By Harlan Chapman-Green
For Baselworld 2018 Glashütte Original has gone with evolution over revolution. Is that a bad thing? Absolutely not, in fact, it could well be a quiet hint that they are working on something extraordinary which we could see in the future. Part of maintaining a successful line of products is not forgetting about their existence, by that I mean you pay attention to them, changing details to suit new fashions and such.
Keeping with the times, Glashütte Original has decided to hit two birds with one stone and update both the Senator Excellence Panorama Date watches as well as the Senator Excellence Panorama Date & Moonphase pieces. In order to appear more youthful and attractive to the increasingly wealthy younger generations, Glashütte Original has added new dial colours, as well as a stainless steel case and an increased diameter of 42mm.
There are three colours on offer: blue with a sunray effect on it, a flat white dial and a silver one which is my favourite, it features vertical brushing which, thanks to the colour, make it look a little like bamboo. They’re all available on either a leather strap or the combination brushed/polished stainless steel bracelet which adds a little class to the watch which the leather lacks, I know leather is more traditional for dress watches, but this is the 21st century so things are bound to be a little different.
Inside, the watches are both using the same movements, albeit one with a moonphase. The balance ticks away at 28,800 bph, or 4Hz, and goes on for an exceptionally long 100 hours after the watch was put down. Of course, you’d need to leave it for a bit to power down the barrels as it’s automatic winding, with a large rotor sitting on top of the movement, rather than offside on the three-quarter plate-like traditional watches from the region.
If you want to buy the Panorama date it’s 10,700 Euros on the stainless steel bracelet, or 9200 Euros for the leather strap. Of course, you’ll pay a bit extra for the moonphase with the price set at 11,700 Euros on the bracelet or 10,200 on leather. In my personal opinion, the stainless steel Panorama Date & Moonphase with the silver dial is by far the best looking of the bunch, and I particularly like the silvered out moonphase which only adds to the look, if they’d gone with a traditional blue the look would be ruined, so props to Glashütte Original for that, it’s a class act. For more info, visit Glashütte Original online.
