When Blancpain successfully defined the basics of the modern dive watch in 1953, the company was already 218 years old. For the last (almost) 70 years, the Swiss brand has not only been deeply connected with the history of diving and underwater exploration, it has also become a force in protecting the biodiversity of the oceans. The 2014-founded Blancpain Ocean Commitment initiative (BOC) is a unique program in the watch industry that has already helped a number of environmental initiatives get off the ground (some of them already way before BOC was launched). The latest example is a project with the Mokarran Protection Society to measure and identify great hammerhead sharks (Sphyrna mokarran) in French Polynesia, and to lay the essential groundwork for more effective conservation efforts in the future. The watch dedicated to this project is the first Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe with a green dial and bezel, limited to just 50 pieces (Ref. 50050153-NAB A). It is also the brand’s first no-date version with a 43.6-mm case.
A Member of the Diving Community since 1953
This story is from the July - August 2020 edition of Watch Time.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber ? Sign In
This story is from the July - August 2020 edition of Watch Time.
Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.
Already a subscriber? Sign In
Mirror of Civilizations
With the new Tonda PF Xiali Calendar (Ref. PFH982-1022301100182), Parmigiani Fleurier celebrates the Chinese New Year (Jan. 22, 2023) with a world premiere: a Chinese complete calendar that is covering a period of 12 years. This model follows the maison's earlier Gregorian Annual Calendar and the Tonda Hijri Perpetual Calendar, or Muslim calendar, a feat of miniaturization that was awarded the Grand Prix d'Horlogerie de Genève (GPHG) in the Innovation category in 2020.
Return Flight
Longines brings back the famous \"Majetek\" pilot watch from 1935 with a 43-mm case and new bezel system.
Black Capsule
On January 31, Carl F. Bucherer unveiled five new versions of some of its most popular models in a different cosmopolitan city on the same day - each city having played an important role for the three generations of the Bucherer family over the past 135 years.
Touchdown in Le Locle
Aaron Charles Rodgers (born Dec. 2, 1983) is a quarterback for the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League (NFL).
Flat Floor
Just three months after Bulgari had unveiled the world's latest thinnest watch, the 1.8-mm Octo Finissimo Ultra (Ref. 103611), Richard Mille set a new world record with the RM UP-01 Ferrari (in 2021, Ferrari and Richard Mille had announced a multi-year partnership agreement).
Tourbillon Waltz
On June 26, 1801, Abraham-Louis Breguet (Jan. 10, 1747 Sept. 17, 1823) was granted a patent for a new type of regulator.
Tudor's Tool Watch Is Back
Two years ago, Tudor started to quietly decommission its ETApowered Heritage Ranger from 2014, perhaps one of its most quintessential time-only models that had first appeared in the collection in the 1960s.
License To Dive
Underwater explorers and frogmen play as prominent a role in the history of Omega's dive watches as do the seahorse and the world's most famous secret agent.
HEART-STOPPING MOMENTS
The TAG Heuer Autavia embodies the excitement of 1960s motorsports and the optimism of the time. The new 2022 models reflect the Autavia's beginnings as a cockpit instrument and build on this history.
The Lasting Influence of The Nineties
A look back at the decade that saw an industry recover from crisis and steady itself at the cusp of a new millennium.
