Bulgari introduced three new models in its iconic Bulgari
Bulgari men’s watch collection at Baselworld 2013, including the line’s first
chronograph and tourbillon timepieces. Each new watch contains a manufacture
movement crafted in Bulgari’s ateliers in La Chaux-de-Fonds and Le Sentier,
Switzerland.The Bulgari Bulgari made its debut in 1977, on the heels of the
runaway success of the limited-edition Bulgari Roma, a digital watch that was
given as a Christmas gift to Bulgari’s top 100 clients a few years earlier, in
1975, and that of another limited edition, issued in 1976, that was available
only at the Bulgari boutique in Rome. (Bulgari has released a new, limited
mechanical version of the Bulgari Roma, as part of the 2013 collection.)
The inspiration for both the original Roma and the first
Bulgari Bulgari was an ancient Roman coin on which the effigy of the emperor
was encircled by engraved inscriptions. Famed watch designer Gérald Genta — who
also provided the designs for the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak and Patek Philippe
Nautilus, among other classic watches — applied this design element to the
watch’s bezel, which bears the two “Bulgari” engravings from which the model
derives its repetitive name. The cylindrical shape of the case is also
influenced by ancient Rome, specifically by the columns of Roman temples. Over
its 36 years of existence, the Bulgari Bulgari has evolved only slightly from
its original design, with quartz movements being replaced by mechanical ones,
the dial and case size expanding to satisfy modern tastes, the lugs fitting the
strap more snugly, and the bezel narrowing slightly to draw more attention to
the engraved Bulgari logos.
Bulgari’s new Bulgari Bulgari watches for 2013 include a
three-hand model with date, in both 39-mm and 41-mm case sizes; a column-wheel
chronograph; and a tourbillon with an extra-long power reserve.
The updated, 250-piece Bulgari Roma, with its jet-black dial
and black alligator strap, is one of the 39-mm watches; the other has a
rose-gold case, a lacquered and polished ivory white dial and alligator strap.
The 41-mm versions are available in two dial colors and in either rose gold or
steel cases, on alligator leather straps or steel bracelets. There is also a
two-tone Bulgari Bulgari with rose-gold and steel on both the case and
bracelet.
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