Home » Baselworld - World Watch and Jewellery Show » Blancpain Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe Watches
This year, Blancpain celebrates the 60th anniversary of the first diving piece. To honor this jubilee, the Swiss luxury watchmaker presented the vintage-inspired Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe watch which includes men’s and women’s versions.
- Blancpain Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe Watches
The Fifty Fathoms range is the brand’s long-standing and one of the iconic lines of watches. The Fifty Fathoms were originally introduced in 1953 as models for both men and women. They were inspired by the marine underwater exploration of a Swiss adventurer and oceanographer, Jacques Piccard.
Loyal to the Original Bathyscaphe Model
This year’s model captures some of that history while still integrating the best technical innovations that Blancpain has to offer. The sharply defined contours of the new watch look like as those of its ancestor. Also, the hour and minute hands feature the traditional look of the vintage timepieces. The date display appears through a dedicated aperture. There is also a recognizable luminescent dot on the bezel which serves to provide the perfect readability under the water.
The vintage-inspired timepiece incorporates the latest technology developments with the silicon balance-spring. The heart of the watch is an automatic mechanical Caliber 1315 movement which features a corrosion-resistance nonmagnetic silicon balance-spring that can be seen through the case back of the watch. Besides its corrosion-resistant properties, silicon is also highly resistant to wearing and natural ageing.
- Blancpain Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe Ladies’ Watch
The self-winding movement oscillates at the rapid frequency of 28,800 vibrations per hour (4Hz) and provides amazing 120 hours of power reserve when fully wound. The mechanism is built on 35 jewels and consists of 227 components. This caliber is well-known for its robustness and reliability (like all new Blancpain movements). The smaller ladies’ model is powered with the Caliber 1150.
Another new feature is the graduated scale made of Liquidmetal. It is an amorphous metal alloy which ensures perfect bonding with the ceramic bezel insert and helps to enhance its scratch-resistance. In the past, this material has been used for different purposes by the Blancpain and other manufacturers owned by the Swatch Group.
- Blancpain Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe Men’s Watch
The new Blancpain Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe watch is coated with scratch-resistant sapphire crystals and provides water resistance of up to 300 meters (approximately 1,000 feet).
The men’s model is housed in either satin-brushed stainless steel or ceramized titanium case with 43mm in diameter, while the ladies’ version features a little bit smaller satin-brushed steel case with the diameter of 38mm.
The men’s steel model can be purchased for $10,500, whereas the ceramized titanium version is priced $12,000. For feminine ladies’ Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe, you will have to pay $9,500.
- Blancpain Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe Watch Black
The new men’s watch comes with either a black or a meteor gray dial, whereas the ladies’ version features a white dial surface. The dial comprises round hour markers coated with luminescent material. The hour, minute and seconds hands are also applied with lume. A small date window is placed between 4 and 5 o’clock positions.
The new Blancpain watch is teamed with a triple-loop NATO strap (the men’s in black, and the women’s in white color). This type of wristlet was introduced back in the 1960s when the British Ministry of Defense was looking for a sturdy strap for its military watches.
