INTRODUCING: The Aquadive Poseidon – paying tribute to the golden age of diving
Diving is a pursuit — more than most — that relies on gear. Which is why it’s an area full of storied suppliers that are as much a part of pioneering and evolving diving as the divers themselves. Of course, watch brands fall into this matrix — but they’re a relatively small part of the picture. Suits, breathing apparatus and all the other paraphernalia are equally as important. Which is why this watch, the Aquadive Poseidon GMT, is such a nice celebration of this heritage. Aquadive, in case you’re not familiar, is one of those old names in dive watches. Their heyday was in the ’60s and ’70s, that’s making a bit of a splash now, thanks to their revival by the Synchron Group. And Poseidon, when he’s not busy being king under the waves, is a diving gear company dating back to 1958, which lists an innovative fully automatic rebreather, the MkVI, in its list of accomplishments. The brand’s bright yellow logo stands out on the dial. You might recognise Poseidon from their collab with Doxa last year. And while this watch can’t help you in the breathing department, it can certainly handle the timekeeping side of the equation. Steel,…
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There is no designer in the watch game like Fabrizio Buonamassa Stigliani. He is sketching, pardon the millennial turn of phrase here, literally all of the time. When he’s being interviewed. When he’s in a room by himself waiting to be interviewed (I disturbed him in the act as I was early). And, you suspect, when he’s having his breakfast at the very break of day. “Every day of my life I am drawing.” That’s all well and good, and almost certainly well known by now. But this is not the point of this story. There is another angle on the man that intrigues me, speaking personally. His style. His individuality. So, when he told me in a recent interview that he has been wearing a watch for more than six months straight, I had to better understand why? And which watch was it? Through the process, I learned that evolving the Finissimo from grey to black, and from titanium to ceramic was far more complex a process than it might appear. I was with Bulgari in Shanghai for the launch of more Serpenti Seduttori, a drop-shaped watch case with an extraordinary ‘snake scaled’ bracelet. It’s typical Bulgari watchmaking for…
The Chopard Alpine Eagle is a watch that has roots in the 1980s when their St. Moritz model was released. It was during a period when the stainless steel luxury sports watch boom was in full swing. Case in point, between 1980 and 1995, the St. Moritz model alone sold 50,000 pieces. Now, the St. Moritz has been reimagined with a contemporary flavour in terms of its design, as well as a number of technical developments that make the Chopard Alpine Eagle a genuine luxury wristwatch and reflect Chopard’s endeavour to “treat steel as if it were gold”. Also, the dial. We have had this bird in the hand the last few weeks, and we can confirm it really is something. More to come. As a brief history lesson on the origins of the Alpine Eagle, in 1980 the St. Moritz was released by Chopard after being envisioned by Karl-Friedrich Scheufele, the son of the owner of the brand. It was the first watch that Karl-Friedrich Scheufele had ever designed, at the young age of 22, as well as the first sports watch and the first steel watch that Chopard had produced. Chopard have taken these points as inspiration for…
Editor’s note: A recent discussion in the office has brought up the rather interesting question: “What is the best watch for international travel?” LOTS of different watches were bandied about as suggestions and, of course, names like the Rolex GMT-Master II 126710BLRO and Patek Philippe 5930G were hotly debated as some of the best. And there’s no doubting that these aforementioned watches are absolutely brilliant at what they do, but — and it’s a big but — they’re also very expensive. Which got me thinking about the Montblanc Orbis Terrarum, because it’s a handsome looking watch, with a very useful world time complication and a beautiful motif dial, and it retails for around $8000 AUD. That’s quite a large amount of bang for buck when you consider that a comparable watch from Patek Philippe, for example, is going to set you back close to ten times what the Montblanc will. Anyway, our man Felix Scholz was lucky enough to go hands-on with the Limited Edition Montblanc Orbis Terrarum UNICEF, and these are his thoughts: When they’re done right, limited edition watches are great. They offer some exclusivity, membership to a special club, and that feeling of being part of something bigger…
This year, for the first time in history, the complete collection of nominees for the 2019 GPHG – the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève — were presented in Australia. All 84 of them, by a sum total of 50 brands. And this stellar mega-team, worth well over $30 million AUD, is visiting only four locations before the big show in Geneva on November 7. So, in other words, Australia is being figured into the global future of watchmaking. We matter. And we sure turned out to witness this explosion of creativity and colour in droves. The exhibition ran over last weekend in partnership with The Hour Glass in Sydney, and what we witnessed at the launch event were people five and six deep encircling each showcase, craning to see, and photograph, the crème de la crème in person. On this occasion, we sat down with Ms Carine Maillard, director of the Foundation of the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève, and asked the questions that have perhaps been on the tip of your tongue about the still relatively new (it started just eight years ago) landmark event for the industry. 1. What is the mission of the Foundation of the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de…
