Parmigiani Fleurier Marks Quarter of a Century: Time for an Update

Parmigiani Fleurier is marking a milestone for the second year in a row. Last year the brand's founder Michel Parmigiani celebrated his 70th birthday, and this year the watch brand itself turns 25. The company decided to make two collections for the two special occasions.

The Toric series was the canvas for the 2000 birthday collection, and Tonda now has been chosen for 2021 — the Tonda collection's successor, to be more precise. The new collection is called Tonda PF, with the inscription on the dial now abbreviated from Parmigiani Fleurier to PF.

Parmigiani Fleurier is embarking on the next 25 years under the guidance of CEO Guido Terreni, who spent many years at the helm of the Bvlgari Watch Division. Michel Parmigiani once prioritized watch mechanics over design, while Terreni began his career at the Danone Group before arriving in the watch industry.

In any case, you can see some common traits if you look at the style of watches by Parmigiani Fleurier and Bvlgari today: symmetry, a fascination with the rules of geometry, and a natural grace. These are the bedrock values that form the basis of the Tonda FP line.

It's comprised of seven models, including an annual calendar with retrograde date, chronographs and two-handers in steel and rose gold, as well as a platinum rattrapante (split-seconds) chronograph. The latter is equipped with a new version of the Chronor movement that was used in the Tonda Chronor Anniversaire models released for Parmigiani Fleurier's 20th anniversary.

What these collections have in common is their integrated bracelets, the typical Tonda bezel, their own movements, and the Grain d’Orge guilloché dial pattern (the split-seconds chronograph stands out here). While the rose-gold models are predominantly made of this one metal, platinum elements are used in the stainless steel models: the hands and bezel with hand-applied appliqués are made of platinum.

The 40 mm Tonda PF Micro-Rotor model is equipped with the ultra-thin PF703 movement. This automatic movement measures just 3 mm in height. Integrating the platinum micro-rotor inside the movement's structure and "fixing" it from above rather than having it lye on top have made it possible to keep the movement lean.

The result is a watch case that doesn't exceed 7.8 mm. The Tonda PF Chronograph housed in a 42 mm case is powered by the high-frequency PF070 movement. It's an  integrated column-wheel chronograph which runs at a frequency of 5 Hz. It uses a rotor made of 22-karat rose gold for the first time like the PF339 movement enclosed in the 42 mm annual calendar. 

What's special about the Tonda PF Annual Calendar is its outer date scale with a central hand to point the date. This may sound like nothing unusual, but there's a twist: it's a retrograde date with a scale that doesn't run in a full circle around the dial, so that means the hand needs to jump. The collection's flagship is the Tonda PF Split Seconds Chronograph limited to 25 pieces for the 25th anniversary.

Its platinum case complemented by a platinum bracelet houses a movement with a main plate and bridges made of solid gold. Even the dial for this anniversary novelty is made of solid platinum. But the most precious thing about this watch is hidden inside its case: the PF361, which is built on the Chronor movement.

The movement's timekeeping is accurate to a tenth of a second and it has been carefully skeletonized. The engine with a 65-hour power reserve can be observed thanks to the watch's transparent caseback.