Officine Panerai

Paul Walker and Dwanye Johnson are seen wearing Richemont Group watches in the new movie installment of Fast & Furious, "Fast Five." Oddly, Paul Walker is seen in two separate photos wearing a Jaeger-LeCoultre Master Compressor Diving Automatic Navy Seals timepiece on opposite wrists. One picture shows it on his right wrist, and the other picture shows it on his left wrist. I've read there are certain points in the movie where it is visible close-up, then in the same scene it not even visible on his wrist when the camera is zoomed out. Dwanye Johnson (aka the Rock), a known fan of Panerai, is seen in the image (above) wearing a Panerai wristwatch.

One of the most interesting timepieces that was unveiled by Panerai at SIHH 2011, aside from the Bronzo, was the Panerai Radiomir 8 Day Ceramica.

The Radiomir has the smallest diameter within the men's collection. At 45 mm (Radiomors are also available in 42 mm), it features Panerai's signature style, but with a few less millimeters in diameter and no oversized crown guard, making it one of the most comfortable Panerai's.

READ MORE

At SIHH 2011, Officine Panerai launched a new diver watch with an unconventional case material, bronze. Bronze is an alloy made of copper and tin, or copper and another metal. In this case, Panerai used an alloy of copper and pure tin (CuSn8) , which is very resistant to corrosion. The new Luminor Submersible 1950 3 Days Automatic Bronzo (PAM00382) features an imposing 47 mm case, a case that over time will acquire a patina that shows its age, something collector's will surely appreciate. The movement is the in-house caliber P.9000, designed by Panerai in Neuchâtel. The caseback is sapphire, secured by titanium (because it is hypo-allergenic). A leather strap, with a vintage finish, and a titanium buckle is included. Limited to 1,000 pieces worldwide.

READ MORE

This rare vintage Panerai steel diver's wristwatch that was produced by Rolex, circa 1943, is up for auction through Christie's on December 14th, 2010. It is signed "ROLEX S.A., REF. 3646, CASE NO. 1010345, CIRCA 1943."

Lot Description (Lot 305/2366)

"ROLEX MADE FOR OFFICINE PANERAI. AN EXTREMELY RARE AND FINE LARGE STAINLESS STEEL DIVER'S WRISTWATCH WITH BLACK DIAL
SIGNED ROLEX S.A., REF. 3646, CASE NO. 1010345, CIRCA 1943
Rolex cal. 618 16 nickel-finished lever movement, 17 jewels, mono-metallic balance, black dial, luminescent Arabic and baton numerals, luminescent hands, large cushion-shaped water-resistant-type case, wire lugs, screw down crown, screw back, wire lugs, case, dial and movement signed, 47mm diam."

Retail $70,000-$90,000 (pre-sale estimate)

Source: Christie's

As many of you probably already know, Sylvester Stallone is a huge Officine Panerai fan. He first discovered Officine Panerai in 1995, while looking for a watch that would work for his character in the 1996 movie Daylight. From then on, he has been an avid wearer of Panerai watches. Panerai even created a timepiece to celebrate the famous actor, the 47mm Luminor Chrono 1000M Slytech, issued in 2005 as a limited edition of 500 (shown above in steel). He eventually wore a Panerai in the remake of Rambo. And now, for his newest movie, The Expendables, he has chosen a blacked out version of the steel cased Luminor 1950 Regatta, which he is seen wearing on the movie poster (shown above). Jason Statham (pictured on the right of the movie poster), also wore a Panerai in The Expendables.

READ MORE

Photojournalist Chase Jarvis has teamed up with explorer Mike Horn, in collaboration with sponsor Officine Panerai, to offer an account of Mike Horn's PANGAEA expedition. Chase Jarvis is a world renowned photographer, famous for using Nikon DSLRS. Mike Horn is an internationally-renowned South African explorer. Here is a shot Chase took of Mike wearing a Panerai Luminor 1950 Submersible Depth Gauge 1000 meters. (The photos above were all taken by Chase Jarvis.)

Officine Panerai recently introduced a 12 piece limited collector's edition watch called the Radiomir PAM349, with a Cali dial, gold luminous hands and Minerva hand wound movement. It features an uncommonly large 47mm titanium case, which is actually the size of the 1936 prototype and 1938 production models for which it is based.

READ MORE