Girard-Perregaux celebrated its 225th anniversary last year by releasing a new Laureato watch in stainless steel, which I thought was rather handsome with some interesting design elements. And earlier this year, Girard-Perregaux updated the Laureato collection with new gold options. Now, there’s a new skeletonized version called the Girard-Perregaux Laureato Skeleton that we are looking at today.
In the past year, we have seen an increase in the number of new luxury sports watches. As I mentioned, Girard-Perregaux introduced the new Laureato last year, and most recently, Piaget also put out its new Polo S and Polo S Chronograph watches. Clearly an attempt to reach a wider audience, luxury sports watches make a lot of sense because they are versatile, hardy, and therefore can be seen as practical purchases. For most readers, luxury sports watches can be worn almost anywhere and on any occasion. On the other hand, dress watches are really only suitable for more formal occasions, unless you are a style god and you want to put a swerve on your getup, but that’s another matter entirely.
The new Girard-Perregaux Laureato Skeleton comes with a 42mm case and is available in stainless steel or 18K pink gold. Thickness is 10.8mm, which makes it a rather thin watch. The case design is similar to the earlier Laureato watches that Girard-Perregaux announced last year and earlier this year. It has a striking satin-brushed octagonal bezel with beveled edges that breaks into a mirror-polished ring where it meets the case. The case is largely satin-brushed. The contrast and differing finishes should give the case a handsome look, but I’m reserving my final judgment until I have the chance to handle the watch in the flesh. Curiously, water resistance is rated at 100 meters for the stainless steel version and 50 meters for the pink gold version. The bracelet is unchanged, so the Girard-Perregaux Laureato Skeleton gets the same integrated H-bracelet with a mix of satin and mirror-polishing.
It goes without saying that the biggest change is the dial. In place of the Clous de Paris pattern on the earlier steel and gold models, the new Girard-Perregaux Laureato Skeleton has a skeletonized dial – what else were you expecting? On show is an openworked version of Girard-Perregaux’s in-house GP1800 caliber. The movement is said to be hand-finished, but it’s hard to tell from the press images. All I can say, however, is that the skeletonization seems extensive and a lot of the movement is on display.
To aid legibility, the Girard-Perregaux Laureato Skeleton gets thick baton-style hands coated with a luminescent material. And on the flange of the dial are hour markers which also have luminescent material. Also, if you look really carefully, there’s a small seconds display at 10 o’clock. Finally, regardless of whether you opt for the stainless steel or pink gold model, the watch will come with a skeletonized rotor carved out from a single block of 18K pink gold. The movement is made up of 173 components, beats at 4Hz, and offers a power reserve of around 54 hours.
Overall, the new Girard-Perregaux Laureato Skeleton seems like a fine addition to the Laureato collection. With stainless steel, gold, a tourbillon, and the new skeletonized models, there’s just about something for everyone. I suppose the next logical step for Girard-Perregaux would be to introduce new Laureato models with complications like the chronograph or perpetual calendar. The stainless steel version of the new Girard-Perregaux Laureato Skeleton watch is priced at $32,000, while the pink gold version is $60,700. girard-perregaux.com
