New: Bvlgari Aluminium GMT Amerigo Vespucci Special Edition

Bvlgari pays homage to the beautiful Italian training ship – the three mast Amerigo Vespucci with a new variation to the iconic Aluminium GMT collection.

Press Release information with commentary in italics.

New: Bvlgari Aluminium GMT Amerigo Vespucci Special Edition

The retail price for the Bvlgari Aluminium Amerigo Vespucci Special Edition – 103702 is SGD 5,520 inclusive of GST. The release is a limited edition of 1000 pieces.

Commentary

The Bvlgari Aluminium emerged as one of the icons of the Italian brand. And one of the marvels of the age where watchmaking maisons were experimenting with materials, ways to display time, colours and textures. It was designed using a combination of materials – aluminium for the case and rubber for the strap. The use of aluminium as a case material is a brilliant idea, though the metal is very light, and easily formed into shapes, it is sometimes seen as too fragile to take the rigours subjected to the case of a wrist watch. A titanium caseback plate is used for non-allergenic properties, as aluminium may react to some skins.

Created in 1998 and refreshed in 2020, the Bvlgari Aluminium is designed to defy gender rules, trends and social status. At the peak of its success, it was seen as part of the Alitalia livery.

This novelty is based on the GMT model, and attributed to honour the Italian Navy ship, Vespucci. The novelty is in the dial colour – where the yellow accent on the 12 hour zones over black for the other 12 hours is used to distinguish day and night. The rest of the watch is standard with the Aluminium GMT regular collection, and is part of the 7 model lineup comprising now of 2 GMTs, 2 Chronographs, and 3 Hour/Minute/Seconds watches. The price of SGD 5.52k is a 10% premium over the regular Blue/Red GMT model which retails for SGD 5.03k.

At a 40mm case diameter, the watch wears well, and fits comfortably on most wrists, despite the lugs. These lugsch emerge from the case and meld seamlessly to the bracelet in rubber with aluminium links which make it pliable enough to wrap itself around the wrist.

Release Details

Due homage paid to the world’s most beautiful training ship: the majestic three-mast Amerigo Vespucci that proudly flies the Italian flag on seas around the world.

A tribute to the proud and elegant youth of the Italian officers in training, which perpetuates the spirit of exploration of the Italian adventurer Amerigo Vespucci after whom America was named.Aluminium, titanium and rubber: the elegant and refined special series showcases resolutely contemporary Italian design.

Beating at the heart of the case measuring 40 mm in diameter and water-resistant to 100 metres is self-winding Calibre BVL192. Its GMT function drives a dual-time display shown by an arrow-shaped hand on the dial bearing Italian colours as well as the colours of the ship.Each of the 1,000 timepieces comes in a mahogany presentation box engraved with the ship’s motto: “Non chi cominicia ma quel che persevere” (Not he who begins, but who perseveres)

The watch is a fitting tribute to the Italian Navy ship, the Vespucci, and its heritage. It opens up a colour palette reminiscent of the proud vessel. The “Aluminium GMT” model enables the time in the second time zone to be read off with the help of the luminescent arrow-shaped hand that makes one full turn of the dial in 24 hours. Two contrasting 12-hour zones in black and yellow help distinguish between day and night, while echoing the Vespucci’s gilded and deep black railings. The GMT hand is independently adjusted when the watch’s titanium crown is pulled out to the second position. The Super-LumiNova®-coated hour-markers and white hands evoke memories of starry nights guiding sailors. The yellow rhodium-plated hand displays the seconds. The date function is integrated at 3 o’clock. This 40 mm-diameter aluminium model is water-resistant to a depth of 100 metres. The titanium caseback bears the signature “Nave Scuola Amerigo Vespucci” and its engraved motto. The articulated rubber strap, a characteristic element of the Bulgari Aluminium models, meets the dual requirement of robustness and flexibility while enabling all kinds of audacity in this watch intended for natural-born explorers.

Vespucci was a famous 15th century adventurer. Following in the footsteps of the Florentine explorer who was the first to reach the American continent, the Amerigo Vespucci, a three- masted Italian Navy ship, is a veritable institution. This training vessel instils the values of excellence, tradition and service to the community into the minds of young Italian officers during a formative voyage. ‘Esprit de corps’: more than a sum of various qualities, it is the coherence of various elements, the mutual enhancement of their excellence that determines the success of a group and holds fast to the course of its objectives despite potential obstacles. This is the very essence of the Italian vision of perseverance.

Resolutely new-wave aesthetics

Within two generations, the Bulgari Aluminium has asserted its unconventional approach. A vision born in 1998, that of combining aluminium and rubber to create a pure aesthetic featuring a black and white graphic design, defined by its comfort and sportiness. Since 2020, its case has been fitted with an automatic movement, an additional horological element that reinforces the sophistication of a luxury watch known for its boldness. The timepiece thus features Calibre BVL 192, a self-winding mechanical movement beating at a frequency of 4Hz.

With the Aluminium GMT Amerigo Vespucci Special Edition, Bulgari embodies more forcefully than ever the new wave of Italian watchmaking. An aesthetic that plays with convention while perpetuating heritage. It breaks with the strict conventions of traditional watchmaking and offers the comfort of a unique, sporty, reliable and modern watch. It exudes the spicy flavour of travel and timelessness. A navigation instrument worthy of the great Italian explorers.

Bvlgari Aluminium GMT Amerigo Vespucci Special Edition Specifications

Movement

Mechanical self-winding movement, BVL Calibre 192, hours, minutes, seconds and date, GMT function – second time-zone indication, 50-hour power reserve, 28,800 vph (4 Hz) frequency

Case and dial

40mm aluminium case, black DLC-coated titanium back, engraved with the ship’s name “Nave Scuola Amerigo Vespucci” and its motto; black rubber bezel; DLC-coated titanium crown; black dial bearing the inscription Aluminium GMT; rhodium-plated hour-markers and hours and minutes hands filled with Super-LumiNova®; yellow rhodium-plated seconds hand; black and yellow 24- hour outer dial with an arrow-shaped GMT hand filled with Super-LumiNova®; date window at 3 o’clock. Water-resistant to 100m.

Strap

Rubber strap with aluminium links, aluminium pin buckle.

1,000-piece Vespucci special edition

Dedicated presentation box in mahogany wood engraved with the BVLGARI ALUMINIUM signature and the training ship’s motto “NON CHI COMINCIA MA QUEL CHE PERSEVERA”.