ReviewA Small Addition For A Unique Outcome: Girard-Perregaux’s Free Bridge Meteorite
As the third timepiece in Girard-Perregaux’s contemporary Free Bridge collection, the Free Bridge Meteorite timepiece changes very little from the original design, but still makes a huge impact thanks to the new meteorite fragments encased within the display
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With over two centuries of watchmaking legacy, Girard-Perregaux have an incredible amount of history and prowess under their belt. To be relevant for that long, however, requires constant metamorphoses. Back in 2020, the Free Bridge timepieces achieved that, and now, the Meteorite Free Bridge is a classier update on the same. Let’s take a closer look at the Free Bridge Meteorite watch.
A Small Yet Notable Update: The Girard-Perregaux Free Bridge Meteorite
Before we get to the meteorite meat, let’s give you a low-down on what the watch offers. The Free Bridge Meteorite features a rather simple 44mm stainless steel case, which seemed necessary, thanks to the many details within the dial. A neat detail is that the lugs appear to be separately attached to the case.
The dimensions of this piece remain the same as its predecessor, with the 44mm size and 12.2mm thickness, but the lug-to-lug is a bit shorter in this piece, at 47mm.
It offers 30m of water resistance, which, understandably, might not impress some. But it isn’t exactly a sport watch though. Affixed to a rubber strap that looks like fabric, this is described by the brand as a ‘black rubber strap with a fabric effect’.
Powered by the calibre GP01800-2085, a self-winding movement that has been inverted with bridges located on the front, revealing parts of the movement that would traditionally be out of sight. For example, the balance wheel is exposed at six o’clock, and the spring barrel is positioned directly above. Even the entire gear train is visible on the dial as well, which will have you looking down at your watch to admire it, while missing to even read the time. The Free Bridge, of course, is the ‘bowtie’ balance bridge at six o’clock.
Offering a power reserve of 54 hours, a lot of the movement’s decoration can be seen through the transparent caseback—including with côtes de Genève, bevelling, sandblasting, and snailing, which are all quite evident. For people who don’t speak nerd, let’s just say it looks pretty.
With the movement on the dial side, the rhodium-plated ‘GP’ logo at 12, white Super-LumiNova-filled indices, and hands—it all makes for a stunning display. To make things better, each piece is unique, thanks to the panels of meteorite included in them, which have a natural pattern that will not be identical between any two panels.
Cosmic Touch: The Meteorite Panels On The Free Bridge Meteorite
Now, on to the most noteworthy part of this watch: the meteorite panels. The fragments come from a meteorite discovered in Namibia. Known as the ‘Gibeon’ meteorite, it is known to have orbited the sun between Jupiter and Mars as an asteroid core and is approximately 4.5 billion years old. The pattern you see on this is naturally occurring.
With two screws on either side of the fragments, pierced to secure them on the dial, the plates are then rhodium-plated to provide a protective layer that prevents the iron-rich meteorite from corroding.
Sure, it’s cool. It adds a bit of personality to your watch, along with the things that the Free Bridge already had going for itself. However, a missed opportunity appears to be that the meteorite is perhaps not used in more places than it could have been—perhaps the bridges, for example. The finishing is still sublime nonetheless.
Four years ago, the Free Bridge was introduced by the maison to modernise their incredibly popular Three Bridges collection, which has been a signature of the brand since 1860. The move ‘bridged’ the gap between the past and the future, displaying the metamorphosis we spoke of. As the third watch in the series, this one is perhaps the best of the lot, especially if you’re looking for something unique to you.
