The History of the Pilot Watch Part Four: Longines and Lindbergh - Monochrome Watches
Recreating the ubiquitous association between Longines and aviation that existed at the close of the 1920s requires a dash of H.G. Wells' time travel and an active imagination, maybe even some psychotherapy.?When psychologists use a word association test, they ask you to name the first word that comes to mind. For example, when I hear the word ocean, I think of the Caribbean. Common pairings, however, emerge when they are a part of the cultural lingo: hear Volkswagen/think Beetle; hear Babe Ruth/think home run; hear Caesar/think Rome - you get the idea. So what comes to mind when you hear Longines? Aviation??If so, some might think you need to get your head examined, but there was a time when Longines was the ready answer.When aviation emerged from its pioneering development (led by pilots Alberto Santos-Dumont and Louis Bleriot) into its Golden Age between the two World Wars, flying became a household topic and Longines was aviation's associated partner primarily due to one man: Charl

First Look: Bulgari Octo Finissimo Tourbillon Manual Black Titanium
Although the star attraction at Bulgari’s will undoubtedly be the new record-breaking Octo Finissimo Ultra, the Italian brand will also be presenting three iterations of the watch that started Bulgari’s trailblazing campaign of ultra-thin winners. Unveiled in 2014, the record-breaking Bulgari’s Octo Finissimo Tourbillon wowed the watchmaking world with the thinnest tourbillon movement (1.95mm) ever manufactured. One of the three models launching this week is this handsome black DLC titanium version of the Octo Finissimo Tourbillon with a skeletonised movement.?Appearing in a variety of handsome suits, the Octo Finissimo Tourbillon stripped off in 2017 with a skeletonised version exposing the heart and soul of the ultra-thin movement in an expensive platinum case. When Bulgari set out to conquer the world with its ultra-thin Octo Finissimo watches, it understood that a collection could not survive on ultra-lean credentials alone. By dressing its watches with a bold, se

Interview - Antoine Pin Of Bulgari at LVMH Watch Week 2023
Horologically, the new year gets started with the LVMH Watch Week 2023 in Singapore, where Bulgari, TAG Heuer, Hublot and Zenith join forces to present some of their novelties. It was the perfect opportunity for MONOCHROME to interview Antoine Pin, Managing Director of the Bulgari Watch Division, and discover all the new models that the watchmaker/jeweller presented and what to expect for the upcoming year.Note: This interview was conducted in Switzerland a few days before the event. Ad - Scroll to continue with article Xavier Markl, MONOCHROME –?The LVMH Watch Week is held in Singapore this year; how does Bulgari integrate this event into its 2023 calendar??Antoine Pin, Managing Director of the Bvlgari Watch Division – Since 2019, we have seen massive changes concerning the organisation of commercial events. We have seen the end of Baselworld, the r

History - Why Snoopy Ended Up On an Omega Speedmaster after Apollo 13
At first, this might raise some questions… What can the link be between a comic character, a chronograph watch and a space agency? While the connection between the last two should be quite familiar to most of you, watch enthusiasts (obviously), the presence of Snoopy in this 3-way equation is more questionable. Sure, Snoopy is cute and has become a cult character over the years, but why would he be printed on the dial and caseback of an Omega Speedmaster Moonwatch? What do space exploration, watchmaking and comics have in common? Well, the answer is simple: Apollo 13, an incident, the recovery of the crew and a special honour awarded for outstanding achievements.?As 2020 marks the 50th anniversary of Mission Apollo 13, we thought it would be a great idea to look back at the role of the Omega Speedmaster in recovering the crew, how it earned the Silver Snoopy Award and which Speedy watches are linked to Snoopy.The Moonwatch on board Apollo 13As all of us perfectly know by now, Ome

Roger Dubuis adds colored stones to the Excalibur Spider Skeleton Flying Tourbillon - Monochrome Watches
What do we know about Roger Dubuis? Well, to make it short, Roger Dubuis is a proper?manufacture of Haute Horlogerie, creating extremely refined skeleton movements, and being the only brand to have its entire production stamped with the Hallmark of Geneva (and that alone must already give an indication of the beauty of the production…). Roger Dubuis is also a combination of complex mechanisms with a unique design, bold, sporty and clearly recognizable. Well, all of that can be seen in the latest addition to the catalogue, the?Roger Dubuis Excalibur Spider Skeleton Flying Tourbillon, which now receive colored stones incrusted in its rubber bezel.The Roger Dubuis Excalibur Spider Skeleton Flying Tourbillon is not?a new watch and its movement (by the way a properly magnificent movement, as we’ve seen here) has been seen already in several watches. That must not prevent us to take a look back at it. Roger Dubuis is first of all a great manufacture, producing superb movements, m