A WALK DOWN MEMORY LANE
Grand Seiko marks its 60th anniversary with a selection of classic timepieces on display at Gaysorn Village
From The Seiko Museum Ginza in Tokyo, a selection of timepieces is being exhibited under “The Nature Of Time” theme, to mark the 60th anniversary of Grand Seiko, at Gaysorn Village until Oct 31.
Seiko (Thailand) managing director Hiroyuki Akashi and luxury director Sirinart Ruangsuwandej hosted the opening, set under the atmosphere of ancient Japan with kabuki, a classical Japanese dance-drama, as the highlight performance.
Created in 1960, the first Grand Seiko mechanical watch fulfilled the demand for durability, comfort and beauty, with its extra-thin movement providing precision on par with the highest international chronological standards.
The 60th anniversary is marked by three recreations in a case made of platinum 950, yellow gold, or brilliant hard titanium.
Exclusive to Grand Seiko, titanium is twice as hard as stainless steel, highly resistant to scratches, and brighter, which allows polished surfaces to stand out more prominently.
The shape of the case, softly-curved dial and hands are faithful to the 1960 original but the back of the case is now sapphire crystal, revealing the movement and its beautiful finish. The case diameter has been increased from 35mm to 38mm but it still retains a slim profile.
The high precision is rendered by the manual-winding Caliber 9S64 with a power reserve of 72 hours.
Over six decades, the Japanese watchmaker has mastered high-precision movements.
Highlights from the Grand Seiko 60th anniversary exhibition include the 44GS, developed in 1967, with the highest level of accuracy of any manually wound five-beat watch. The model also epitomises the Grand Seiko style, based on the Japanese sense of beauty and a design language of simplicity, purity and practicality.
In the same year, Grand Seiko introduced the automatic 62GS model, whose crown was recessed and positioned at 4 o’clock to signify that hand-winding was not required.
In the 1990s, development of a new generation of mechanical watches aimed to achieve higher precision and a longer power reserve. The resulting 9S has become a series of movements that reinforces the brand’s mechanical prowess.
Caliber 9S85, for instance, took many years of development to achieve a higher oscillation rate of 10 beats per second. The faster vibration makes the watch more resilient to external shock and increases accuracy.
The sister Caliber 9S86 is behind the high accuracy and precision in both essential time display and GMT function of the Hi-Beat 36000 GMT Limited Edition, which won La Petite Aiguille award at the 2014 Grand Prix D’Horlogerie De Geneve.
The mechanical accuracy is enhanced by movement parts produced by Micro-Electro-Mechanical Systems, a highly advanced semiconductor manufacturing technology.
Grand Seiko is one of the very few brands with expertise in both electronic and mechanical watchmaking and it gave rise to the hybrid Spring Drive movement, which provided an even higher level of precision.
Equipped with a Spring Drive movement, Grand Seiko Black Ceramic
Limited Edition reference SBGC017 features robust construction with outer shells and bezel in zirconia ceramic and an inner case in titanium.
The mesmerising green dial boasts a motif of fir trees, inspired by the Onbashira festival in Nagano, central Japan.
Back in 1960, the first Grand Seiko watch was born, along with an emblematic lion, in Suwa, Nagano. The lion symbolises the brand’s inner strength and aspiration to create the “king of watches”.