ReviewA Return To The Classics: Presenting The Baume & Mercier Classima Special Edition

Offering quality Swiss craftsmanship at competitive prices, Baume & Mercier’s Classima collection is widely regarded as an ideal gift for a loved one, or a good first timepiece to own. The latest updates to the Classima Special Edition include a GMT complication, an open-worked balance wheel and power reserve indicator, and a hand-wound calibre displayed on a partially-skeletonised dial with an open caseback. These new references from the brand are in keeping with their ‘British’ elegance, in collaboration with Holland & Sherry, Saville Row tailors and suppliers of luxury fabrics. The decoration on the dials of these three watches match the fabric straps they are paired with, giving this Classima Special Edition a distinctive, and really special, new aesthetic.

Baume & Mercier Classima Collection: The Attainable Classics

Baume & Mercier’s timeless Classima watches marry beautiful construction with mechanical complications at relatively accessible prices. With numerals—Roman or Arabic—at 12, three, six and nine, and line indexes for the rest, most Classima timepieces feature a distinctive minute track around the periphery of the dial. Leaf-shaped timekeeping hands lend the watches a distinguished elegance. Baume & Mercier have included not just colour on the dials, but also complications such as moon phase displays, a chronograph calibre and an open heart displaying the balance wheel. With their latest complications such as the dual-time zone, power reserve indicator and openworked display, the latest Classima Special Edition enhances the variety offered by the line, and considerably improves its value proposition.

With their latest complications such as the dual-time zone, power reserve indicator and openworked display, the latest Classima Special Edition enhances the variety offered by the line, and considerably improves its value proposition

Classima Special Edition Date And Dual-Time Watch

The 42mm round polished steel case of the Classima Special Edition dual-time watch is only 8.8mm thick, with a screwed-on steel caseback that offers space for an engraving. The sun-brushed blue dial features diagonal stripes in a lighter shade of blue, which is reminiscent of denim fabric. This decoration on the dial perfectly matches the texture of the blue wool fabric strap the watch is presented on. A white minute track on the black flange, white Arabic numerals at 12, three, six and nine o’clock, and rhodium-plated leaf hands tell the time. Between the hour markers and the minute track, is the 24-hour secondary time zone marked in a light blue that matches the arrow pointer GMT hand. This dual-time watch is powered by the automatic ETA 2893 calibre.

The sun-brushed blue dial of the Classima Special Edition Date and Dual-Time watch features diagonal stripes on the dial, reminiscent of denim fabric

₹2,71,000

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The 42mm round polished steel case of the Classima Special Edition dual-time watch has a screwed-on steel caseback that offers space for an engraving

₹2,71,000

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Classima Special Edition Open Balance And Power Reserve

While the open balance wheel at 12 o’clock on a Classima timepiece is not entirely new, when paired with a power reserve indicator at six o’clock on the dial, the latest Classima Special Edition Open Balance And Power Reserve does indeed become more ‘special’. The steel case measures 42mm in diameter, and features an open caseback that displays the automatic SOPROD 9040-BV calibre, with a 42-hour power reserve displayed via an indicator on the dial. The satin-finished dial, with its diagonal, fabric-like pattern looks more brownish than grey, courtesy of the brown Holland & Sherry fabric strap the watch is paired with. The grey minute track on the flange is marked in white and 5N red-gold that match the white hour markers and central gold leaf hands.

Classima Special Edition Manual Skeleton Small Seconds

Undoubtedly the most stunning-looking reference thus far among all timepieces within the collection, the Classima Special Edition Manual Skeleton Small Seconds features a blue sapphire dial that offers a view of the ETA 6498-1 calibre housed within. A black flange features the minute track in white—no numerals here—with matching white Arabic numerals and indexes on the dial. Rhodium-plated central hour and minutes hands match the small-seconds’ hand in a sub-dial at six o’clock. If the artwork of the mechanism on the dial is too opaque, the exhibition caseback offers a clearer display of the movement.

The Classima Special Edition Manual Skeleton Small Seconds features a blue sapphire dial that offers a view of the ETA 6498-1 calibre housed within

₹3,46,000

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If the artwork of the mechanism on the dial is too opaque, the exhibition caseback offers a clearer display of the movement

₹3,46,000

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The timepieces are mounted on Holland & Sherry wool fabric straps, with an additional alligator leather strap. Switching between the two is simple enough without tools, thanks to the brand’s system of straight bars and a reliable lug. The variety and versatility in the latest Classima Special Edition revive a classic collection with a contemporary appeal, displaying just how timeless the design really is.