Explorer’s Spirit: A Bulgari Aluminium GMT Inspired by a Storied Italian Navy Ship was Just Launched

The Italian Navy’s Amerigo Vespucci has been in servince since 1931.

Bulgari is paying homage to Amerigo Vespucci, the Italian Navy’s training ship, which has guided generations of officers since 1931.

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The Italian luxury house’s tribute piece opens up on a color palette reminiscent of the proud vessel.

This “Aluminium GMT” model enables the second time zone to be read off with the help of the luminescent arrow-shaped hand that makes one full turn of the dial in 24 hours.

Two contrasting 12-hour zones in black and yellow help distinguish between day and night, while echoing the Vespucci’s gilded and deep black railings. The GMT hand is independently adjusted when the watch’s titanium crown is pulled out to the second position.

Super-LumiNova coats hour-markers and white hands while a yellow rhodium-plated hand displays the seconds. The date function is integrated at 3 o’clock. This 40 mm-diameter aluminium model is water-resistant to a depth of 100 metres.

The titanium caseback bears the signature “Nave Scuola Amerigo Vespucci” and its engraved motto. The articulated rubber strap, a characteristic element of the Bulgari Aluminium models, meets the dual requirement of robustness and flexibility while enabling all kinds of audacity in this watch intended for natural-born explorers.

Vespucci was a 15th century adventurer. Following in the footsteps of the Florentine explorer who was the first to reach the American continent, the three-masted Italian Navy ship named after him is a veritable institution.

This training vessel instils the values of excellence, tradition and service to the community into the minds of young Italian officers during a formative voyage. ‘Esprit de corps’: more than a sum of various qualities, it is the coherence of various elements, the mutual enhancement of their excellence that determines the success of a group and holds fast to the course of its objectives despite potential obstacles.

Within two generations, the Bulgari Aluminium has asserted its unconventional approach. A vision born in 1998, that of combining aluminium and rubber to create a pure aesthetic featuring a black and white graphic design, defined by its comfort and sportiness.

Since 2020, its case has been fitted with an automatic movement, an additional horological element that reinforces the sophistication of a luxury watch known for its boldness. The timepiece thus features Calibre BVL 192, a self-winding mechanical movement beating at a frequency of 4Hz.

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