Panerai’s first foray into in-house calibers began in 2005 with the P.2002, a hand-wound movement with an eight-day power reserve and GMT. Two years later, the brand would develop the P.2003, the first automatic Panerai movement made in-house, and the engine driving the latest addition to Panerai’s Complicazioni — a collection that houses some of the brand’s most sophisticated calibers. The new Luminor Dieci Giorni GMT Ref. PAM01482 upholds Panerai’s “legacy of technicity and innovation,” as described by CEO Jean-Marc Pontroué, with a longer 10-day power reserve and linear indicator on the dial.
Developed nearly 20 years ago, the caliber P.2003 isn’t a novel concept. Panerai has released dozens of watches with the movement since 2007 in the Radiomir and Luminor collections. Reference PAM01482 is one of the most recent expressions of the ten-day GMT, featuring the classic Luminor silhouette with a cushion-shaped case and large, lever-activated crown guard. This model will be sold with a dark blue alligator strap with tone-on-tone stitching and an additional dark blue rubber strap, leaning into the collection’s “leisurely sophistication,” as the brand calls it, by delivering different looks, depending on the strap.
The ref. PAM01482 features a 44mm case in polished stainless steel, with scratch-resistant sapphire crystals on the front and back of the case. Through the front crystal, we have a nice view of the blue sun-brushed sandwich dial, a trademark of Panerai. As its name suggests, the dial features a drilled upper plate layered over a solid bottom dial with recessed hour markers filled with Super-LumiNova. This concept allows the bottom dial to hold more luminescent material and offer increased brightness. The subdial at 9 o’clock doubles as small seconds and an AM/PM indicator, with a bright orange arrow hand distinguishing between day and night hours. There are three centrally mounted hands: two for the hours and minutes and an orange-tipped hand for the GMT. I think the orange design elements add a fresh and contemporary look to the watch without being too in-your-face about it, which is what I think Panerai was trying to achieve here. Lastly, the model’s signature feature, the linear power reserve indicator, is displayed at 6 o’clock.
The caliber P.2003 is visible through the sapphire crystal caseback. It offers all the usual components of the broader P.2000 series, including a GMT function, date, 28,800 BPH, and a seconds reset device that sends the seconds hand back to zero for more accurate time-setting when the crown is pulled out. The biggest difference between caliber P.2003 and its predecessor, caliber P.2002, is that it is an automatic movement and touts an advanced 10-hour power reserve. The longer power reserve is convenient but was born out of necessity for Panerai, a company that once supplied dive watches to the Italian Navy. Watches with longer power reserves didn’t need to be wound as often. As a result, the gaskets were not as subject to wear and thus maintained better water resistance. The earliest example of Panerai taking advantage of this concept dates back to the 1960s, when the company equipped its watches with an Angelus caliber SF240 with an eight-day power reserve.
The Dieci Giorni, which translates to “ten days” in English, carries on Paneria’s long tradition of substantial power reserves, albeit for a premium over other models with, for example, a three-day power reserve. Still, the watch is comparable to other Luminor GMTs. Panerai Luminor Dieci Giorni GMT Ref. PAM01482 retails for $15,200 USD. For more information on the Panerai Luminor Dieci Giorni GMT Ref. PAM01482, please visit the brand’s website.
