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Round-UpThe Best Of The Corum Golden Bridge Collection—The Bridge Between Minimalism And Mechanical Mastery

With in-line baguette movements that are stripped down to the essentials, the Corum Golden Bridge showcases the intricate splendour and mastery of mechanical watchmaking in all its glory. We present five fine editions that best represent the Golden Bridge range

Ranvijaysinh Jhala January 21, 2020

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Skeleton watches and open-worked displays have been all the rage in recent years, especially because these are times when it’s become so integral for mechanical watchmakers to show the world the heart of their craft. However, stripping down the construction of a mechanical watch to the basics is something that Corum has excelled at for decades. It was watchmaker Vincent Calabrese’s desire to show the world the watch mechanism that drove him to develop the Corum Golden Bridge’s in-line baguette movement that would become the heart of the brand’s most acclaimed timepieces.

As good as a showcase for a miniature art installation, the Golden Bridge watches have celebrated the in-line baguette movement and its iterations since the 80s. Today, it’s seen in a number of different watches—in myriad case shapes and sizes. Here we present some of the finest pieces from the contemporary Golden Bridge collection.

Corum Golden Bridge—An Automatic Rendition

Although the original Golden Bridge was presented in a rectangular case, the look of the modern Golden Bridge collection has largely been its tonneau silhouette. Tonneau-shaped cases have been the most prominent form of the Golden Bridge, even seen in its horizontally-oriented spinoff series—the Ti Bridge watches. This particular piece is also set in a generously-sized tonneau case, in rose gold, which forms the perfect frame for the gorgeous in-line baguette movement. The black crocodile leather strap is an additional contrasting element. As the name suggests, the movement is a self-winding mechanism—the Corum CO313 calibre—featuring a linear oscillating weight in platinum. When fully wound, it has a power reserve of 40 hours.

What’s most interesting about this Golden Bridge is how the appearance seemingly changes as you put it on. The 360-degree transparency is lost when it’s on your wrist, in order to form a backdrop for a perfect view of the movement that won’t change from wrist to wrist. This is achieved by the striated metallised decoration on the sapphire crystal caseback, which plays with your visual perspective. The watch features gold hour markers applied onto the sapphire crystal. The time-setting crown is seen at six o’clock on the case, which is water resistant to 30m.

The Modern Corum Golden Bridge Rectangle

After several years and many generations of the Golden Bridge watches, Corum brought the rectangle back to the collection in 2017. This Golden Bridge Rectangle was designed by Italian jewellery and watch designer Dino Modolo, who translated the Art Deco inspiration beautifully into the avant-garde piece. The all-gold watch in 18-karat rose features structures flanking the engraved and decorated bridge of the in-line baguette movement representing Roman numerals, adding to the architectural charm of the timepiece. At the time of its launch, a brand spokesperson said, “With the rectangle version, we wanted to go further with the architecture of the timepiece itself to create yet another classic edition of our signature haute horlogerie timepiece.”

The movement at the centre is the CO113 manual-winding calibre, offering a power reserve of 40 hours after being fully wound. The gold case, measuring 29.5 by 42.2mm, has a sapphire crystal glass and caseback, allowing you to see right through it. It is water resistant to 30m, unlike earlier versions of the Golden Bridge watches that came in rectangular cases. The brown alligator leather is fitted with a rose gold, triple-folding clasp.

The Architectural Corum Golden Bridge Round

This was the first Golden Bridge timepiece in a round case. It made the Golden Bridge collection garner wider appeal among fans of the in-line baguette movement, considering that round cases are preferred more than those in any other shape. The case, 43mm in diameter, is made of 18-karat rose gold. It gives you a view, not just right through from front to back, but also when you look at the sides of the watch, as the sapphire crystal on the case bands reveals the intricate lattice structures in rose gold, on either side of the linear movement.

