Celebrating its 175th anniversary this year, Ulysse Nardin enlarges and enhances its Marine Torpilleur collection with the introduction of complications and enamel dials. As the youngest member of the distinguished Marine Collection inspired by Ulysse Nardin's historic marine chronometers, the Marine Torpilleur picks up on vintage design cues but comes in a lighter, younger and more versatile pack...
Anyone who has spent time in the Swiss Alps will probably have seen a Rega aircraft fly by at some point. The striking red-and-white helicopters and aeroplanes are destined exclusively for rescue and repatriation missions throughout Switzerland. The partnership with Oris dates back to 2016, with the Oris Altimeter Rega L.E. and later the GMT Rega L.E. The new Oris Big Crown ProPilot Rega Fleet Lim...
Initially, it was intended more manufacturers would join Toyota for this year's running of the most prestigious endurance race of the year. There was already news of Aston Martin cancelling the Valkyrie racing program long before the event. This all led to only 5 contenders in the newly formed Le Mans Hypercar class, with Toyota being rivalled by Alpine and Scuderia Cameron Glickenhaus. But not to...
The Lederer Central Impulse Chronometer is one of the most interesting technical concepts presented recently. Inspired by the George Daniels' Independent Double Wheel Escapement, revered watchmaker Bernhard Lederer developed a high-performance double-wheel escapement driven by two independent gear trains, each with its own barrel and constant force remontoir d'egalite. Following the presentation o...
Nivada Grenchen is one of those hidden gems of the vintage watch scene, a brand with great history and fascinating models, such as the famous Chronomaster Aviator Sea Diver or the Depthmaster. Dormant for several decades, the brand has recently been revived by French entrepreneur Guillaume Laidet, who in 2019 obtained the license to use the Nivada Grenchen copyright. Following this, Laidet started...
Travelling to space has long been a dream only accessible to trained astronauts and a few scientists. Recently though, the concept of civilian space flights has become a reality, with two successful attempts by the CEOs of Virgin and Amazon. Slated to launch on 15 September 2021, Inspiration4 is the latest initiative of this kind and will be the world's first all-civilian mission to orbit. Not onl...
Presented (not without debate) in 2016, the Piaget Polo has become the brand’s take on the sporty-chic watch. With a relaxed, casual attire and daily-wear capacities, it is still through and through a true Piaget. Based on a concept launched in 1979 by Yves G. Piaget, the watch was only available in larger cases mostly made for a masculine audience and even in a highly attractive Skeleton mo...
Slowly but surely, lockdowns are being eased. The prospect of travel is back on the agenda, which in our watch community is synonymous with GMT and world time watches. Scheduled for launch in September, Bvlgari introduces a GMT version of its Bvlgari Bvlgari Aluminium watch decked out in a crisp navy blue, red and white uniform.? Following the welcome revival of the Aluminium last year, this new G...
If the project had been announced a couple of years ago, we had not got the chance to go hands-on with the commemorative pocket watch released to celebrate the 125th anniversary of the Omega name. On the occasion of the visit to the Omega headquarters in Biel, we were finally able to take to a look at this fascinating timepiece. And this was well worth the wait, in particular in view of the work p...
Forest, olive, khaki, pine, emerald… Green is everywhere and is, without a doubt, the main trend for 2020 and 2021. But as with all trends, they come and go. And, let’s be honest, while there can be some very cool green models – I see you 5711 Olive Green?and 15202 Smoked Green – this colour isn’t the easiest to wear on a daily basis and to match with a classic outfit...
Norqain and mountain climbing adventures go hand in hand. Founded just three years ago, the logo of this successful independent ?Swiss brand is a mountain peak. Today, Norqain releases the Adventure Neverest Line, a sub-collection in the Adventure family that marks the brand's charitable partnership with the Butterfly Help Project to support schooling for children in Nepal. Three new models kick-s...
Longines has secured a solid reputation in the field of chronographs and elegant, vintage-inspired watches these days. Yet, we should not forget that the brand also has a sizeable collection of sports watches, including one competent, quite accessible diver’s watch named HydroConquest. First launched in 2007, the model has since made its way up in the category and was fully revised in 2018, ...
Oris is no stranger to collaborations with environmental organisations of all sorts, as well as air rescue teams. The brand has also recently introduced special editions inspired by nature, playing on colours and textures to reflect the underlying partnership or the cause the brand is supporting with these limited editions. And the brand’s latest creation is no exception to the rule. With th...
For a while, the pandemic put on hold any thoughts we might have had of covering traveller’s watches. Thankfully, the very idea of travelling, as well as crossing borders and time zones, isn’t dead, and we can’t start wearing our GMT, dual-time or world time watches again. And, talking about this, there’s a new Porsche Design model that has just landed, a new take on the br...
If you’ve been reading MONOCHROME for some time now, you might be aware of something about me; I have a long-lasting love affair with the Type XX and Type 20 watches. It is something I’ve shared over the years on many occasions since the Breguet Type XX is the watch that really started my journey as a collector. So when we received the news, about a year ago, that Airain – one of...
