HISTORY OF PANERAI
luminor panerai brand history
Giovanni Panerai opens a watch shop in Florence, on the Ponte alle Grazie bridge. In addition to the store itself, there was also a workshop and the first watchmaking school in the city. Thus began the history of Officine Panerai.
1860
OPENING OF THE FIRST OFFICINE PANERAI WORKSHOP In 1860, Giovanni Panerai opens the first watch shop in Florence, on the Ponte alle Grazie bridge. In addition to the store itself, there was also a workshop and the first watchmaker training school in the city — this is how the history of Panerai began. Since 1876, the store changed several addresses in Florence, and in the 1920s, when the Ponte alle Grazie bridge was closed for repairs, it was located where it is now — in the Archbishop’s Palace, opposite the cathedral. Then it was called OROLOGERIA SVIZZERA. For more than a century in Florence, this name has been associated with high quality watches.
1916
OFFICINE PANERAI ISSUES PATENT FOR RADIOMIR To meet the strict requirements of the Royal Italian Navy, which for many years the Guido Panerai family has supplied various high-precision instruments (in particular, night sights), with the participation of Lieutenant Commander Carlo Ronconi, a radium-based compound was developed that illuminates dials and instrument indicators — this is how Radiomir. The name Radiomir was documented in a patent application filed in France on March 23, 1916. The radium powder created a good illumination, which is why it immediately became a key feature of Panerai products. The Radiomir patent was just the first of many Panerai innovations in history.
1936
THE FIRST PROTOTYPE OF THE RADIOMIR WATCH In 1935, the Royal Italian Navy launched a secret program to create new underwater landing craft and underwater special forces units. Panerai has been involved in the development of practical technical tools for new military applications. A number of high-strength diving watches have been tested to meet Navy requirements. In the archives of the Navy, a record has been preserved that in 1936 Giuseppe Panerai submitted several prototypes of his own design for technical verification. Model 2533, made on the basis of the movement of the Geneva company Rolex, modified by Panerai, was recognized as the best.
1949
PANERAI PATENTS THE NAME LUMINOR On January 11, 1949, Panerai received a patent for the use of the Luminor name for all of its luminescent and self-luminous materials. With the spread of civilian and military nuclear technologies, Giuseppe Panerai came to the conclusion that associations with radioactivity should be treated very carefully. And then he decided to give the applied luminescent substances a new, more neutral name — this is how the name Luminor arose. A little over a decade later, the name Luminor was applied to a new fluorescent composition based on tritium (an isotope of hydrogen) which had a very low, harmless emission. The new phosphor was the result of long research and experimentation. Gradually, Luminor became the generic name for Panerai diving watches with a crown protector.
1954
PANERAI FOR THE ROYAL ITALIAN NAVY After the Second World War, underwater operations became even more important, so the requirements of the Navy became even tougher: now military watches had to withstand long periods of being under water in extreme conditions. In 1954, two new models were tested: 6152 and 6154. They have been the inspiration for some of today’s models, commercially named the Radiomir 1940. Their cushion-shaped body with attachable lugs is made from a single piece and has pronounced edges. The design of its individual components was revised, and the conical crown of the historic Radiomir was replaced by a cylindrical one.
1960s — PANERAI FOR THE ITALIAN NAVY THE EVOLUTION OF PANERAI LUMINOR WATCHES The evolution of the Panerai 6152/1 model continued actively into the 1960s. The overlapping disc layout stopped using radium powder, and with it the name Radiomir disappeared. Now the glow was provided by a low-radiation composition based on tritium, called Luminor. The crown protector was built into the middle of the 6152/1 case. Also for the first time, the Swiss-made Angelus SF240 movement with an eight-day power reserve was used — it was installed in about 80 pieces. A large power reserve has become a key feature of the Florentine watch brand. On some models, the one-piece case back has been replaced with a plexiglass center case to allow the movement to be seen. Thus, Panerai was one of the first to start producing watches with a transparent case back.
1972 — PANERAI FOR THE ITALIAN NAVY
A TURNING YEAR FOR G. PANERAI &FIGLIO
Giuseppe, son of Guido Panerai, died in 1972. The management of the family business, as well as the exclusive status of the supplier of the Italian Navy, passed into the hands of engineer Dino Cei, a former naval officer, who was appointed the new CEO of the company. The name of the company was also changed — from “G.Panerai & Figlio” to “Officine Panerai Srl”. Thus, OFFICINE PANERAI became the official name of the brand, which has already appeared on many products, including watches.
1993
PREVANDOM PERIOD FIRST OFFICINE PANERAI COLLECTION
To overcome the severe global economic and political crisis that began in 1992, Officine Panerai decided to enter the watchmaking market for the general public and launched three collections based on ten completely new limited edition models: the 44mm Luminor and Luminor Marina and the 42mm Mare Nostrum chronograph, which play on the features of historical models created for the special forces of the Italian Navy. Thus, Dino Cei, CEO of Panerai, removed the secrecy from Panerai’s formerly military-grade products. These models immediately became a hit with collectors and watch lovers. The presentation of the collection took place on September 10, 1993 in the military port of La Spezia, on board the Italian cruiser Durand De La Penne. The event was attended by Duke Aimone of Savoy, son of Duke Amadeus of Aosta, who at one time headed the Italian underwater special forces unit.
1997
IN THE PREVANDOM PERIOD, OFFICINE PANERAI BECOMES ONE OF THE LEADING MANUFACTURERS IN THE PRESTIGIOUS WATCH MARKET
In the spring of 1997, the Richemont Group (then known as the Vendôme Group) acquires Officine Panerai and immediately establishes a trial distribution network in Italy in order to hone its production and commercial strategy and apply synergies using the holding’s capabilities. In April 1998, Panerai entered the world of Haute Horlogerie with the SIHH (Salon de la Haute Horlogerie of Geneva) collection of three models: Luminor and Luminor Marina 44mm in three versions and the 42mm Mare Nostrum Chronograph, with narrower bezel and screw-down case back. This is how Panerai gained international recognition in the world of prestige sports watches and set the global trend for large diameter watches.
