Founded on December 1st 1914 in Bologna by the Maserati brothers, the eponymous car manufacturer celebrated its centenary in 2014. A momentous year, that also saw Bulgari toast its 130th anniversary. Reputed for their creativity and excellence, the two Italian firms have jointly decided to mark this milestone year with a distinctive sports watch: the Octo Maserati chronograph.
To mark the centenary of the car manufacturer, Bulgari has conceived a timepiece evoking the art of living shared by the two Italian firms reputed for their boldness, their creativity and their chic. The Manufacture Bulgari has chosen to drive its chronograph by means of a movement that lives up to its name. Nicknamed Velocissimo, meaning “the fastest”, the self-winding chronograph movement chosen by the Swiss master-watchmakers to power this limited series is fitted with 45 jewels and distinguished by its extremely high frequency, at 36,000 vibrations per hour. Equipped with a silicon escapement and an oscillating pinion operating as a clutch to ensure that the chronograph is activated as precisely as a sequential gearbox, Calibre BVL 328 has a 50-hour power reserve guaranteeing a blend of performance, precision and autonomy.
The evocative nature of this timepiece is not confined to its technical aspects, since everything about the Octo Maserati, from the singular case design right the way through to the case finishes, echoes the world of the car manufacturer.
With its 41.5 mm diameter enabling comfortable dial read-off, the case of the Octo Maserati, which is water-resistant to 100 metres, echoes the generous proportions and comfort of both historical and modern Maserati. The two chronograph buttons handling stop/start and reset functions, respectively placed at 2 and 4 o’clock, are perfectly integrated on the case middle within the 110 facets of the case, so as to form a single, homogenous whole. They provide an eloquent reminder that the Octo range is inspired by brilliant Italian accomplishments in the fields of architecture and design – as well as performance, as confirmed by the tachometric bezel.
Octo Maserati provides readings as instantaneous as a car’s speedometers, displayed on a champlevé dial. The final result is an elegant and eminently readable dial entirely in keeping with the spirit of the dashboards on the cars bearing the famous trident. The latter emblem that has come to represent the car manufacturer was created by the artist in the family, Mario Maserati, and inspired by the famous Neptune fountain in Bologna. It tops the chronograph hand and appears on the semi-transparent blue case-back. The dial also features a luminous blue shade reflecting the carmaker’s iconic colour. The blue alligator leather strap is secured to the wrist by a double-blade steel folding clasp with a safety fastening.
In tribute to the founding year of Maserati, only 1,914 Octo Maserati chronographs has been produced.