Monsieur Dufour, as I like to call him, is one of the most revered watchmakers of Switzerland. Sort of a legend of the independent watchmaking scene, a person who’s capable of manufacturing some of the most refined movements you’ll ever come to see… And a man with very limited production. Of course, this combination of desirability and rarity already had its effect on the prices ...
Junghans, the German watch company, celebrates the 60th anniversary of Bauhaus artist Max Bill's first line of mechanical watches for the brand in 1961. Instead of commemorating the date with one watch, Junghans is releasing a collector's set of three watches limited to 1,060 units worldwide. The Junghans Max Bill Edition 60?is comprised of an automatic, a regulator and a small seconds. Brief back...
What’s old is new again. Trends come and go, and come back again. And this is also true for watchmaking.?As the trend for vintage-inspired watches doesn’t seem to stop consolidating, brands continue to dig into their archives to find inspiration and breathe new life into past glories. Here are 5 of the best vintage reissues presented recently, from a high-end original watch inspired by...
Yema is arguably one of the best-known French watchmakers with a rich history. Younger French brands such as Baltic have been getting a lot of attention lately, but Yema dates back to 1948 with several historic watches. The Superman model is its crown jewel, which debuted in 1963 and became a favourite of French Air Force pilots and professional divers. It came standard with a 300-metre water-resi...
Bvlgari will be participating for the first time in the Only Watch auction in Geneva on Saturday, 6 November 2021. Held every two years, Only Watch auctions unique timepieces to fund research into Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy. The watch Bvlgari will be donating is an exceptional version of its Octo Finissimo Perpetual Calendar. Released earlier this year, the Octo Finissimo is the world's thinnest ...
Looking at these extraordinary handcrafted pieces by indie Dutch master engraver Kees Engelbarts, the first person you can imagine wearing one of these artworks is Daenerys Targaryen in Game of Thrones as she rides astride her fire-wielding dragons. ?And I'm sure Engelbarts would enjoy our choice given his lively fantasy, his passion for mythical creatures and his dexterity in Vulcan's forge to pe...
Citizen is not a name you often hear at MONOCHROME. We focus almost exclusively on mechanical watches, and most fall into the luxury category. That doesn't mean a brand with the history and scope of Citizen escapes our attention, but the company's bread and butter products generally reside outside of what we cover. However, the most recent Caliber 0200 proves that Citizen knows a thing or two abou...
Creativity in watchmaking is key, with the business side of things sometimes taking a back seat. At least that's what we like to think every now and then. Regardless, there are some watchmakers out there, often independent ones, willing to push the envelope of how time is perceived and observed. Some of these literally put a face on time or pull off incredibly complex mechanisms just to entertain ...
What would the Olympic Games timed by Omega be without a release of thematic Olympic watches? As the Official Timekeeper of the Olympic Games Tokyo 2020 – an honour the brand has enjoyed 29 times since 1932 – Omega has released five Seamasters to celebrate the games. However, some of you might remember that in 2018, well before the arrival of the dreaded coronavirus and everything on t...
However restrained the designs for Nomos might be, that doesn't mean the watches are any less interesting from a technical perspective. While it might not be to everyone's liking, the clean, Bauhaus-inspired watches are simple, elegant and more often than not, quite handsome to look at. And combining the design skills to determine when enough is enough with traditional watchmaking capabilities, No...
The tourbillon is often regarded as one of the most prestigious complications and a demonstration of the skill and craftsmanship of the watchmakers capable of manufacturing this captivating mechanism. Invented by Breguet in 1801, its aim is to negate the influence of gravity on the regulating organ of watches. Changes in position have significant effects on the way watches keep time. In a tourbill...
In the United Kingdom, the summer months in journalism are often referred to as the silly season’, a period generating very little newsworthy material, with journalists relying on more frivolous news stories to fill the pages. Well, 2021 seems to have reversed that trend. With the 2020 Olympics and a flurry of novelties from watchmakers who were not able to showcase their goods at the tradit...
It's been touch and go since the outset of the pandemic, but the Tokyo 2020 Olympics finally reached the starting line on 23 July 2021, albeit a year late. Marking Omega's 29th time as Official Timekeeper of the Olympic Games, 400 tonnes of state-of-the-art equipment, 200km of cables and optical wire, 530 timekeepers and on-site professionals have been dispatched to Tokyo. The mission is to ensure...
Two years ago, we sat down with one of Armin Strom's owners, Serge Michel, and as we all know, a lot has happened since. So now, midway through 2021, we felt it was time to have another chat with Serge and see what is going on. How is the brand doing amidst the pandemic, how have the recently launched novelties been received, and what does the (near) future hold for Armin Strom? We are about to fi...
Working closely with the world's most famous spy in cinematic history, currently portrayed by Daniel Craig, Omega has created a rather unique Seamaster Diver 300M. The new 007 Edition – which is non-limited by the way – looks and feels completely different from the regular Seamaster Professional series. And that is a good thing because a man of his stature deserves something special ri...