ReviewA Standard Among Sport Watches—A Deep-Dive Into The Girard-Perregaux Laureato Classic 42mm

Girard-Perregaux are among the world’s finest watch manufacturers. Founded in 1791, with about 229 years of uninterrupted history, they hold over 100 watchmaking patents and produce all of their components in-house, at their manufacture in the heart of Swiss watchmaking—La Chaux-de-Fonds. In 1975, during the height of the quartz crisis and in the golden ages for sports watches, Girard-Perregaux unveiled a watch that would go on to become an icon—the Laureato. Connoisseurs and collectors had been awaiting its return for years. Finally, the Laureato made a comeback onto the watchmaking scene, in the form of the Laureato Classic, one of my all-time favourite watches. Following this highly iconic edition, Girard-Perregaux are putting the Laureato in its rightful place: that of a contemporary watch combining a progressive, unique design with attention to detail, excellent timekeeping, and perfect aesthetics. These attributes are those belonging to a truly iconic watch, which finds its way through time with effortless ease. Let’s take a closer look at the iconic Girard-Perregaux Laureato Classic. I hope you enjoy reading this as much as I enjoy this watch.

Girard-Perregaux Laureato

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A Brief History Of The Laureato Collection

The Girard-Perregaux Laureato was first launched in 1975. As you’ve probably noticed already, the Laureato has this rather unique 1970s shape—a combination of octagonal and round shapes for the bezel, an integrated bracelet and a rather slim profile. It was typical of several icons of watchmaking that were all launched during the golden era of sports watches—the 70s. These watches included the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak, the Patek Philippe Nautilus and the IWC Ingenieur, among others. One of these horological icons was the Laureato. While the Laureato was launched three years after the Royal Oak, it came a full year before Patek Philippe or IWC got onto the bandwagon of contemporary steel luxury sports watches, with the Nautilus and Ingenieur, respectively.

Unlike its three notable contemporaries, the Laureato was not the work of legendary watch designer Gerald Genta. Instead, it was conceived by an architect—Adolfo Natalini, from Milan. The original sketches for the Laureato reveal architectural references as its sources of inspiration, including façades and domes, and an almost mathematical precision in the distribution of the visual weight of its structure. The thin, octagonal bezel with its rounded base sits neatly on a substantial, but elegantly curved base, into which the horizontal links integrate seamlessly. At the suggestion of Girard-Perregaux’s Italian distributor, the watch was named after the 1967 film The Graduate, or ‘Il Laureato’ in Italian.

Characterised by the octagonal bezel and the linked bracelet, the 1975 Laureato was powered by a quartz chronometer—a move triggered by the ‘quartz crisis’

A significant milestone for the collection was the year 1984, which saw a mechanical version, with separate interlinks on the bracelet—an evolution towards today's Laureatos

Girard-Perregaux were also the first manufacturer ever to create a Swiss quartz movement. In the 1970s, the quartz movement was taking the world by storm. Girard-Perregaux decided to create a watch with the first Swiss chronometer-certified quartz movement and fit it into a steel sports watch. Girard-Perregaux, thus, gave birth to the Laureato as a two-tone, three-hand timepiece, powered by a quartz chronometer calibre—a watch that was cutting-edge in terms of style and technology.

This is a more recent edition of the time-and-date Laureato steel sport watch

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This green dial breathes new life into the already iconic and instantly recognisable template of the Laureato

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A favoured colour among dial hues, this colour just completes the present offerings of the Laureato automatic watches

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Like the other dials in the Laureato Classic series, this one also has a hobnail pattern, which is a signature element of these watches

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The Quintessential Sport-Chic Watch

The Laureato Classic redefines the sport-chic watch—a sports watch with a glorious history from one of the world’s finest complete watch manufacturers. It features a highly celebrated and decorated in-house movement, a beautifully designed water-resistant case, an octagonal bezel, integrated bracelet and one of the finest Clous De Paris dials ever created. It truly is a watch that can be worn on any occasion—in the boardroom, at a bar, in the swimming pool, for a tennis match, or while you’re out on a long drive. You just can’t go wrong with this watch.

A Highly Decorated In-House Movement

Girard-Perregaux pride themselves on the fact that they are among the very few truly complete manufacturers in the watch industry, ie they produce all components of their watches in-house, including all of their movements. Today Girard-Perregaux have over 15 in-house movements—a testimony to their status as a haute horlogerie giant.

