Tiffany & Co. Drops a New Limited-Edition Navy Blue Timer Chronograph in Titanium

Tiffany is in its sporty watch era, and it’s hitting all the right design notes.

Following the release of its new Tiffany Timer in January—a chronograph with an El Primero movement housed in a platinum case with a Tiffany Blue dial—the company is already dropping another iteration. For those who didn’t get their hands on one of the 60 limited editions from the first release, a new variant in titanium with a platinum bezel and a navy blue dial with Tiffany Blue accents will be available in September in a slightly larger run of 100 pieces only.

“It was a natural evolution of the Tiffany Timer rather than a response to a particular trend or request,” Nicolas Beau, senior vice president of Tiffany & Co. Horology, tells Robb Report. “Titanium brings a different character to the watch (lighter and more contemporary), while the dark blue dial with touches of Tiffany Blue gives it a very distinctive expression.”

The Tiffany Timer is inspired by an archival pocket watch from the brand—its first chronograph—created 160 years ago. Charles Lewis Tiffany began selling Swiss-made watches in 1847, becoming Patek Philippe’s first U.S. retailer and forging a partnership that endures today. Tiffany introduced its own chronograph pocket watch, the Tiffany & Co. Timing Watch, in 1866, followed two years later by its first Swiss assembly workshop. By 1874, the jeweller had established a full-fledged manufacture in Geneva, producing chronographs and calendar watches with its own movements, before selling the facility to Patek Philippe in 1880.

Today, Tiffany & Co. draws on the watchmaking expertise within the LVMH stable, its parent company. The new Tiffany Timer—this version and the previous platinum iteration—is powered by Zenith’s El Primero 400, a modern evolution of the groundbreaking high-frequency automatic chronograph calibre introduced in 1969. Beating at 36,000 vibrations per hour—versus the 28,800 vph typical of many luxury chronographs—the movement is capable of measuring elapsed time to one-tenth of a second. “The main modification was the development of a bespoke oscillating weight featuring a hand-sculpted 18k yellow gold Bird on a Rock,” Beau says. “This required the mass of the rotor to be carefully recalibrated to maintain the movement’s performance and reliability. We also chose a ruthenium finish for the movement, creating a darker, more monochromatic architecture that allows the gold bird to stand out beautifully.”

Tiffany & Co., of course, is first and foremost a jeweller. Its roots in creating some of the world’s most recognised jewels are something CEO Anthony Ledru has stressed will always be its main focus. As a result, Beau says the most challenging aspect of creating the chronograph is realising it “through the eyes of a jeweller.” The piece had to deliver the performance of a chronograph, while still being unmistakably Tiffany. “From the Tiffany Blue on the dial and the diamond indexes of the first edition to the Bird on a Rock oscillating weight [in 18-karat gold], every detail brings our jewellery heritage into the world of watchmaking,” Beau notes. “It was also about telling the story of Tiffany’s watchmaking heritage and our longstanding connection to Geneva.”

For those who want something a bit more subdued than the platinum version, the titanium edition hits just the right note. The new US$28,000 40 mm timepiece, which comes set with 12 baguette-cut diamond indexes and hands in 18-karat white gold, will be available next month. But if you want to get your hands on one, we suggest putting in the request now.

“The first edition sold out instantly, which was a fantastic response and confirmed the passion for this unique timepiece!” Beau confirms. But if you can’t jump the line, he says they plan to explore a few more complications in the future. Nevertheless, the chronograph is surely the one you don’t want to miss.

This article was originally published on Robb Report USA.