In just one decade, the Octo collection has set a new standard in the world of Haute Horlogerie with its technical prowess, iconic octagonal shape and unmistakable monochrome style.
Both pure and contemporary, it embodies the dual identity of Bulgari watches, a blend of rigorous Swiss watchmaking and Italian elegance. Now Bulgari has achieved its eighth world record with the Octo Finissimo Ultra. Made in a limited series of just ten watches, this remarkable timepiece embodies the Bulgari mindset and its ability to continually innovate and redefine the codes of Haute Horlogerie.
The watch was unveiled in Rome on March 21 during a special event at the legendary Piazza della Rotonda, honoring the beauty of the Pantheon and the city of Rome, in partnership with OUCHHH and the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia. The world’s thinnest watch, this extraordinary creation is just 1.80 mm thick – and not just for the movement but the watch as a whole, from the caseback to the top of the sapphire crystal. This eighth world record joins a proud lineage, embodying the expertise acquired by Bulgari over the years, without which this endeavor would not have been possible. It also reflects the audacity and confidence needed to set off in pursuit of this ultimate ambition. To achieve this feat, Bulgari designers, engineers and watchmakers quite literally started from scratch, since one does not create the thinnest mechanical watch in the world by relying solely on existing concepts. A complete paradigm shift had to be conceived, forgetting everything to rebuild, finding innovative solutions. Eight patent applications have been filed for this creation.
“To achieve this degree of thinness, you not only have to challenge your way of thinking, but at the same time draw upon a wide range of skills, play with multiple materials and adapt to a multitude of new constraints. In this sense, the Octo Finissimo Ultra is unquestionably the ultimate complication in this vast field of possibilities represented by ultra-miniaturization,” says Fabrizio Buonamassa Stigliani, Bulgari’s Product Creation Executive Director.
This unique piece is the fruit of three years of research and development by different technical teams engaged in this adventure at Bulgari, joined by avant-garde movement development specialist Concepto. This level of thinness – notably when all the components of a standard watch are indispensable – requires rethinking not only the components’ design and production, but also their functions. And ideally, whereas a component serves a single function in an ordinary watch, some of them need to perform up to four functions in an ultra-miniaturized timepiece.
The Octo Finissimo Ultra bridges the real and virtual worlds too. Each of the ten owners will receive an exclusive NFT artwork, guaranteeing the authenticity of the watch and the link to its owner. The world’s thinnest watch thus becomes the vault of its own unique work of art, an everlasting bond guaranteed by the Bvlgari Singvlarity technology. A resounding exploit in the physical world, the Octo Finissimo Ultra and its distillation of mechanical ingenuity invites the best of watchmaking into the digital world as well with NFTs and blockchain.
In addition to celebrating this tenth anniversary with an eighth world record, Bulgari unveiled two anniversary editions that connect with the roots of Octo collection’s conception. The first sketches done by Fabrizio Buonamassa Stigliani today adorn the engraved dials of two flagship models – Octo Finissimo Automatic and Octo Finissimo Chronograph GMT Automatic – crafted in titanium and released in 200-piece limited editions.
Breaking rules and pushing boundaries are embedded in the DNA of the Octo Finissimo line, as evidenced in the array of world records held by the collection. Unique in the history of Haute Horlogerie, the collection blends elegance and technical mastery, once again showcasing Bulgari’s horological and creative genius, a perfect fusion of design and cutting-edge technology.
Photo credits: ARR, DR
