Panerai’s flagship Luminor collection turned 70 last year, but the festivities aren’t over yet, as made clear by the debut of the Luminor Marina Platinumtech (PAM1116). The sleek, tuxedo-style watch draws attention to the Swiss watchmaker’s metallurgical expertise and carries the same “70-year warranty” introduced on select models during 2020’s “Year of Luminor.”
Housed in a 44 mm cushion-shaped case made from Platinumtech, a proprietary alloy that endows the noble white metal with greater hardness and resistance, the watch is the product of Panerai’s R&D division, Laboratorio di Idee, which has been busy in recent years perfecting a range of “tech” materials, including Goldtech, Carbotech and Fibratech.
While Platinumtech requires a highly specialised and labour-intensive manual polishing process, the payoff is a cool, silvery sheen on the case that all but screams luxury. Paired with an olive green dial with satiné soleil decoration, Arabic numerals and indexes in beige Super-LumiNova and a date at 3 o’clock, this exclusive edition of the Luminor Marina—available in just 70 pieces—isn’t just another pretty face.
The high-performance movement that powers the model, the self-winding Caliber P.9010, designed and developed entirely by the Panerai Manufacture in Neuchâtel, Switzerland, is a thing of beauty in its own right. Equipped with a rapid adjustment system that can move the hour hand forward or backward in increments of one hour, independent of the minute hand, it has a three-day power reserve and is water-resistant to 5 bar (approximately 50 metres or 164 feet).
The watch comes on an alligator leather strap in dark brown with ecru stitching. At the time of purchase, the customer is invited to choose a second strap, which is part of the package, along with a screwdriver for changing and removing the Platinumtech trapezoidal buckle.
The Luminor Marina Platinumtech, which is encased in a black lacquered wooden box with the luminescent Luminor Marina logo on the lid, retails for RM157,000.
Previously published on Robb Report.
