Named after a combination of the Italian and Latin words for light (luce and lux, respectively), Lucea models made their debut in 2014, positioned to become Bulgari‘s flagship women’s watch collection. Although technically a jewelry watch given the steadfast inclusion of diamonds, the Lucea is the more casual, everyday option within Bulgari’s assortment of women’s bejeweled timepieces — particularly when compared to the Serpenti, Diva’s Dream, or any of the brand’s high-jewelry watches. To celebrate the 10th anniversary of the Lucea collection, Bulgari has unveiled a crop of fresh models as part of its novelties for LVMH Watch Week 2024. Available in various sizes, materials, dials, and movements, there are a total of seven new Bulgari Lucea watches, all of which benefit from redesigned cases and bracelets.
Two of the defining characteristics of the Lucea watch have always been its round case and dramatic v-shaped crown shrouded with a crimson-colored cabochon-cut stone and set with a diamond — these signature details remain on the new iterations. Bulgari offers the new-generation Lucea watches in two sizes: 33mm and 28mm, both available in full stainless steel or a combination of steel and rose gold. The 33mm Lucea watches are 9.16mm thick (slimmer than its 10.7mm-thick predecessors), whereas the 28mm models are 7.72mm thick. The type of movement inside the time-only watch plays a role in the overall thickness of the case. The 33mm Lucea watches run on self-winding movements with 42 hours of power reserve, while the 28mm Lucea models are quartz-powered and accordingly do away with the seconds hand.
The most significant update to the Lucea is the bracelet redesign, which is not only curvier than past versions but now also includes polished center links running through rather than the previous straight-across construction. Commenting on the update, Fabrizio Buonamassa Stigliani, Product Creation Executive Director, states, “Our rich heritage in jewelry craftsmanship and design has been our compass in re-envisioning the Lucea bracelet. It’s infused with a lightness reminiscent of Bulgari’s classic jewels, a sensuality akin to that exuded by our iconic Serpenti collection, and a flexibility evoking the fluid links of Octo Finissimo.”
The decision to opt for curvier V-links and add center links lends a more laid-back touch to the watch as the straight-across links were notably more formal. Essentially, as I see it, the new-gen Lucea looks more like a watch that’s informed by jewelry-making techniques while the previous-gen versions were more jewelry-first in architecture. The Lucea watches are secured to the wrist via a folding clasp.
However, this being Bulgari — one of the most famed jewelry houses in modern history — there is certainly no lack of jewelry-inspired details. For instance, shoppers can opt for a 33mm case with a gem-set bezel, set with over 40 brilliant round-cut diamonds. Then there are the ornate winding crowns, enveloped with a cabochon-cut synthetic sapphire in a rich magenta hue and set with a single diamond. Furthermore, all versions come with dials that are set with 12 claw-set brilliant-cut diamonds for hour markers.
The majority of the dials within this release are mother-of-pearl Intarsio (Italian for inlay), fashioned from ray-shaped segments of finely cut mother-of-pearl assembled in a sunburst pattern with three-dimensional pleating. The result is more visually interesting than a traditional flat mother-of-pearl dial. Depending on the model, the mother-of-pearl Intarsio dial is either classic white or a shade that Bulgari calls green MOP but looks more aqua/turquoise to my eye.
The hero of the new Bulgari Lucea collection, however, is the two-tone steel and rose gold 33mm variant with a malachite marquetry dial. While rich green malachite dials aren’t new to watches, Bulgari’s approach is different in that it uses leftover pieces (presumably from its jewelry workshops) of malachite, which are then cut and hand-assembled into a cohesive mosaic-style dial.
The brand has yet to make the prices of the new 2024 Lucea watches available at the time of publishing. However, the prices of previous versions ranged from 4,750 USD for steel quartz versions to 19,000 USD for two-tone variants with diamonds, which gives you an idea of where these will likely be on the price spectrum. For more information, please visit the brand’s website.
