BASELWORLD 2014 : the countdown has begun IX

i_3060_1PATEK PHILIPPE | Annual Calendar Chronograph Ref. 5960/1A-001
Premiered in 2006, the Annual Calendar Chronograph in platinum was the first automatic chronograph from Patek Philippe. Its monocounter and calendar display in three large apertures set a new style. Now the Manufacture confounds expectations with the launch of the Reference 5960/1A, one of the very few Patek Philippe timepieces in steel outside its sports watch collections. The layout of the monocounter scales has been changed, with a 12-hour totaliser around the outer edge, a 0 to 30-minute totaliser in the middle, and a 30 to 60-minute totaliser in the centre. The automatic CH 28-520 IRM QA 24 calibre, with column wheel and disc clutch, also drives a day/night indication at 6 o’clock.
i_3058_1BREITLING | Navitimer GMT
In 1952, Breitling created the Navitimer watch, a “wrist instrument” specifically designed for pilots and other aviation professionals. Equipped with a circular slide rule, this chronograph soon became a cult object among passionate aeronautical enthusiasts. A loyal companion to airborne adventurers, it has always had the world as its horizon. The new Navitimer GMT confirms this vocation and thinks big with an imposing 48 mm case. The ingenious Manufacture Breitling Calibre B04 visible through the sapphire caseback powers an exceptionally functional dual timezone system: simply pulling the crown out and turning it backwards or forwards in one-hour increments is enough to adjust the watch to the hour and date of the travel timezone, while maintaining home time in 24-hour mode and losing no precision in terms of the minutes.
i_3059_1TISSOT | Tissot T-Touch Expert Solar
Tissot’s pioneering spirit led to the creation, in 1999, of tactile watches. Reasserting its position as the leader in this field, the brand now lifts the veil on the first tactile watch to be powered by solar energy. The rays of light that strike the dial not only enable the Super-LumiNova® hour-markers and hands to glow at night, they also charge the watch. Powerful in every way, the Tissot T-Touch Expert Solar lines up a whole battery of useful functions, including a perpetual calendar, alarm, second time zone, barometer, altimeter, chronograph, logbook, compass, regatta countdown, backlight, and more.
i_3057_1HARRY WINSTON | Premier Lady Chronograph
Mr Harry Winston loved women and set out to conquer the most extraordinary precious stones in their honour. In the same sparkling vein, the Premier Lady Chronograph is a combination of bejewelled extravagance and creative virtuosity. Derived from the first collection, launched in 1989, this timepiece features a slimmer case in pink gold with reworked attachments whose signature form alludes to the arches of Harry Winston’s flagship Salon on New York’s Fifth Avenue. Forging even stronger ties with the company’s heritage, generous diamonds, made all the more magnificent by a delicate setting, illuminate the wrist with their radiance and purity. The elegant Tahitian mother-of-pearl dial introduces a touch of brown with smoked accents. An exquisite crown brings the final, perfect detail that sets the seal on this timepiece’s jewellery legacy.
i_3056_1LONGINES | The Longines Elegant Collection
Right from its origins, Longines has always been guided by elegance. Renowned for its classic creations, the brand with the hourglass logo now presents The Longines Elegant Collection, a line of models embodying its slogan “Elegance is an attitude”. A refined case in steel or two-tone steel topped with pink gold, set or non-set provides a delightfully well-rounded frame for this watch available in three sizes. Each of the watches expresses its own vision of elegance through various dial executions, with or without diamonds. At their heart beats a mechanical automatic movement recalling Longines’ watchmaking tradition. A bracelet composed of slender links sets the perfect finishing touch.
i_3055_1BULGARI | Octo Velocissimo
An authentic work of art dedicated to strong personalities, the new Octo Velocissimo transcends its pure function to take on a more universal dimension, brimming with aesthetic and emotional meaning. This sophisticated creation with a technical vocation proclaims an exceptional style elegantly staged in octagonal lines, while the three counters arranged in a V shape create a pleasing visual balance on the hand-polished lacquered dial. This precious object distinguished by a blend of complexity and power is driven by an “engine” worthy of its “bodywork”: the Velocissimo calibre, an integrated column-wheel chronograph movement with a silicon escapement, beating at the high frequency of 36,000 vib/h and dedicated to achieving exceptional precision.
i_3054_1MCT | Sequential Two – S200
MCT’s emblematic prism-style hour display appears for the first time within a round case. The perfectly made case of the new Sequential Two reveals all the brand’s signature design features, including the famous sapphire ring on the caseband as well as the innovative hour display for which it has become known. The entirely in-house developed new automatic movement orchestrates the fascinating reading of time via a sequential display that has established MCT firmly within the circles of contemporary Haute Horlogerie. The hours are indicated by four generous blocks, each composed of five triangular prisms. The hour in progress appears in a remarkably readable manner through an open “window”, while the others are hidden by a segment turning counter-clockwise every 60 minutes. Setting the ultimate touch to this fascinating composition with its uncompromising design, the minutes appear around the entire 360° dial perimeter.
i_3053_1CONCORD | Mariner
Concord revisits an iconic collection born in 1980 in order to capture the essence of a contemporary, chic and casual style: Mariner. Inspired by seaside atmospheres, it bears a signature wind-rose evoking relaxed evenings spent chilling in a marina. Now also available in a men’s version, it comes with a 41 mm steel case playing with angles and rounded shapes to create a supremely pure composition, powered by an automatic or quartz movement. When addressing women, Mariner comes in two versions: one playing on a monochrome steel effect, and the other featuring shimmering colours framed by a steel and 18K pink gold case. Both are graced with a diamond-set bezel and a white mother-of-pearl dial set with 12 diamond hour-markers.
i_3052_1CERTINA | DS Eagle
Inspired by extreme sports, the new DS Eagle offers a powerful blend of remarkable precision with its ETA quartz Precidrive movement, featuring an uncompromisingly virile design style. The black rubber-clad bezel frames a broad dial with a textured surface confirming the geometrical lines of a pink gold PVD-plated case. The impressively high-performing DS Eagle features exceptional readability thanks to generous luminescent hands and hour-markers, while the watch as a whole is water-resistant to a pressure of 20 bar (200 metres).
i_3051_1ANONIMO | Militare Millésime Alpini Chrono
Paying tribute to its Tuscan origins, Anonimo enlivens the staid world of watchmaking with bronze – a material largely featured on various statues adorning the squares of Italian cities. Florence-based artisans carved the watch case from a solid block of particularly hard and scratch-resistant bronze. Celebrating both Italian Alpine troops and the legendary Matterhorn peak which, like Anonimo, has one foot in Italy and another in Switzerland, this new chronograph beats to the rhythm of a Swiss mechanical movement.