Girard-Perregaux’s movements are known for their technical accuracy and their aesthetic beauty. The brand have perfected the art of decorating their movements. The Girard-Perregaux calibre used in this watch has many different finishes on it to achieve the aesthetic brilliance of the visible and, interestingly, even the non-visible parts. A watchmaker spends over a week applying the finishes to the movement, which include polishing, engraving, circular graining, mirror polishing and Côtes de Genève! It is safe to say that Girard-Perregaux are obsessed with decoration and perfection.

Every 42mm Laureato is equipped with a GP01800 movement. The calibre is entirely designed, produced, assembled and adjusted by Girard-Perregaux, while endowed with traditional and meticulous finishes, this calibre is a flagship of the manufacture.

The Laureato Case

The Laureato case design is inspired by the unusual dome of the Santa Maria del Fiore cathedral in Florence, Italy

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The polished metallic part of the caseback is fixed with six screws and bears engravings with the name of the brand, reference number, material, and the 100m water resistance

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The case has a sporty, chic profile which is perfectly balanced with its thin, octagonal bezel, rounded base and integrated strap

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The integrated nature of the strap translates well to the leather version too

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The polished metallic part of the caseback is fixed with six screws and bears engravings with the name of the brand, reference number, material, and the 330ft/100m water resistance. The Girard-Perregaux Laureato Classic features a 42mm case with a see-through caseback, which reveals the decorated calibre. It has a sporty, chic profile which is perfectly balanced with its thin, octagonal bezel, rounded base and integrated strap. The Laureato case design is inspired by the unusual dome of the Santa Maria del Fiore cathedral in Florence, Italy. Even today, it is one of the most interesting and complex architectural achievements. The slim, octagonal bezel with its rounded base sits neatly on a substantial, but elegantly curved base, into which the horizontal links integrate seamlessly. Polished to perfection is the highly detailed and aesthetically pleasing screw-down crown, which helps ensure the 100m water resistance.

A Gorgeous Clous de Paris Dial

The dial design keeps the elements of the previous years—the exquisite Clous de Paris pattern, and the applied indexes and logo

It makes for a texturally resplendent dial that creates a massive visual impact

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Girard-Perregaux Laureato EXPLORE THE COLLECTION

Literally meaning ‘nails of Paris’, and often referred to in English as ‘hobnail pattern’, this decorative pattern has been used to enhance the appearance of metal parts especially in watch dials and rotors since the 18th century. It is a process carried out by hand using a burin, resulting in a series of finely engraved intersecting lines, which form the characteristic Clous de Paris pattern. The dial design keeps the elements of the previous years—the exquisite Clous de Paris pattern, applied indexes and logo, the baton hands and the general markings. On the top side of the dial, the Girard-Perregaux logo is at the 12 o’clock position. Between the logo and the centre, the name and founding year of the brand are placed on an embossed plate. The date window is discreetly visible at three o’clock through a simple, subtle chamfered aperture. The date blends nicely into the overall design and colour scheme. Dial options include blue, black, grey and white.

An Integrated Bracelet Or Strap

Another elegant note comes from the case’s seamless integration of the bracelet. The steel bracelet combines polished and horizontally-brushed elements. The bracelet presents the same chamfered finish on its entire length, as is seen on the case. The bracelet is fitted with a triple-folding clasp, with the GP emblem engraved on a brushed plate. The Laureato Classic is also available with an integrated alligator leather strap, which looks equally stunning.

Another elegant note comes from the case’s seamless integration of the bracelet. The steel bracelet combines polished and horizontally-brushed elements

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The bracelet presents the same chamfered finish on its entire length, as is seen on the case

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Girard-Perregaux Laureato

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Several Variants

The Laureato Classic 42mm in steel is available in several dial options including blue, black, silver, and grey. It is available with leather straps, and in all-steel versions with steel bracelets. There is also a particularly fetching all-black rendition made from highly resilient and scratch-resistant ceramic. Each version is as distinctive as the Laureato can get.

There is also a particularly fetching all-black rendition made from highly resilient and scratch-resistant ceramic

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One of the most distinctive feature of the Laureato watches are their octagonal bezels

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Polished to perfection is the highly detailed and aesthetically pleasing screw-down crown

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A sport watch icon that’s been making waves with each Clous de Paris dial and octagonal bezel since the 70s, this is certainly a watch that can add distinguished value to your collection.