SIHH 2002 Report
Since the launch of the new Officine Panerai line in 1997, the "Historic" collection of hand-wind 44mm Luminor watches has remained relatively unchanged. 2002 sees the introduction of a new movement for the whole Historic collection, and hence all the current references have been replaced.
Previously, the OP I and OP II movements, based on the ETA 6497 powered the historic line. The OP I had no sub-seconds, and was used for the Luminor Base. The OP II had sub-seconds, and was used for the Luminor Marina and Luminor Marina Destro. These movements have been replaced with the OP X and OP XI movements respectively.
The new movement still uses the same ETA base, but the bridges have been completely redesigned, and most importantly, a swan's neck regulator has been added. There are cosmetic enhancements with the personalisation and blued screws. To show off the new movement, the whole historic collection is now fitted with a sapphire crystal display back.
The new movement took around 18 months to develop.
The Historic collection is now the only part of the range still fitted with the ardillon buckle, more on this later.
| The new movement, encased in perspex. |
| The new movement, this time in a real production watch. The new regulator can be seen around the 11 o'clock position. |
| Artwork for the new movement. |
Other than the display backs and new movements, there are no other changes to the Historic collection. Contrary to speculation, the "REG T.M." on the crown protector of the 1950 model is unique to the 1950, it does not appear on other models.