Masterful Craft and Time-Honored Tradition: The Parmigiani Fleurier Toric Tourbillon Ref. 2840

Parmigiani Fleurier is a relative newcomer to the watch industry. The independent Swiss brand was founded in 1996 and has made a name for itself manufacturing high-end timepieces, many with interesting complications. Parmigiani Fleurier has focused on a sportier design aesthetic in recent years with the release of the Tonda PF collection, but the brand’s DNA still remains solidly traditional. One piece that perfectly embodies this classical design language is the ref. 2840 Toric Tourbillon. A blend of traditional elegance and intricate mechanics— this piece not only honors the legacy and expertise of the brand’s founders, it also pays tribute to both historical and contemporary craftsmanship.

History

Parmigiani Fleurier’s founder, Michel Parmigiani, opened his first workshop back in 1976. Initially, he restored vintage clocks and watches, but in 1996, he established his own manufacture and debuted the Toric QP Retrograde — the first watch under the Parmigiani Fleurier brand. Shortly thereafter, in 2000, Parmigiani Fleurier released the Toric Tourbillon, marking the brand’s first venture into the realm of haute horology. The Toric Tourbillon marked the first of the brand’s notable design phases, followed by the more modern Kalpa and Tonda series’.

Tackling the tourbillon has become something of an unspoken test of a watchmaker’s mettle and the Toric Tourbillon was a true rite of passage for the upstart Parmigiani Fleurier. The fact that the brand released the model just four years after its founding is a testimony to Parmigiani’s competence and skill.

Design Details

Influenced by the work of Abraham-Louis Breguet, the Parmigiani Fleurier Toric collection celebrates a range of classical complications, expressed in designs that draw inspiration from the geometry of a torus. The stepped and fluted bezels remind me of the pillars of Greek and Roman Doric columns, showcasing the curvature of the Golden Ratio.

At its heart, the Parmigiani Toric Tourbillon ref. 2840 bears a semblance to Girard-Perregaux’s historic Three Bridges 9900 ébauche, a nod to an era when pocket watches were not common accessories for men. Looking into the aesthetics, you will notice the open-worked dial and sapphire caseback that both showcase the movement. The inverted stack of the minute and hour hands also remind me of Girard-Perregaux pocket watches from the 19th century.

The 40mm platinum case with its double-stepped hobnail/reeded bezel and angled scalloped lugs feature both polished and brushed finishes. The dial is not really a dial at all. Instead, we see the movement itself, beautifully decorated with vertical Cotes de Geneve finishing. An angled perimeter rehaut with a black, dotted minute and hour scale allows for precise time reading. The polished and heat-blued javelin-tipped hour and minute hands offer some much-needed contrast against the sea of grey and silver tones and are a unifying theme across the Toric collection. Finally, the Parmigiani Toric Tourbillon ref. 2840 is water resistant to 30 meters, but that’s a stat we’d rather not put to the test!

Inner Workings

Inside the Toric Tourbillon is the in-house calibre PF280, a movement with 20 jewels, a tourbillon regulator, and an impressive 72-hour power reserve. The movement showcases Parmigiani’s meticulous craftsmanship, evident from the beginning of the brand’s history. The hand-chamfered bridges and plates, adorned with circular-graining, straight brushing, and Côtes de Genève decoration, showcase a movement that is extremely well decorated and up to the standards of Parmigiani’s more well-known competitors. The tourbillon cage at 6 o’clock, with a single central jewel, showcases an artistic side of the complicated movement. 

Versus The Competition

The ref. 2840 Parmigiani Fleurier Toric Tourbillon exists within a fiercely competitive landscape, with timepieces like the Audemars Piguet Jules Audemars Tourbillon vying for horological supremacy. The Audemars Piguet boasts a classic design and meticulous craftsmanship synonymous with its lineage. However, the unique ethos and historical references encapsulated within the design of the Toric Tourbillon offer an arguably different allure. The Greek and Roman architectural inspirations and the unique narrative of the movement’s lineage provide a different dimension of engagement for the discerning enthusiast.

Personality

The Parmigiani Toric Tourbillon ref. 2840 is more than a wristwatch; it’s a sojourn through time. It’s tailored for the collector who appreciates designs cues from both the past and the present, while maintaining a meticulous standard of craftsmanship. What makes the watch so impressive, is its placement within the brand’s history, created just four years after Parmigiani Fleurier was founded. At that time, you didn’t see new independent brands attempting tourbillons or other high end complications, let alone just four years into their existence. The Toric Tourbillon is a watch known by relatively few, but it shows a depth of knowledge and appreciation of haute horology reserved for true enthusiasts. It’s definitely an “if you know, you know” kind of watch!

Final Thoughts

The Parmigiani Fleurier Toric Tourbillon ref. 2840 is a great example of a watch and brand at the intersection of classical design and modern-day horological innovation. It captures the emergence of an independent watchmaker that was able to compete with centuries-old maisons right from the beginning. For the connoisseur seeking a blend of historical narrative, aesthetic appeal, and mechanical precision, the Toric Tourbillon is an interesting option.

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