Panerai is one of those brands you can confidently spot from across the room (for obvious reasons), and despite the easy spot, be thrilled by the fine details you find upon a closer look. The Italian brand is uncompromisingly bold, and so are its biggest fans (I’m looking at you Paneristi crew). Despite the numerous technological advancements in watchmaking, materials sciences, and fashion trends, the Panerai Radiomir has sat with its roots firmly planted as a massive, legible, and highly capable military-style dive watch, until now. Unveiled at Watches and Wonders 2023 is the new Radiomir Quaranta (Italian for 40), a 40mm-wide rendition of the dive watch that put Panerai on the wrists of the Royal Italian Navy.
The most passionate collectors may find changing a design that dates back to 1935 sacrilegious, but it is not without precedent, as the brand has begun to trickle in smaller case sizes in other product lines with resounding success. Here at Watches and Wonders 2023, we have one of the most significant updates to one of the brand’s most historic models, and it’s more than enough to please as many as it will infuriate. You can find me in the camp of the former.
It seems only fitting to issue the first downsized Radiomir in GoldtechTM — one of Panerai’s most luxurious alloys. By incorporating a proprietary blend of platinum and copper the result is a bold red-gold tone that exudes warmth. The curvaceous case is polished throughout which, in combination with the white dial, should lead to a more prominent wrist presence than the 40mm case suggests. Additionally, the increased mass of the precious metal alloy will eliminate any feelings of daintiness commonly associated with lightweight watches.
Following the original Radiomir’s design, thin polished wire lugs project from the case and are enveloped by a rich brown crocodile leather strap that with a matching GoldTechTM pin buckle. The Radiomir Quaranta features a recognizable dial layout with sub-seconds at the 9 o’clock position and a date window at 3 o’clock with a matching white date wheel. This dial layout, while asymmetrical, ends up looking balanced when you account for the crown. Fitted with a gold baton-style handset legibility should not be an issue outside of direct sunlight. While a high-contrast handset would be preferred for legibility, this elegant matching handset is more appropriate for a debut model. Topping off the case with a minimalist conical screw-down crown reaffirms that the despite the smaller size, the Radiomir Quaranta is undeniably a Radiomir as it lacks the “device that protects the crown” found on other Panerai watches.
Powering the Radiomir Quaranta is the latest generation P.900 caliber providing three days of power reserve running at 28,800 vibrations per hour. The 171-component movement clocks in at just 4.2mm-thick allowing the Radiomir Quaranta to measure 10.15mm-thick from sapphire caseback to sapphire crystal. The thickness of the caseback and crystal are the most important factors in water resistance, and the new Radiomir Quaranta is currently rated to 3 bar, or 30 meters. While this is a touch disappointing considering it is an homage to the brand’s earliest dive watch, 30m water resistance is far more than the average wearer will expose it to, especially on a leather strap. Additionally, the brand reports that water resistance will be increased to 5 bar soon. No caseback photos were available at press time, but stay tuned for a hands-on review.
Redefining and resizing an icon is always a risk, especially when much of Panerai’s brand identity is related to size itself. However, the careful execution of the polished case, wide open dial, and use of an elegant gold alloy make this Radiomir Quaranta a satisfying approach to a smaller case size from Panerai. If the brand’s previous ventures into smaller case sizes are an indicator of success, this will find its way to plenty of wrists, especially those like myself who love the Radiomir aesthetic but cannot pull off the larger case. At the time of publication, the Panerai Radiomir Quaranta PAM01026 is priced at $18,200 USD. Catch the latest from the brand and learn more about the Panerai Radiomir Quaranta at Panerai’s website.