This edition of the Golden Bridge watch was the first in the collection to be in a round case

₹58,71,000
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Taking the architectural aspect of Golden Bridge collection to a whole new level, the design of this watch was inspired by the Golden Gate Bridge in California, USA

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The element of the iconic San Francisco structure seen on the watch are the sides. The straight and diagonal beams of the bridge are perfectly replicated in gold

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This watch made the Golden Bridge collection garner wider appeal among fans of the in-line baguette movement, considering that round cases are preferred more than any other shape

₹58,71,000
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Owing to the sapphire crystal on case bands, you can even get a view of the lattice structure on the sides of the watch

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At the heart of this watch is the CO113 manual-winding calibre, offering a 40-hour power reserve

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The 43mm, 18-karat rose gold case is water resistant to 30m, and comes fitted with a brown alligator leather strap

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The sophisticated architecture of the Golden Gate Bridge was adapted into the architecture of this watch with perfection by designer Dino Modolo

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Corum Golden Bridge

These structures are, in fact, the most interesting feature of this watch. Taking the architectural aspect of this collection to a whole new level, the design of this watch was inspired by the Golden Gate Bridge in California, USA. A line of inspiration that seems like a perfect fit for the collection, the element of the iconic San Francisco structure seen on this watch are the sides. The straight and diagonal beams of the bridge are perfectly replicated here in gold, complete with smaller crisscross bars between the beams in front and at the back. This sophisticated architecture of the Golden Gate was adapted into the architecture of this watch with perfection by designer Dino Modolo. The inner bezel and hands are made of brass, while at the heart of this watch is the CO113 manual-winding calibre, offering a 40-hour power reserve. This watch is water resistant to 30m, and comes with a brown alligator leather strap.

The Classic Corum Golden Bridge

Here is a classic version of the modern Golden Bridge watch. In the most distinctive tonneau-shaped case, this one measures 34mm by 51mm, and is as minimal as the Golden Bridge comes. It captures the entire essence of the collection, and presents the classic CO113 manual-winding calibre in all its glory, without anything around it to distract from its view.

Corum Golden Bridge

To ensure that you see all sides of the movement and its engraved and decorated ‘bridge’ main-plate, the sides of the case are also open, protected by sapphire crystal. All sapphire crystal used in this watch has been glare-proofed, adding to the visual delight this watch offers any beholder. Water resistant to 30m, the 18-karat rose gold case is probably as transparent as a watch case can get.

The Classic Corum Golden Bridge With A Twist

Similar in size and mechanism to the above model, this pink gold Golden Bridge also measures 34mm by 51mm, and is powered by the CO113 movement as well. However, more in line with the Automatic (featured first on this list), this variant has the same striated decoration on the caseback that creates an illusion of opacity when the watch is seen against your wrist. The hour markers on the inside of the caseback are also a feature seen in that automatic version. The transparency of this piece is still very much intact though—which is evident if you flip the watch around. With a water resistance of 30m, and all these nuanced details, this watch is certainly a catch.

More About The Corum Golden Bridge Story

There’s beauty in the basics, and especially in a world of excesses, the idea of less being more is what drives our quest for minimalism. What that presents is the opportunity to really focus on what’s most important—the things that make the biggest impact, those forming the essence of design and functionality. This is what inspired the design of this marvel in the realm of mechanical timekeeping. It was one watchmaker’s desire to bring to the fore the most essential part of a mechanical timekeeping instrument—the movement itself. Vincent Calabrese wanted the world to see the beauty he saw in a watch mechanism. He worked towards stripping down the movement, and engineered its construction in a linear fashion. And the result was an in-line baguette movement that not only presented the heart of mechanical watchmaking, but one that also revealed the intricate machinery in all its glory. This was the birth of the Corum Golden Bridge.

First introduced in 1980, the Golden Bridge eventually became one of the four core pillars of Corum. Adhering to the stringent guidelines of staying true to what the Golden Bridge is, the collection has grown over the years, evolving beyond its visual splendour. Brilliance in form met mechanical mastery when a linear oscillating weight in platinum was added to make a self-winding version of the Bridge. Evolution in shape and structure gave rise to a wider appeal even, all the while maintaining the essence of the Bridge. And when the design was informed by architecture itself, the Bridge found new meaning.

With or without decoration, automatic or manual-winding, the technically brilliant, in-line baguette movements stay at the magnificent core of every single watch from the Golden Bridge collection. No matter how long you wear a Golden Bridge, you’re bound to steal glances at it every now and then, and not just to check the time. So go ahead and admire the mechanism from every possible angle.

Minimalism was never this gorgeous.

Do scroll down to leave your comments about this stunning series, and discover the splendour of the entire Corum Golden Bridge collection here