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GRAND SEIKO CELEBRATES THE SEASONS – ALL 24 OF THEM – IN A FOUR-PIECE COLLECTOR’S EDITION
The Grand Seiko GMT Four Seasons series acknowledges the Japanese tradition of celebrating the course of nature by breaking the four seasons down into six subtle stages within each, for a total of 24 seasonal phases or sekki. This is the third 24-sekki series. It debuted in 2019 with a four-piece limited edition for the U.S. market. Grand Seiko followed up last year with a duo of watches representing soko, the seasonal phase occurring at the end of autumn. This year, a series of four watches represents the four main seasons, embodying the spirit of all 24. Dial colors are used to represent each season. The green background with rose gold accents of the Shunbun (spring) model capture the verdant growth and budding trees of spring.The light blue dial of the Shosho (summer) model is textured in a wave pattern to represent ripples on Japan’s many lakes and ponds shimmering in the summer sun. The textured black dial of the Kanro (autumn) edition represents shorter days, longer nights, and a chill in the air. The white dial of the Toji (winter) dial is textured to represent the snow caps of a cool winter landscape. All four incorporate the signature elements of the Grand Seiko line, including the Series 9 case with high Zaratsu polish, dauphine hands, and long beveled markers.All four function as GMT watches with hour hands that are independently adjustable. Grand Seiko applies its two new showcase movements to the four-piece collection. The Hi-Beat 36000 automatic GMT caliber 9S86 drives the spring and summer versions. The elite movement, accurate to within +5 to -3 seconds per day, has a 55-hour power reserve. The hybrid electronic/ mechanical Spring Drive automatic GMT caliber 9R66, used in the autumn
and winter models, has a 72-hour power reserve and an accuracy rating of +/- 1 second per day. Because Grand Seiko fits its cases to its movements, there is a slight variance in size: the Hi-Beat spring and summer editions are 39.5 mm wide and 14.4 mm thick, while the Spring Drive autumn and winter models are 40.2 mm thick and 14 mm wide. All have open casebacks. The date window on all models is large enough to be readable, and a GMT hand and corresponding index are made legible with a color that contrasts with the background dial. The corresponding 24-hour index on the Hi-Beat spring and summer editions tracks around the inside of the main hour markers, while on the Spring Drive autumn and winter dials, the GMT index is staggered between the markers. The Spring Drive dials also include a discreet power reserve indicator. Like all Grand Seiko watches, they are produced at the brand’s Shizukuishi Studio in picturesque northern Japan. Grand Seiko’s talent as a maker of special dials is also present in this year’s Elegance Omiwatari , which is Japanese for “A god’s crossing.” The word is used to describe a natural phenomenon that occurs on Lake Suwa near the Grand Seiko Shinshu Watch Studio. Every winter when the lake freezes over, mysterious large cracks and ridges form across its surface, some as high as over a foot tall. The Japanese call it Omiwatari, or where the Shinto gods walk out over the ice. The legend inspired Grand Seiko to create a timepiece that invokes the beauty of the phenomenon. The ice blue dial is textured to mimic the undulations of the frozen lake. Housed inside the 38.5 mm case is the Spring Drive Caliber 9R31, which has a dual barrel structure that delivers a power reserve of 72 hours when fully wound.
60 ] F I N K ’ S J E W E L E R S M A G A Z I N E
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