Our favourite watches from day 3

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Our favourite watches from day 3 - SIHH 2016
2 minutes read
Each day our editorial team brings you a selection of its favourite watches from SIHH 2016.

Camille Gendre - IWC Big Pilot's Watch Annual Calendar "Le Petit Prince" edition 
"The Little Prince" written by pilot and poet Antoine de Saint-Exupéry is one of my favourite books. So choosing my third highlight of the day was easy: The IWC Big Pilot's Watch Annual Calendar "Le Petit Prince". It has an elegant case in red gold and is the first in the Pilot's Watch collection to feature an annual calendar. The result of meticulous work, the solid-gold oscillating mass visible through the transparent case back bears the famous image of the Little Prince observing the sky from his miniscule asteroid.

Our favourite watches from day 3

Isabelle Guignet - Vacheron Constantin Overseas Petit Modèle

Today I chose the new version of the Overseas Petit Modèle by Vacheron Constantin. It is elegant, feminine, undeniably practical and perfect for the woman of today. Its self-winding calibre 5300 was developed and manufactured entirely in-house and displays hours, minutes and small seconds at 9 o'clock. The 18-carat pink-gold case and bezel set with 84 diamonds add the feminine touch. The five new models, available in twelve different references, in steel or gold, all bear the Poinçon de Genève and are fitted with interchangeable straps and bracelet, which the brand assures us are the perfect fit for all lattitudes. 

Our favourite watches from day 3

Michèle Brunner – Panerai Lo Scienziato Luminor 1950 GMT Titanio
It's not surprising that this Panerai resembles a... Panerai, but with a little something extra. This is a sweet euphemism to explain a skeleton tourbillon in titanium which, in addition to the hours and minutes, offers a small seconds dial, GMT function with an additional 24-hour hand and the power reserve indicated on the back of the movement. Despite its imposing size of 47mm, this timepiece is astonishingly light (98 grammes), a result of the direct laser sintering technology used to produce the case, the use of titanium for movement plates and bridges, the open-working of the movement, as well as the absence of a conventional dial. It is a limited edition of 150, which Galileo himself, to whom the Lo Scienziato, would surely succumb.

PANERAI PAM00578

Paul O'Neil - IWC Big Pilot's Heritage Watch 55
I don't (yet) have a pilot's watch in my collection, but if I had to pick one the IWC Big Pilot's Heritage Watch 55 would be at the top of my list. But the fact that it is a limited edition of only 100, and that it will only be available from IWC boutiques, adds that extra Holy Grail touch to this new piece. IWC has been producing pilot's watches for over 80 years and thus has the greatest experience in this field. The brand knows what a pilot's watch should be: very big, very legibiule and very robust. Those rivets on the strap are not just there to look good but to keep this imposing piece firmly on the wrist.

IWC Big Pilot's Heritage Watch 55

Brice Lechevalier - Radiomir 1940 3 Days GMT Automatic Acciaio 45mm
Panerai hasn't offered a Clous de Paris dial for 10 years, which is why this new model is a pleasant surprise. It is fitted in the new Radiomir 1940 3 Days GMT Automatic (PAM00627). The second time zone is clearly indicated by the central hand, while the 24-hour hand is found at 9 o'clock. The power reserve indicator is found on the back of the movement, where you can also admire the micro-rotor of the manufacture calibre P.4001 (an evolution of the P.4000). One very practical feature is the rapid time-setting, with which you can set the hours of the two time zones and the date forwards or backwards.

Our favourite watches from day 3

 

 

Featured brands
Vacheron Constantin
IWC