Blancpain

Blancpain was founded in 1735 and belongs to the Swatch Group (Breguet, Omega, Longines, Swatch). For many years during the 20th century Blancpain was out of business and did not sell any watches. In the 1980s Blancpain was revived and today enjoys considerable success among collectors.

A somewhat famous marketing slogan is that Blancpain has never produced quartz watches and it never will. Every Blancpain timepiece (usually thirty to forty per day are being manufacture) is entirely made by one person, the so called watchmaker. The Blancpain 1735 watch is one of the most complicated watches ever made, its features include a tourbillon, minute repeater, perpetual calendar, split chrono – and together are the base for a grand complication. Blancpain watches are also popular with sports fans and divers.

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TIMEPIECE TIMELINE

10 Milestone Moments in the History of the Wristwatch

Today it is common for a man to wear a watch on his wrist, but it was a different story around 100 years ago. World War I, which started in 1914 and ended in 1918, brought to the battlefield much that was new — airplanes, mustard gas, military tanks. It also brought something new to...

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May 14, 2020 by WatchTime

PORTFOLIO

Splash! A Plunge Into the Colorful World of Watersports Watches

Take the plunge with us into the colorful world of water sports. Here you can find professional instruments with appealing technologies, styles, and prices. In this article, we present divers’ watches without complex additional functions (e.g., chronographs) because the watches listed here are designed to focus your undivided attention on the time of day and the...

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May 13, 2020 by Alexander Krupp

FEATURE

Dive Watches in Depth: A Dive Watch FAQ

"How water-resistant does it need to be?" "How does a depth gauge work?" We answer your FAQs about dive watches: learn about water resistance, diving bezels, depth gauges, and more in this feature from the WatchTime archives.

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Apr 16, 2020 by WatchTime

TIMEPIECE TIMELINE

10 Highlights in the History of the Dive Watch

In the beginning, dive watches were pure tools that helped keep divers on time and alive. Today they’re something else: fashion statements, conversation pieces, rugged companions for a trip to the beach or pool. Our Timeline: "Dive Watches Through the Decades," traces the history of the dive watch from its start in the 1920s, with the invention of the first truly water-resistant cases, to 2014.

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Apr 13, 2020 by WatchTime

UPDATED WITH U.S. PRICES:

Midnight in Villeret: Blancpain Adds Two Blue-Dial Models to its Most Elegant Collection

Blancpain expands its classically styled, historically inspired Villeret collection, named after the Swiss village where the manufacture was founded way back in 1735, with two new rose-gold models with mesmerizing midnight blue dials. Here is what you need to know about the latest iterations of the Villeret Ultraplate and Villeret Quantième Complet. The “simpler” of...

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Mar 10, 2020 by Mark Bernardo

FEATURE

Under the Sea: A Look at Five Watches with Oceanic Inspiration

Underwater worlds and their inhabitants are frequent themes in the watch world and also play a role in art, architecture and the media. In this feature from WatchTime's Special Design Issue 2019, on sale now, we look at watches influenced by the oceans and their endangered flora and fauna.

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Feb 21, 2020 by Maria-Bettina Eich

2019: THE WATCH YEAR IN REVIEW

Six Perpetual Calendar Timepieces That Stood Apart in 2019

As we approach the end of 2019 and prepare for 2020 — surely destined to be another interesting year in the world of watches — we take a look back at some of the most noteworthy timepieces that came out this year, in various popular categories. Today, we wrap up our 2019 retrospective with six...

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Dec 28, 2019 by WatchTime

2019: THE WATCH YEAR IN REVIEW

10 Notable Dive Watches That Surfaced in 2019

As we approach the end of 2019 and prepare for 2020 — surely destined to be another interesting year in the world of watches — we take a look back at some of the most noteworthy timepieces that came out this year, in various popular categories. Today, we look at some of the past year’s...

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Dec 24, 2019 by Mark Bernardo

NEWS

Time On a Thin Blue Line: Blancpain’s Boutique Exclusive Villeret Ultraplate

Blancpain made a splash (you should pardon the expression) back in May with new/old variations on its iconic Fifty Fathoms divers’ watch as well as the re-release of a nearly-forgotten aviation watch from its archives, the Air Command. Lest we forget, however, the centuries-old Swiss maison is no slouch in the simple, understated dress-watch department...

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Dec 11, 2019 by Mark Bernardo

WTNY 2019

Top 5 Dive Watches Seen at WatchTime New York 2019

Of the many amazing watches we saw this year at WatchTime New York, it seemed many brands were keen to debut their newest and most impressive dive watches. This year, we saw some amazing new dive watches from Glashütte Original, Blancpain, Maurice Lacroix, Omega, and De Bethune, among many others. Glashütte Original Spezialist SeaQ Panorama...

