We start to publish a “Vintage Panerai instrument of the week” photo series of interesting pieces provided from private collectors.

Beside the legendary watches (which have been only a small part of Panerai’s product range) the company produced a large number of different instruments and tools for nautical use over decades in the last century.

Since 2007, both of our books have been featured in german and swiss watch magazines. The latest press review was published in “Armbanduhren“, one of germany’s leading watch mags.

Omeris Arpesella, veteran of the italian “Gruppo Gamma”, is still missing his 3646 “California Dial” with engraved caseback. The watch was stolen in 2005 at his home and never surfaced until yet.

To keep collectors aware, we publish the individually engraved caseback of the watch, which our dear friend Omeris owned and used during his service in the 1940’s.

 Please note that the photos were taken in 2004, shortly before the watch was serviced. The weared off crown has been changed with a NOS onion shaped Rolex crown and also the corrosived steel hands were changed with NOS brass “double pencil” hands.

What makes this watch unique and easys to identify, is its engraved caseback. Potential buyers should be aware of this detail if such a watch will ever hit the market or is being offered.

The file has been published in the public forum at www.paneristi.com back in 2005 during the V Club Panerai Meeting in Viareggio/Italy. More than 70 Panerai collectors immedately contributed a brand new Panerai watch (PAM210) for Omeris as a gesture of their sympathy.

One year later in may 2006, it was the honor of some of the initiators to handover a memorial plate at the naval museum “Arsenale” in La Spezia to Omeris. It shows all names of the supporting Panerai collectors from all around the world, who are still in hope that one day Omeris gets his “California Dial” back…

After the release of the 2nd book we sent copies of our both books to Mr. Franco Cologni.
We received his following comment:

Dear Sirs,

I have just received your beautiful present which I appreciate a lot. These two books represent a very important testimony for Panerai and they are certainly a fundamental reference of the story of this brand. A true story that, also thanks to your job, is becoming legendary. In your books appears an emotion that it isn’t present in a lot of other books concerning watches: the passion.

With my best and heart-felt compliments!
Franco Cologni

Mr. Cologni served until March 2005 as Chairman of Panerai, the watch brand that Richemont had acquired in 1997 thanks to his intuition regarding its promising potential. He is currently the president of the Fondation de la Haute Horlogerie (FHH).

With great pleasure we took note of the release of the Mare Nostrum chronograph (PAM300) at the SIHH in Geneva, january 2010.

Finally Panerai has launched the legendary chronograph, which is a milestone in the brand’s heritage. We are sure that this watch, produced in only 99 units, will be come a sought after piece like PAM21, PAM203 and PAM267… giving applause to Panerai for turning the mythos into reality!

It will be interesting to see, if Panerai will keep this case design exclusively for the released special edition only, or if further Panerai chronographs come in this case – maybe in smaller size and with inhouse movements (P.2004)?

(Photo: Archivio Storico Panerai)

We appreciate the FHH anti-counterfeiting campaign
« FAKE WATCHES ARE FOR FAKE PEOPLE ! ».

Find more informations here.

An interesting fact is at watches from the reference 6152/1, that there is no relationship between Rolex case number (engraved between the lugs) and the M.M. matriculation numbers, which are engraved on the caseback. Today we believe that the numbered watch cases (or entire watches) have been mixed after they were delivered (if they ever came in a matching number row out of Rolex) to their customer.

Good examples of this non-present relationship are 6152/1 watches 124527 (caseback engraved M.M. 023) and 124766 (caseback engraved M.M. 025). As the gap between 023 and 025 is only 1, the cases are 239 numbers away from each other.

Watch 124822 comes with engraved M.M. 066 caseback. Its 41 numbers higher than M.M.025, while their cases are 56 numbers away from each other.

The reason might be simple: caseback engravings (to use as a military matriculation number) may have been done by the customer and not by Panerai. What we find today let us think so. Additional, you can find no relationship on further details: dial versions, movement versions (Angelus 240 or Rolex 618), with or without crown protectors…

Since we have crossed the closing line of our 2nd book on april 1st 2009, we are still on the hunt for new, yet unknown datings on Angelus movements, which have been used in vintage Panerai watches.

Until today we know three different datings: 12.55 (in GPF 2/56), MAI.61 (in 6152/1 watches, find below the location at the movement in the red circle) and JUIN.61 (in 3646 and 6152/1 watches). It will be interesting to see further datings in the future, also because it can answer questions about the type of decoration and engraving on the bridges of the Angelus movements, which we know in different versions.

By collecting facts and details of today existing watches, we have continued to increase the entries in our database with more than 250 (1.1.2010) watches so far.

Beside case numbers and dial versions, we add further details, which allow us to create graphics of the files, which is helpful for our research and a great addition next to informations in the usual way as text and numbers.