Since Guido Terreni became CEO of Parmigiani Fleurier four years ago, the independent brand has been on an upward trajectory, finding its place again in the hearts and minds – and on the wrists – of many a watch collector.
A big part of the brand’s reinvigoration is down to the consummate refresh of its Tonda PF collection across which Terreni – the former head of Bulgari Horlogerie and one of the brains behind the Octo Finissimo – has instilled a coherent contemporary-yet-sober design language.
While the Tonda PF line-up has grown to include GMT, chronograph, annual calendar and perpetual calendar complications – in addition to flying tourbillons and skeleton dials – many associate the success of the Tonda PF with the time-and-date Tonda PF Micro-Rotor that kickstarted Parmigiani’s revival when it was launched in 2021.
A Function Too Far?
With its steel and platinum case with integrated bracelet, and “barleycorn” guilloche dial featuring new brand logo, short gold hour appliques, skeletonised gold alpha hands and recessed minute track, the Tonda PF Micro-Rotor helped to set the pure, pared-down tone of the collection.
It seems, though, that its discreet date window at 6 o’clock was a function too far for certain connoisseurs. Indeed, some collectors commented that given that the Tonda PF Micro-Rotor’s dial is so pure, it seems a pity to “clutter” it – if you can call it that – with a date display. Why not simply have nothing there instead?
Fuelling collectors’ imaginations further was the launch of the Tonda PF Automatic 36mm in 2022: Winner of the Ladies’ watch prize at the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie that year, this piece has pretty much the same look of the Tonda PF Micro-Rotor but in a downsized format that eschews a date display.
And so, sensing the watch community’s wishes, Parmigiani Fleurier has, for Watches & Wonders 2024, brought out the Tonda PF Micro-Rotor No Date, with just central hours and minutes displayed above a spectacular Golden Siena-coloured guilloche dial. It is the epitome of watchmaking purity.
Golden Siena Dial
If removing the Tonda PF Micro-Rotor’s date has its merits, then how do you make its dial sans date sing? One way, naturally, is to continue to apply the brand’s signature barleycorn – or grain d’orge – guilloche, and Parmigiani Fleurier has duly done that.
A further way to elevate the dateless dial is by endowing it with a tone to die for. And that is precisely what the watchmaker has done, debuting a gorgeous sand-coloured dial hue dubbed Golden Siena. Its biscotti shade is rich and warm, and its lightness helps bring out the fine detail of the engraved dial pattern.
Terreni, a native of Milan (not Siena!) says of the dial and the watch’s target audience: “In the creation of the new Tonda PF Micro-Rotor No Date, we endeavoured to offer to ‘the purist of the purists’ an object that embodies absolute clarity.”
He continues: “Every element of this timepiece reflects our vision of discreet and timeless refinement. From the deliberate absence of visual complications to the meticulous selection of ‘Golden Siena’ dial nuances, each choice is guided by an unwavering commitment to aesthetic purity.”
Winning Ingredients
While the date display may be absent, we still find all the other ingredients that made the original Tonda PF Micro-Rotor such a winner among enthusiasts.
That starts with the PF703 automatic manufacture movement with barleycorn-decorated platinum micro-rotor and 48-hour power reserve. One of the advantages of the micro-rotor is that it doesn’t cover up the rest of the movement, allowing the Geneva wave and perlage-adorned plates and bridges to be fully visible through the transparent display back.
It is a thin calibre too – 30.6mm by 3.07mm – meaning the case housing it can also boast refined dimensions: 40mm by 7.8mm. While most of the case is in stainless-steel, the knurled bezel is in 950 platinum and it is stepped to sit perfectly on the caseband. The latter’s brushed and polished waterdrop lugs blend seamlessly with the integrated, textured steel bracelet. Meanwhile, a screw-in crown helps provide a solid 100 metres of water resistance.
To find out more about the Tonda PF Micro-Rotor No Date, please visit the Parmigiani Fleurier website.
