SpotlightThe Inspired Marvels Of Parmigiani Fleurier Dazzle At SIHH 2019
With stunning new additions to the Toric, Tonda and Kalpa collections, Parmigiani Fleurier enhances its own repertoire, while giving fine watchmaking aficionados enough to be in awe of
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This year, the complication fast emerging as the most popular in fine watchmaking is the perpetual calendar. While tourbillons have also slowly but surely been widely seen in brands’ novelties in recent times, the perpetual calendar certainly does seem to be the complication du jour. And this is definitely true for Parmigiani Fleurier, a manufacture watchmaker that is known for its exceptional haute horlogerie innovations.
The Toric Developments
The new Toric Quantième Perpétuel is a key new novelty for the brand this year, presented in a new avatar owing to its gorgeous slate grey dial. The first perpetual calendar in a Toric case, this features is realised through day and month displays at the centre of this slate dial, while the date is in analogue, with a retrograde mechanism that jumps back to one at the beginning of a new month.
Slate is also the hue of choice for the new Toric Hémisphères Retrograde, which also offers a retrograde analogue date display, and—as the name suggests—a second time zone display.
Also among the new Torics is an automatic Toric Chronomètre, also with the dial in slate. All three of these stunning new Torics are in red gold, and they come with Hermès-made leather straps as all leather-strap Parmigianis do.
New In Tonda
Tonda this year is mostly for the ladies, with beautiful dress watches featuring diamond-paved bezels and mother-of-pearl or blue dials, in addition to slate, which is clearly turning out to be a strong hue this year. These watches are under the Tonda 1950 collection, which is incidentally named after the founder, Michel Parmigiani’s year of birth.
This relatively new brand that has grown from strength to strength, gives due credit to its origins in restoration of haute horlogerie timepieces and the vision of its founder. So much so, for those who don’t know this, all Parmigiani watches are even photographed for official visuals with their time set at 07:08—Michel Parmigiani’s time of birth—and the date in date display pieces is set at his date of birth, December 2. In all these new Tondas, the microrotors of the automatic movements are a treat to look at through the transparent casebacks.
The Tonda range also has the Metropolitane Sélène, now in rose gold. A highlight among the new Tondas though is the one in rose gold with a rainbow bezel, embellished with a spectrum of baguette-cut gemstones—21 sapphires, three rubies, six tsavorites and six amethysts.
A Dashing New Limited Edition Kalpa
The biggest highlight among Parmigiani’s new novelties is, however, the new Kalpa, in a sporty edition. This Kalpagraphe Chronomètre comes in the signature tonneau-shaped Kalpa case in a black-treated titanium case. Even the platinum rotor on the tonneau-shaped, chronometer-certified automatic movement is treated with black PVD. The movement includes a vertical clutch on the column wheel making for enhanced accuracy of its chronograph feature. With hints of red, an open-worked dial and a black rubber strap, this is definitely among the sportier Kalpas we’ve seen, and a welcome breather among a largely classical offering from the brand this year.
Sporty or classical, one can always be sure that Parmigiani’s mechanisms and technical finesse never disappoint. And this year is by no means any different. Parmigiani’s new watches will certainly make any fan of the brand happy.
