In the fall of 2021, Parmigiani debuted its Tonda PF collection and established a fresh new design language for the brand. Parmigiani Fleurier Tonda PF Sport Chronograph.This is no ordinary chronograph-it’s a monopusher split-seconds chronograph with a jumping minute counter rendered in platinum. At the annual Academy Awards of watchmaking, independents stole the show, and we can see why. Speaking of watches that simply must be included in this chronograph roundup is this year’s GPHG winner in the chronograph category: the Petermann Bédat Chronographe Rattrapante. Petermann Bédat Chronographe Rattrapante.A few months back, we got a black dial iteration of the iconic model for the first time. The A386 was among the original three references of the El Primero released in 1969 and the instantly recognizable round case shape and tri-color subdials live on today in the brand’s Chronomaster Original line. Regardless of which camp you fall in for the creator of the first automatic chronograph, it’s undeniable that Zenith has been a pioneer of the complication for over 50 years. It’s hard (OK, impossible) to compile a list of the coolest chronographs without including the El Primero. Zenith Chronomaster Original With Black Tricolor Dial.At the start of 2023, we finally got a classic panda dial Overseas chronograph with a silver-toned, sunburst satin finish and snailed black counters. Nearly a decade later, the brand launched the first reverse panda variation to the collection with the Ref. Vacheron first introduced the chronograph complication to its Overseas collection back in 1999. It’s a quintessential combination that never gets old. The chronograph and the panda dial go hand in hand. Vacheron Constantin Overseas Chronograph With Panda Dial.These are a dozen of the coolest chronographs on the market right now. The history of the chronograph may be up for discussion, but one thing is certain: decades later, the chronograph is still the most wildly popular complication in watchmaking. Still, many will point to the Caliber 11, which debuted inside Heuer’s watches in August 1969. Others maintain it was Seiko that released its 6139 automatic chronograph movement to the Japanese market in May 1969. Some will insist it was Zenith that was the first to announce its El Primero chronograph in January 1969. The device largely resembled the chronograph as we know it today with start, stop, and reset functions operated by two pushers.įast forward another 150 years, and you have one of the greatest debates in watchmaking history: who invented the first automatic chronograph? Ask three different collectors, and you’ll get three different answers. The pocket stopwatch was a compteur de tierces (“thirds timer”) designed in 1815 for astronomers by another French watchmaker, Louis Moinet. Then, in 2012, a timepiece surfaced at a sale held Christie’s in Geneva that altered watchmaking history. For many years, French watchmaker Nicolas Mathieu Rieussec was credited with the invention of the complication in 1821. The glass box Heuer Carrera has inspired today’s designers to dream of new models, some that capture the essence of the Heuer heritage and others that reflect today’s styles.The history of the chronograph is a storied one. The case works perfectly in a range from the pure minimalism of the very first Heuer Carreras to the wild styles and colors that dominated the 1970s. Today’s enthusiasts celebrate that the 39 millimeter glass box case gives TAG Heuer the perfect vessel to showcase Heuer’s classic chronographs from the 1960s and 70s. In this quick tour, we’ll follow the order of the vintage Heuer predecessors, to see how TAG Heuer has captured the style of some of its legendary chronographs in these Carreras. With today’s introduction of an eighth glassbox chronograph, it is fitting for us to look at all these models, exploring where they came from and why they appeal to today’s collectors. Over the past six years, TAG Heuer has offered seven Carreras in the glassbox case, all of them limited editions. The sapphire is the “glass” and the dome forms the “box”. What would “glass box” mean in the world of watches? The answer – TAG Heuer had engineered a new style of domed sapphire crystal to be used on its 39 millimeter Carrera case, with the geometry of the crystal mimicking the look of the original plastic crystals used on the Heuer Carrera chronographs in the 1960s. Back in 2015, when I first saw that TAG Heuer was offering a Carrera chronograph in a “glass box” case, I wondered what in the world this could possibly mean.
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