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Oct 29, 2019 by Caleb Anderson

COUNTDOWN TO WTNY

Showing at WatchTime New York 2019: Blancpain Fifty Fathoms in Rose Gold with Blue Ceramic Dial

You missed them in Basel; come see them in New York. Blancpain, which skipped the Baselworld watch fair this year with the rest of the Swatch Group, will again be among the exhibiting watch brands at WatchTime New York on October 25-26. Among its highlight timepieces for 2019 is the new rose-gold cased model of the manufacture's Fifty Fathoms luxury dive watch, featuring an all-new blue ceramic dial.

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Sep 22, 2019 by Mark Bernardo

NEWS:

A New Documentary from Blancpain Showcasing the History of the Fifty Fathoms Will Premiere at WatchTime New York 2019

The world of Swiss watchmaking is filled with intriguing stories, compelling characters, and centuries of narratives that are worth recounting. That’s one of the reasons why the distinct lack of quality documentaries discussing horological history has always been frustrating. The films that do exist are either too focused on marketing than the truth or aren’t...

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Sep 19, 2019 by Logan R. Baker

SWATCH GROUP 2019 RELEASE:

Blancpain Adds New GMT Date Models to the Villeret Collection

Blancpain added a number of new timepieces to its emblematic Villeret collection at the Swatch Group’s 2019 “Time to Move” showcase, with a new GMT design being one of the options. This isn’t really a revolutionary development for the Villeret line, as Blancpain has consistently offered a variety of travel-time designs within it, most recently...

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Aug 5, 2019 by Logan R. Baker

SWATCH GROUP 2019 RELEASE:

Blancpain Demonstrates Restraint in Design with the New Villeret Extra-Plate 6605

Blancpain decided to build on one of its most historically important watch collections this year during the Swatch Group’s Time to Move festivities. Somewhat overshadowed by the launch of the new Fifty Fathoms Barakuda and Nageurs de Combat limited editions as well as the extremely attractive Air Command Chronograph, the new Villeret Extra-Plate 6605 models pays homage to...

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Jul 30, 2019 by Logan R. Baker

ONLY WATCH 2019

Close-Up: Blancpain’s Fifty Fathoms Barakuda Unique Piece for Only Watch 2019

Blancpain continues its longstanding support of the biennial Only Watch auction of unique timepieces, and the charity that it benefits, with the presentation of a special one-of-a-kind version of its recently introduced, vintage-inspired Fifty Fathoms Barakuda, which is slated to go on the auction block in Geneva with 29 other unique timepieces on November 9th...

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Jul 10, 2019 by Mark Bernardo

EVENTS:

Announcing the 36 Presenting Watch Brands at WatchTime New York 2019

Happy Fourth of July! We hope everyone out there is having a fun and safe start to the holiday weekend. To commemorate Independence Day, we’re happy to announce a majority of the watch brands that will be presenting at this year’s WatchTime New York show. Over the past five years, the two-day WatchTime New York...

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Jul 4, 2019 by WatchTime

NEWS:

Swatch Group 2019 Release: The Blancpain Air Command, a Legendary Vintage Pilots’ Watch, Rises Again

The Swatch Group decided to forgo Baselworld in 2019 and have its 12 exhibiting brands release their latest novelties on their own terms. While we’ve seen a number of releases slowly trickle out over the past six months, it’s all led up to this week for the Swiss conglomerate. WatchTime was one of the select...

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May 17, 2019 by Mark Bernardo

NEWS:

Swatch Group 2019 Release: Blancpain Revives the Fifty Fathoms Barakuda and Fifty Fathoms Nageurs de Combat

The Swatch Group decided to forgo Baselworld in 2019 and have its 12 exhibiting brands release their latest novelties on their own terms. While we’ve seen a number of releases slowly trickle out over the past six months, it’s all led up to this week for the Swiss conglomerate. WatchTime was one of the select...

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May 17, 2019 by Caleb Anderson

WATCH TO WATCH:

Blancpain Introduces a Boutique-Exclusive, Platinum-Clad Villeret Perpetual Calendar

Blancpain has launched a new Villeret Quantième Perpétuel 6656 model in platinum that will be exclusively available at its 30+ official brand boutiques worldwide. Limited to 88 pieces, the new watch is nicely sized at 40 mm by 10.7 mm and features an attractive sunray blue dial with registers at 3, 9 and 12 o’clock along...

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Apr 18, 2019 by WatchTime

FEATURE

Vintage Eye for the Modern Guy: Blancpain Fifty Fathoms Bathyscaphe Day Date 70s

After writing on the Baltic Aquascaphe a few weeks ago, I started thinking back to the original watch that inspired it: the Blancpain Bathyscaphe. Historically, the Bathyscaphe was something of the younger brother to the famed Fifty Fathoms series, the original model designed in 1952 for the French Navy— an industry -changing dive watch known...

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Mar 31, 2019 by Caleb Anderson

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