It happens rarely, and probably only in Italy, that you can spot a Vintage Panerai on a wrist “in the wild”. So it was when we visited the Museo Technico Navale (“Arsenale”) in La Spezia during the X Meeting Club Panerai.

Our museum guide was wearing a stunning Ref. 6152/1 with “Marina Militare” dial, Rolex movement, double pencil hands (sharp heads). The caseback bears a rare S.M.Z M.M. matriculation number. Fantastic piece – one more for our database!

Packing my bags today to travel to Viareggio for the long weekend, meeting Panerai collectors from Italy, Europe and Overseas. Radiomirs and Luminors at its best! It will be exciting to see especially one yet surfaced 3646 watch again, which have been auctioned recently and took a long way to his new owner.

Read some travel reports of the last Club Panerai Meetings published at paneristi.com here.

Wishing all attendees safe travels and a great time – a presto! [Volker Wiegmann]

A collection of various Officine Panerai torches.

Top left and and base left: GPF Mod. Dep. 3002, lenght 16 cm. Waterproof 50 meters. Panerai patent 563039 / november 14th 1956.

Top right: “Elux” torch (blue light). GPF Mod. Dep. 3002, lenght 17 cm. Waterproof 50 meters. Panerai patent 563039 / november 14th 1956.

Base right: “VIDOR” torch (made in Britain), equipped with Panerai patented mechanism, signed “Brevet IT 563039″. Lenght 25 cm.

Two rare combat knifes used by italian and german units in the 2nd world war, placed on an original newspaper dated november 1944.

The photo shows a group of german “Kampfschwimmer” units winding their Panerai watches. This type of knife is visible on the right unit’s belt, fixed by a carabiner.

You can read more about combat swimmer’s equipment in our first book “Vintage Panerai – Watches with History”, chapter III.

“Inclinometro Elux Panerai” – Inclinometer for tanks, measuring degrees (+/- 30) by an enclosed black ball infront of an electroluminescent panel (case size 14,5 x 5,5 cm). See small detail images: daylight (zero level), nightview (1 degree left).

A 3 digit matriculation number is placed on the backside of the power unit. Produced in 1971. Brevetto 846567 (october 1968).

A very interesting 3646 / Type C watch will be auctioned soon at Auktionen Dr. H. Crott (LOT 379). It’s matching in all details with our database, where it is listed since august 2009. In this condition, such Panerai watches are quite rare to find in these days. It comes even with an original leather strap, which is absolutely hard to find, as most of the original straps were cut off after long time of use, because the lugs on 3646 watches are welded to the case (which caused the straps to be sewn onto the lugs / not interchangeable like on Ref. 615X watches ).

Our database entry (click above) shows the following detials: Inner caseback signed 1010288. Rolex Cal. 618 / Type 1 movement. Dial signed “Radiomir Panerai” with redish aged numbers and markers. Steel hands. Onion shaped “Brevet+” crown.

We hope it will find a good new home!

Backside view of a Panerai Elettrosegnalatore GPF 2/52 Brevetto IT. N° 1738/53.

Beside other versions (some with remote control), this type can be controlled by the operator with both hands. A turning wheel to fade light in and out (inserire / disinserire) is placed in the center of the backside. A crosshair sight is placed on the top.

This instrument was stored and transported in a wooden box (visible in the background). 

Photo credits to Assaf Burstein from Israel

Regarding the Panerai “Trittico” (a set of diving tools for the wrist: watch, compass and depth gauge) – the diver didn’t necessarily wear all three instruments at once when working as a team.

The actual diving was done in pairs where the divers swam one above the other. The top diver had a watch and a compass and was the “navigator”, while the bottom one had a watch and a depth gauge and was the “controller”.

These divers were connected by a cord in order to maintain a close distance. Also this was important to stay together during night missions in darkness or because of a strong stream. 

These cords were connected to the divers by means of a leather strap. In the pics are 2 types of cords, the short one is about 2.5 meters long and the long one is 5.0 meters.

Photo credits to Assaf Burstein from Israel

It does not need a lot to become a legendary watch. The clean face of a ref. 3646 Panerai:  just 8 markers, 4 numbers and 2 hands which glow in the darkness to keep it’s operator “in time”. Waterproof. And of course accurate. Functionality can be simple – and something which the operators had to trust in.

More than 70 years have passed, but the design of the Panerai watches left many so called “design icons” behind. They attract new collectors day by day and carry their DNA into the future. A true legend with a true history - not a marketing fairy tale.

Does it take more to call these timekeepers “real toolwatches”? No, not at all.

Read more about this 3646 / Type D watch and the DNA of Panerai in both of our books.  [Volker Wiegmann]

Elettrosegnalatore GPF Q/300 Brevetto IT. N° 47/397. Signal light used by the italian navy. Front frame signed “Officine Panerai Firenze”.

Dimensions: 40 x 35 x  50 cm without aiming instruments, which can be attached on both sides. One prismatic monocle is visible on the left.

The light can be intercepted by 5 interconnected vanes.