While there are some enthusiasts out there who feel as though the vast majority of new watches released at this year’s Baselworld and SIHH were a bit … safe, there were still some real stunners unveiled from legacy outfits like Rolex, Patek Philippe and Audemars Piguet. And, because the collective products of these three aforementioned watchmakers are arguably the most desirable in the horological hemisphere right now, they’re particularly hard to actually get a hand on. So, chances are you’re not going to be able to walk into your local AD and pick up one of these wrist-worn rock stars, but here are five of the hottest and hardest watches to purchase in 2019: Rolex GMT-Master II 126710BLNR While it might have come as a surprise to some, being released so soon after its predecessor was discontinued, the new GMT-Master II ref. 126710BLNR “Batman” or, as it’s being referred to by some, “Batgirl”, caused quite the stir when it was revealed at Baselworld 2019. The black and blue GMT now features Rolex’s latest Calibre 3285 movement and, in keeping with the other steel GMT Rolex currently offers, the “Pepsi”, ditches the Oyster bracelet in favour of the prodigious Jubilee bracelet.…
The Franck Muller Vanguard Crazy Hours landed in Melbourne last week, and not only was I fortunate to take a closer look at it, but the kind people at Franck Muller invited me to celebrate it with them at a dining event with some of their important local clients. It was a great opportunity to view the new collection, as well as share a meal with a group of like-minded watch enthusiasts. There were some special people seated around the dining table, including Franck Muller’s global COO, Nicholas Rudaz, and Franck Muller’s General Manager of Australia, Mr Heng, both of whom enthusiastically shared their passion for mechanical watches and Franck Muller alike. Watches from the new collection were dotted around the room in display cases, as well as a number of pieces from other current collections that are available at boutiques, including the Happy Magpie from the Long Island collection, a charming rectangular watch with an immaculately hand-painted dial. Unsurprisingly, Nicholas Rudaz was carrying some serious horological heat, with a watch on each wrist. On one wrist, he wore a Franck Muller Crazy Hours, which he described as his “party watch” (and you can’t disagree with him on that), with…
Editor’s note: Audemars Piguet’s Royal Oak is unquestionably one of the most important wristwatches of all time and it is steeped in history for so many reasons. For a start, the unique aesthetics of the now iconic watch and integrated bracelet were designed by the doyen of horological design, Gérald Genta, in less than 24 hours. Let that sink in: the timepiece that completely changed the game of luxury sports watches forever was conceived in less time than it would take us to fly to Geneva. What’s more, when it was released in 1972, the Royal Oak cost 3300 Swiss franc … for a steel sports watch! To put that in context, you could have bought close to a dozen Rolex Submariners for the same money at the time. Anyway, we could go on forever about this wonderful watch but, instead, we thought it would be worth drawing your attention back to the time we went hands-on with the solid yellow gold Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Chronograph. HANDS-ON: The Audemars Piguet Royal Oak Chronograph in yellow gold STORY IN A SECOND: When the first Royal Oak was released in 1972 in steel it was a revelation. Now, in 2016, there’s a milder…
Back at the beginning of 2013, as a result of kissing goodbye to a couple of watches (mistakes) from my collection, I found myself in the rather fortunate position of needing a new daily timepiece. The buying criteria was fairly simple and straightforward: the new watch needed to be a diver, automatic, Swiss made and preferably fitted with a steel bracelet. Now I know what you’re thinking: “Well, James, you’ve got a veritable cornucopia of choice if those are the only sticking points for the new purchase.” Well, there was one other condition – I didn’t want to spend any more than 1400 bucks. This made things significantly more complicated, because, back in 2013, we weren’t spoilt for choice the same way we are today with the relative abundance of indie brands making great dive watches. I had almost given up on the endeavour, but one day I happened to be ambling down Collins Street in Melbourne’s CBD, and I walked past an authorised Longines dealer. I had always admired Longines growing up; my mum had one and talked endlessly about how good a wristwatch it was and that it had never let her down. So, I walked into the…
At the upcoming Sotheby’s Important Watches auction, you can browse the catalogue and find all manner of incredibly rare and important watches and clocks from all the best watchmakers in the world. There is everything you would expect, and more, including a possibly unique red dial Rolex Daytona, a factory gem-set yellow gold Rolex GMT-Master, a Rolex “Paul Newman” Daytona, and a Patek Philippe chronometer tested tourbillon pocket watch, all of which serve to make the Patek Philippe 5711 on offer look rather dull. But unless you’re so wealthy that the Panama Papers were of personal concern to you, almost all of these rarefied lots are probably beyond your reach, which left me wondering – are there any lots that might excite those of us who don’t speed because we can’t afford the ticket? As it turns out, there are some more modest lots on offer that have estimates below CHF 5000, the best of which I’ve put together below. IWC REFERENCE 5510 A LIMITED EDITION YELLOW GOLD OPEN-FACE WATCH WITH DAY, DATE AND MOON PHASES, CIRCA 1980 – estimate: CHF 2999 – 4998 A charming 55.5mm yellow gold pocket watch that not only offers you the time, day and…