Ten watches that think big
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Mathilde Binetruy
Freelance journalist
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Undeterred by the vintage-fuelled trend for slim watches, certain styles are bent on using up every millimetre of precious wrist space. Can there be too much of a good thing? Not according to these ten timepieces.
The less there is, the more we want it, or so it seems. Browsing the pages of any fashion magazine confirms our desire for waif-life forms. It’s a sign of the times, and therefore hardly surprising that watchmakers should align with the belief one can never be too thin – buoyed by the trend for slimline vintage designs and the prestige that comes with the title of “world’s thinnest”. And yet there are still brands that continue to think big, either building on a legacy of imposing diameters or as a means of standing out from the competition. Or because a particular complication needs room to exist. There’s a market to be had and a clientele that will always be interested in watches that have real presence on the wrist. The message being, good things come in big packages too. The cliched image of cumbersome cases and “too much information” on the dial belongs to the past. Today’s XXL watch is sexy, stylish and definitely not one to hide its light under a cuff.
The new geometry of time
Aeronith, a futuristic aluminium composite, a 44-mm diameter and 14.5-mm thickness train the spotlight on the major innovation of Zenith’s Defy Lab, namely a completely new type of oscillator – visible through the openwork dial. Which came first, design or technology?
Chain reaction
The first thing that strikes any observer of the Chronométrie Ferdinand Berthoud FB 1.3 is its movement, and particularly its unique architecture with 15 bridges and three half-bridges – a construction typical of eighteenth-century marine chronometers. And because a picture is worth a thousand words, don’t try and explain the fusee-and-chain transmission; just flash the 44-mm diameter/13-mm thickness of the case whose portholes allow a view of the mechanics inside.
The law of gravity
The aptly named Masterpiece Gravity by Maurice Lacroix adds an artistic dimension to its imposing 43-mm diameter and 16-mm thickness, as the eye is drawn to the to-and-fro of the balance wheel and the “ticking” of the escapement, both prominent on the front of the watch. Don’t expect to go unnoticed with this on your wrist.
Over the rainbow
Where there is dark, let there be light… courtesy of the 48 baguette-cut sapphires, rubies, topazes, tsavorites and amethysts around the bezel of the Hublot Big Bang Unico All Black Sapphire Rainbow. A reassuring 45-mm diameter plus 15.45-mm thickness stand in for the crock of gold.
Military precision
This isn’t Anonimo’s first brush with the military, in fact a fighting spirit is very much part of its DNA. This year it celebrates its 20th anniversary with a vintage model that puts Swiss precision into Italian design. The bigger the better seems to be the rule, with an impressive 43.4-mm steel case that is also 14.2 mm thick, a notched crown and oversized numerals at 04, 08 and 12 – arranged in a triangle against the eggshell white dial in reference to Mount Cervin, whose triangular peak inspired the brand’s logo.
Up to speed
Richard Mille is never one to do things by half, and even then the RM 70-01 Tourbillon Alain Prost moves it up a gear: cutting-edge technology, groundbreaking design and a stratospheric 54.88mm x 49.48mm x 17.65mm. With a price to match: €891,960/$815,500.
Woman-size
Enough of tiny, eye-squinting dials. Make room for the Audemars Piguet Millenary Hand-Wound. A 39.5-mm width and 9.8-mm thickness put luxury and exuberance very much in its oval frame.
Size and sparkle
The Breguet Tradition Dame 7038 embraces femininity thanks to its mother-of-pearl dial and the 68 brilliant-cut diamonds (approx. 0.895 ct) that circle its bezel. The essence of its beauty, however, resides in the hand-wound mechanism, on full view inside the 37-mm case. A hand-engraved rosette brings the final flourish.
Featherweight
The Graham Chronofighter Superlight Carbon continues the trend for imposing yet ultralight watches, measuring 47mm in diameter while barely tipping the scales at under 100 grams. A watch that’s worth more than its weight in any material.
Mr. Big
A legend doesn’t have to live in the past. The Panerai LAB-IDTM Luminor 1950 CarbotechTM 3 Days takes the design cues of the Luminor 1950 into the future thanks to carbotech, a composite material based on carbon fibre, to deliver a contemporary icon that will run without any lubrication for 50 years. A high-tech gem inside a 49-mm girth. The message is clear: think big!
