One World, Four Whirlwinds: Greubel Forsey Introduces GMT Quadruple Tourbillon in Titanium


Swiss high-luxury master watchmaker Greubel Forsey is always one to impress with its haute horlogerie expertise, and to start off 2021 the brand is revisiting one of its most sophisticated complications, the GMT Quadruple Tourbillon, re-introducing the model in a fresh titanium case material.

The original GMT Quadruple Tourbillon was first launched in 2019 (pictured below), and at the time was noted for the novel, namesake combination of three-dimensional GMT display and quadruple tourbillon mechanism. Up to that point, Greubel Forsey’s GMT (introduced in 2011) quadruple tourbillon (developed in the early 2000s) were separately two of the brand’s most impressive and culturally relevant offerings, and bringing them together represented an interesting and innovative development on the part of the brand, requiring three and half years of dedicated effort to bring to fruition.

This latest GMT Quadruple Tourbillon l uses the same overall design as that of its white-gold-cased predecessor but is now housed in the lighter and sportier non-precious metal and uses a new blue-dial colorway. It comes on the heels of 2020’s Greubel Forsey Balancier S Limited Edition and 2019’s Greubel Forsey GMT Sport, both of which used titanium cases, and represents the brand’s continued interest in the material for its timepieces.

The 46.5-mm asymmetrical case of the GMT Quadruple Tourbillon is in polished titanium and sits high on the wrist, at 17.45 mm thick. On its left partially openworked side we find the exposed GMT globe, while on its right is a deeply grooved, signed crown and a GMT pusher to quickly shuffle through multiple time zones. The case’s thick, slightly tapered lugs connect to a rubber or hand-sewn alligator leather strap, itself secured to the wrist via a hand-polished titanium folding clasp engraved with the GF logo.

Moving underneath the asymmetrical, convex sapphire crystal, we come to the highlight of the GMT Quadruple Tourbillon, its highly engaging dial. Starting in its upper-right corner, the primary timekeeping display inclusive of hours and minutes is on display in blue, representing the tallest point of the layered anthracite configuration. On the lower half on this time display, a power-reserve indicator rests, displaying how much of the 72-hour reserve remains.

A coaxial small seconds and second-time-zone display are located at the traditional 4 o’clock spot, with the second time zone being adjustable in one-hour increments via the aforementioned GMT pusher on the case side. Occupying the 8 and 9 o’clock positions is the three-dimensional GMT display, courtesy of the oversized globe which has become something of a signature for Greubel Forsey.

On either side of the “Earth” are the dueling double tourbillons, together forming the watch’s namesake “quadruple” designation. Each features an open and transparent construction, secured by black polished steel bridges and adorned with gold chatons as well as hand-polished beveling and countersinks.

On the flip side, the wearer can take a closer look at the 705-part, 84-jeweled movement, though note the live picture is actually of the 2019 white gold version of the watch. The mechanism features superlative finishing throughout, with nickel silver bridges that have been frosted and spotted with polished bevels and countersinks, and straight-grained flanks. A gold plate visible through the caseback is engraved with the watch’s limited-edition number. The four tourbillon bridges are made of steel and are black-polished with hand-polished beveling and countersinks.

The movement also features some additional useful displays, including a world-time disk with 24 cities that represent the different time zones across the Earth. This disk also distinguishes between the time zones that implement Daylight Saving Time, which appear in a light color, and those that do not, which are in a darker color.

The Greubel Forsey GMT Quadruple Tourbillon in titanium will be extremely limited, with only eleven pieces set for production. While exact pricing is available upon request, the current reported price is 760,000 CHF, or just below $831,000.

To learn more, you can visit Greubel Forsey’s website, here.

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  1. Tor Schøne

    If anyone could hold this kind of watches in there hands they would not make stupid remarks that it looks like toys. A fact because i hold the one in white gold and i was blown away. Br regards.

    Reply
  2. Peter Currer

    Unfortunately looks rather distorted despite its impressive technical features.

    Reply
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