For its first-ever exhibiting as a part of Watches and Wonders Geneva, Bvlgari delivered a biting two-pronged offensive with the Octo Finissimo Extremely Tourbillon and the Serpenti Aeterna. The brand new Extremely is undisputedly the world’s slimmest tourbillon wristwatch (at simply 1.85mm skinny, it’s 0.5mm thinner than final 12 months’s prime canine, the Piaget Altiplano Idea Tourbillon) whereas the Serpenti Aeterna is now, in our opinion, the world’s most elegant bangle watch. It was a becoming debut, which we coated briefly in our report on the lately concluded truthful, although we solely famous that Bvlgari delivered good cheer within the Palexpo. That’s an understatement that we are going to rectify.
Learn Extra: Bvlgari Serpenti Misteriosi: Tiny Mechanical Marvel
Class is fully subjective, so we’ll start with the Extremely, which, although extra difficult, earns its stripes by dint of prowess and ambition. The high-complication division of Bvlgari’s watchmaking division has been chasing down information for greater than 10 years now, and the skinny stylish battle has raised watchmaking to new heights. To talk as plainly as doable, a mechanical motion is constructed up in layers of springs and gears. To make the thinnest watch, the purpose is all the time to attempt bringing the whole lot onto a single aircraft, so far as doable. That’s the lengthy and wanting it, and it results in spectacular structure in motion design. It isn’t for everybody, however it is a restricted version of 20, so that may be a given.
Within the Octo Finissimo Extremely Tourbillon, calibre BVF 900 adopts the intense technique of shelling out with a base plate altogether. As a substitute, it integrates the caseback as considered one of its elements – it is a main technique on this model of watchmaking. Dial-side (though this nomenclature is sort of unsuitable for one thing just like the Extremely), what would usually be dominated by the motionworks can be now a showcase for the gear practice and the mainspring (clearly, the tourbillon too). As with earlier Extremely fashions, there isn’t a normal crown right here. As a substitute, two successfully uncovered gears (one at 8 o’clock and one at 3 o’clock) wind the watch and set the time, respectively. Once more, these features are actually on the identical aircraft, which isn’t the case in an ordinary motion.
Now, we’ll dispense with the various different particulars that go into making the Extremely a powerful machine, though we might but determine to dive deep (ahem) into the world of ultra-thin watchmaking quickly(ish). We should shut right here with at the very least a couple of phrases on that Serpenti Aeterna, which is only a pleasure to put on.
Probably the most streamlined Serpenti but, this one leans laborious into graphics – it doesn’t even look very similar to a watch. More often than not, we take a dim view of that, however not right here. To match our simplified tackle the Extremely, think about the Serpenti Aeterna because the kind of watch you may put on purely for ornamental causes. Word that the specs listed below are for the Extremely solely.
This story was first seen as a part of the WOW #79 Summer time 2025 Challenge
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