A solid eighteen carat yellow and white gold single piece bracelet with integrated watch by Piaget.  There are a number of watches over the years that have a bracelet feel to them, and it is fair to say that the Piaget Polo tank (along with the Rolex King Midas) have successfully owned this approach to men’s watches. Many, many women’s watches were designed this way – and some to astonishingly beautiful degrees – but rarely do the men’s examples stand out like this. 

The Piaget Polo, the brainchild of Yves Piaget, was a child of the 1970’s, introduced in ‘79. This was the height of the ongoing quartz crisis in Switzerland, and the influx of cheap battery powered watches from Asia were putting immense pressure on the Swiss watchmaking elite. Many collapsed and others went to the extreme to promote how lavish, luxurious and talented their watch making houses were. This is indeed what Yves did with the Polo. A collection launched very much as a “His and Hers”, it came in both a Tank shape, and the classic round. To read the advertisement from the time tells the story of how proud the watchmaker was with their new creation and the lengths in which they went to in producing it:

“The bracelet is hand-carved, link by link, from a solid block of 18 carat gold. The matching case is sculpted by hand in La Côtes-aux-Feés, Switzerland''

The name selection too was not by chance: it resonated with the jet set crowd at the time and tapped into the luxury, regal and powerful elite. In 1985, Piaget’s Polo team celebrated the watch by riding their ponies down Manhattan’s Fifth Avenue. The watch was loved by the rich and the famous, with icons such as Andy Warhol and Miles Davis selecting it for their very public wrists. The Polo name still lives on with Piaget, but looks very different today. Understandable, but sad. 

This watch is what one comes to expect from Piaget. This company really is the jeweler among watchmakers. The seamless and beautifully free flowing bracelet is intricately made with a tapering pattern of bullet shaped links, high polished, and flat larger block links, matte finished. The overall combination is exceptional. Perhaps on the back one can really appreciate the craftsmanship –there is almost a central spine holding all the adjoining link screws that keep the whole bracelet together (which also makes it very easy to size).

It is forgivable to not even immediately see the watch dial. Such as its design, it was made to perfectly reflect the design of the case surrounding  it, except this example is broken up and set with cut onyx stone. Therefore we have a repeat of the bullet high polish shape matched with the flat onyx pieces. A slight addition of the Piaget logo can be found under the 12, and the very small “Swiss” logo found beneath the 6. There is also a small ring of minute and hour polished “beads” to assist in telling the time, if that is even of interest when looking at something so spectacular! All of which are tracked by the handsome solid eighteen carat gold dauphine shaped hands.

The watch also has the rare detail of being a back-wound piece.  Being quartz, there is no actual winding needed. But, setting the time can be done by lifting the slim crown up from the case back. This further adds to the mystery of whether this is in fact a watch at all at first glance. On the back of the screwed in case back of the watch are all the relevant serial numbers, logos and branding and gold assay marks. The watch has never been polished, and is in excellent overall condition.   There is one screw holding the case back in which has been replaced.  The dial is in perfect condition, which is not always the case, as the stones cut for these dials are so fine that they are liable to fracture over time, or if not handled correctly by watch makers.

Overall, this is an exceptionally rare version of one of the most iconic watches from the Swiss powerhouse.  To find these watches in yellow and white gold is rare.  To find one with an onyx dial is exceptionally rare. This is one of the most unusual iterations of this legendary reference.  This watch is finally getting the respect and attention it deserves after being in the shadows for many years.  It is a stunning piece of watch making meets haute jewelry.