Straight from Geneva, we have the pleasure to present you the new Bulgari Octo Finissimo CarbonGold watches launched on the occasion of Geneva Watch Days 2023. For this fourth edition of the Swiss event, Bulgari has completely revisited, in terms of materials, two of the most celebrated models in the entire Finissimo collection: the time-only and the perpetual calendar.
Let’s now go through all the details of these two new watches with a bold and contemporary look.
A new material: CarbonGold
The Roman watch manufacturer, which is best known for its creations in the field of jewelry, has always stood out for its use of innovative and cutting-edge materials.
All the savoir-faire gained in jewelry, was then catapulted into the field of luxury watchmaking, a field in which Bulgari over the years has managed to earn as many as 8 records mainly thanks to the introduction of what represents, to date, the brand’s flagship male model namely the Octo Finissimo.
Featuring shapes that take inspiration from the most important buildings found in the city of Rome, the Octo finissimo, from 2014 to the present, has been created through the use of different materials that have made it quite unique on the modern watchmaking scene.
Following the success of versions with a case and bracelet made of carbon fiber, a highly durable and ultra-light material, Bulgari has unveiled two new Finissimo in CarbonGold.
It is a material that, thanks to the combination of rose gold and carbon, gives these two new works of art from Bulgari a totally innovative look that blends perfectly with what is, in my opinion, one of the most beautiful designs to be found in modern watchmaking.
As much as this may appear to be a completely innovative combination of materials, it should be pointed out that the highly skilled Roman maison used this “blend” back in 1993.
Time-only and perpetual calendar
The time-only version, enriched with the new Carbon Gold material, is equipped with the BVL 138 automatic caliber, the movement that enabled the house to win a record in 2017 thanks to its surprising thickness of only 2.23 mm.
In the perpetual calendar version, however, powering the record-breaking watch in 2021 is the BVL 305 automatic caliber equipped with a thickness of only 2.75 mm, an astounding figure considering the level of complication it offers.
In both new models, the case, bracelet, and dial are made of exclusive CarbonGold, which is a high-tech anthracite carbon enhanced with luxurious touches of rose gold that we find above the winding crown at 3 o’clock, on the spheres, and in the dial markers.
The resulting contrast between the black of the carbon and the pink of the gold give this sports watch a more refined and undoubtedly unique look.
Above the 40-mm-diameter case of both models we find the now iconic octagonal bezel, also in carbon, echoing those Gentian forms that form the basis of the design of the Octo Finissimo signed by Fabrizio Buonamassa Stigliani.
A mind-blowing fact that deserves to be mentioned, whenever the Finissimo collection is mentioned, is the thickness of the case, which in the time-only version turns out to be only 6.90 mm and 7.60 mm in the perpetual calendar version.
Thanks to the sapphire crystal case back, held in place by eight rose gold screws, it is possible to admire the aforementioned movements of both watches, which represent a true work of art.
Côte de Genève-decorated rose gold bridges and a rose gold-plated platinum oscillating weight are also a novelty. A B-side that not only looks spectacular but also guarantees high performance combined with high precision.
Price
As for the prices of the two new models, the time-only version in CarbonGold will be sold at a list price of EUR 29,000 and the perpetual calendar version, also the CarbonGold, at a list price of EUR 100,000.
Final thoughts
With these two new models Bulgari certainly wanted to communicate to the entire watchmaking world that the research on the innovation of the Octo Finissimo is fortunately not yet a finished chapter.
What I personally imagine and hope is that this refinement of materials, also driven by the search for high performance encapsulated in breathtaking designs, still represents a starting point that will, no doubt, yield unexpected surprises from the Roman Maison.
Follow us on Instagram not to miss any real-time update.
Visit our Youtube channel to live the world of watchmaking firsthand.
