Time is Flying with Parmigiani and Cortina Watch

A recent event by Cortina Watch and Parmigiani Fleurier showed that time is indeed flying. Held at Qing Gallery, invited guests had a chance to view some amazing watches introduced by Parmigiani Fleurier.

“At Parmigiani Fleurier, we push the boundaries in innovation. The individual must control time, their own time. It’s not time that should control the individual. Such is the meaning of our world-première creations.”— Guido Terreni, CEO Parmigiani Fleurier

As the watch industry knows, the Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève 2023 ceremony will take place on 9 November and will award timepieces from participating brands in categories representing the very best of watchmaking.

Parmigiani was excited to inform us that the Academy selected four of its watches as finalists. The company’s signature timepieces are competing in the “Men’s” category with the Tonda PF Micro-Rotor, the “Men’s Complication” category with the Tonda PF Minute Rattrapante, the “Tourbillon” category with the Tonda PF Flying Tourbillon and the “Calendar and Astronomy” category with the Tonda PF Xiali Chinese Calendar.

This pre-selection rewards the in-depth work carried out since 2021, which resulted in the presentation of the new Tonda PF Micro-Rotor in September 2021. With its distinctive aesthetic codes-knurled bezel, pure, wide-open dial and its discreet and refined elegance – this watch is the matrix of all the Tonda PF models which followed. With dedication, the brand has been pushing the boundaries of innovation and watchmaking tradition for the past two years.

The Tonda PF GMT Rattrapante and the Tonda PF Minute Rattrapante, two world-firsts, rethink and reinvent existing functions. Parmigiani Fleurier used platinum, a noble material that reflects the brand’s Haute Horlogerie values of discretion and sophistication. Parmigiani Fleurier has also appropriated the territory of cultural calendars- Gregorian, Hijri and Xiali – the fruit of Michel Parmigiani’s great horological expertise.

The Tonda PF Xiali Complete Chinese Calendar is magnificent in design and innovation. It compresses an enormous amount of information into a sophisticated mechanism. Xiali represents the combination of a solar calendar and a lunar calendar, calculated separately and then synchronized by adding an intercalary or extra lunar month. This 13th month, which allows the two cycles to coincide, is incorporated approximately every three years. The Chinese calendar divides the solar year into 24 terms, or breaths, symbolizing the agricultural calendar. Each term appears according to precise rules and takes the name of the month that precedes it. The calculation is complex, but it allows us to keep pace with the seasons and to set the Chinese New Year at the arrival of spring, which varies between the end of January and the end of February in our calendar. The numbering system for time units is based on a combination of a decimal cycle, the ten Celestial Trunks, and a duodecimal cycle, the twelve Terrestrial Branches. Hours and minutes, month display and numbering, intercalary month when applicable, short month (29 days) or long month (30 days), 24 solar terms corresponding to 24 divisions of 15° of the Sun’s path along the ecliptic (the Sun’s trajectory as seen from the Earth), year hand and name, animal and element indication with alternating colours, Yin or Yang, day numbering and moon phases: all the information and adjustments can be made using the various correctors on the two sides of the case band. Doesn’t all this just take your breath away? The sheer amount of thought and ingenuity that’s gone into this masterpiece is mind-blowing.

The Tonda PF Minute Rattrapante spells innovation in complication married to user-friendliness. It encapsulates the philosophy of the brand and is a new world first following the Tonda PF GMT Rattrapante. The function allows the minute count to be calibrated very finely on demand over a precise period of time. The Tonda PF Minute Rattrapante is the essence of purity, refined in its codes and overall finishing – an intuitive, efficient and extremely easy-to-use complication in line with the brand’s guiding spirit.

All four timepieces chosen as finalists of Grand Prix d’Horlogerie de Genève 2023 are extraordinary and deserve accolades. Here’s wishing Parmigiani Fleurier the best of luck and come November 9th, we hope they will be celebrating their wins!

Of course, we must mention the Tonda PF Sport Chronographand Tonda PF Sport Automatic by Parmigiani too. Offered in a choice of steel or 18ct pink gold, the Tonda PF Sport Chronograph and Tonda PF Sport Automatic have been designed as active counterparts to their Tonda PF siblings.

Both models are highly wearable, whether on a bare wrist or under a shirt cuff. While their lineage within the PF collection is immediately evident, the new timepieces are distinguished by a number of subtle details that affirm their casual sporting-chic identity; key signatures of Tonda PF Sport are the bezel, dial and strap. The knurled bezel comprises 160 incisions, rather than the 225 incisions on the bezel of the regular Tonda PF collection, creating a bolder play of light and reflection that underlines its sportier character. The dial is decorated with a hand-guilloché ‘triangular nail’ pattern. Guillochage is a centuries-old artisanal technique that creates richly textured surface decoration to enhance the effect of light falling on a surface from different angles. The applied hour markers are coated with black SuperLuminova. The simple and uncluttered design of the dials ensures perfect legibility, with the ‘panda’ styling of the Chronograph – black sub-dials on a white background – further enhancing the readability of key information. The textured strap is Cordura-treated rubber, handcrafted and stitched; its anchorage point between the lugs is so seamless that it gives the impression of being integrated into the case. Both watches are water-resistant to100metres. Discretion is a virtue at Parmigiani Fleurier and, in keeping with the Tonda PF aesthetic, the logo and date window are both very discreet: the small PF medallion is positioned at 12 o’clock and the date window is at 6 o’clock on the Automatic and 4.30 on the Chronograph.

Sport-chic aesthetics are clearly matched by technical excellence. Perfectly aligned with the spirit of Parmigiani Fleurier, the Tonda PF Sport Chronograph and Tonda PF Sport Automatic are characterful watches, sporty in spirit, yet remaining faithful to the refinement of the PF collection. These timepieces are designed to transcend the daily routine and segue into more active leisure time. Their styling is the epitome of modern chic, blurring the lines between formality and informality, and their generous power reserves are more than enough to last for a long-weekend sailing trip or a more extended escape.

Don’t we all want to own a Parmigiani Fleurier now? These horological wonders promise a time in life that is extraordinarily unrivalled.