlink. Combining an integrated bracelet with an asymmetrical Maestro case (with that indented ‘smile’ at 6 o’clock), the designers at Gerald Charles have created an attractive contender in the luxury sports watch space. The 38mm Masterlink is thinner, ‘squarer’, and, like a luxury sports watch, 7.9mm thin. It is powered by a 2.7mm ultra-thin automatic movement which is driven by a micro-rotor. $25,000 ( 21 lakh)
Bulgari Octo Finissimo Ultra COSC
Bulgari, which has been a serious player in the ultrathin watchmaking game, has made its latest attack in the war of thin watches with its Octo Finissimo Ultra COSC. The Ultra is both the world’s thinnest watch and thinnest COSC chronometer. Constructed from titanium, the Ultra is just 1.70mm thick – thinner than a coin – and is jointly designed with Motion Manufacturing Concepto. The manually wound movement is made up of 170 components that are assembled on the caseback, which is also the mainplate. $600,000 ( 50 million)
Rolex Perpetual 1908 in platinum
Crown Watches & Wonders stuck to its philosophy of moving forward incrementally with several iterative updates to its classics in 2024. On one side you had a fascinatingly fast Deepsea with a stunning blue lacquer dial and two luminous iterations of the Cosmograph Daytona, and on the other side you had this extremely beautiful Perpetual 1908 in platinum with a guilloché dial. The Perpetual 1908, which replaced the Cellini line the previous year, is named after the year in which Hans Wilddorf trademarked the name ‘Rolex’. The ice-blue dial of the timepiece features a guilloché rice-grain motif, with the minute track surrounded by a distinct guilloché-encrusted pattern. The 39 mm watch is powered by caliber 7140, with a power reserve of approximately 66 hours, and is paired with a matte brown alligator leather strap. Have you always wanted a cool Rolex? Here it is. $30,000 ( 25 lakh)
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