For more than a century, Bulgari's designs have cast aside the old in search of what is next and its creations move boldly into new territory, forever challenging themselves to be more daring. Bulgari expresses this spirit with timepieces at the forefront of a new Rinascimento that breaks the mould of Swiss watchmaking, rewriting the rules for contemporary watches with every debut.
The Italian Rinascimento comes to Baselworld 2019 with the Octo Finissimo Chronograph GMT Automatic, the thinnest mechanical chronograph in watchmaking history, which enabled Bulgari to set a fifth world record. “Our capability of fusing edgy, magnificent Italian design with the ultimate Swiss engineering and craftsmanship — this is why I talk about Rinascimento from Bulgari. It is truly a revolution of design and technology”, says Jean-Christophe Babin, CEO of Bulgari.
This new model represents the fifth element for the collection — in other words, it is the quintessence of Octo, a perfect fusion of design and technology in a remarkably thin body. Neither round nor square, Octo has created its own codes since it was first released and helped launch the industry trend for ultra-thin watches with its Finissimo collection.
The main technical breakthrough of the Octo Finissimo Chronograph GMT Automatic is that its BVL 318 automatic calibre - visible through the sapphire case back - features a GMT function and has a record-setting 3.3mm thinness i.e. the thinnest among all existing ultra-thin automatic chronograph movements. Boasting a power reserve of 55 hours, this manufactured integrated movement displays the classical chronograph functions, as well as the GMT function that allows one to set the local time with a button at 9 o'clock. The home time is indicated on the subcounter at 3 o'clock: graduated on 24 hours, it indicates day or night. The chronograph minutes counter is positioned at 6 o'clock, while the small seconds counter is at 9 o'clock. This watch rewinds automatically thanks to its peripheral rotor.
Coming in an extra-thin titanium case, with a diameter of 42mm and a thickness of only 6.90mm, this water-resistant watch features a sandblasted titanium dial and a matching strap closed by a folding clasp.
