Cover A profile of the 2mm slim Piaget Altiplano Ultimate Concept Tourbillon (Photo: Piaget)
A profile of the 2mm slim Piaget Altiplano Ultimate Concept Tourbillon (Photo: Piaget)
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The Altiplano Ultimate Concept Tourbillon is Piaget’s second record‑setting, ultra‑thin masterpiece of cutting‑edge craftsmanship and technical brilliance that marks more than a century of horological innovation at the maison
Driven by an unyielding quest for inventiveness and elegance, Piaget takes its obsession for ultra‑slim timepieces further to commemorate its 150th year of watchmaking mastery. Its magnum opus, the 2 mm‑thin Altiplano Ultimate Concept Tourbillon, made horological history as the world’s thinnest tourbillon watch when it was unveiled this April at Watches and Wonders 2024.
Thin has long been synonymous with sophistication in haute horlogerie, a realm in which Piaget has led innovation for decades. Its journey began with the slender 9P calibre 67 years ago and continued with the introduction of the Altiplano Ultimate Concept, the world’s thinnest mechanical watch when it debuted in 2018.
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Above The front, side and back of the Piaget Altiplano Ultimate Concept Tourbillon (Photo: Piaget)
The front, side and back of the Piaget Altiplano Ultimate Concept Tourbillon (Photo: Piaget)
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Developing the Altiplano Ultimate Concept Tourbillon posed significant challenges because of its unprecedented slimness. Every component, including the incorporation of a flying tourbillon into an already crowded space constrained to a height of just 2 mm, required innovative engineering. Piaget’s team at La Côte‑aux‑Fées tirelessly redesigned 90 per cent of the components from the original Altiplano Ultimate Concept over the course of three years. This led to the creation of the Piaget Calibre 970P‑UC, a manual movement with a 40‑hour power reserve.
Executed entirely in‑house, this laborious process required developing new machinery and techniques to integrate the tourbillon into the wafer‑thin watch. The Herculean task involved no less than 70 prototypes of the tourbillon cage and 30 of the case frame before the final timepiece was realised.
Above A profile of the 2mm slim Piaget Altiplano Ultimate Concept Tourbillon (Photo: Piaget)
A profile of the 2mm slim Piaget Altiplano Ultimate Concept Tourbillon (Photo: Piaget)
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While the movement was reworked substantially, the Altiplano Ultimate Concept Tourbillon retains the basic space‑saving architecture of its predecessor, where all components are integrated directly into the caseback. This means that it doubles as the mainplate, which enhances both the watch’s compactness and sleekness.
Made mainly of lightweight titanium and steel, the tourbillon at 10 o’clock is secured via its perimeter, which is held in place by a ceramic ball bearing that drives its one‑minute rotation. Since it needs 25 per cent more energy than the first time‑only counterpart, Piaget optimised energy consumption with a unique skeletonised barrel, a tailor‑made mainspring with a slightly thicker blade, and ball bearings instead of traditional pivots to reduce friction. A transparent window—in sapphire crystal that had been refined to a mind‑boggling thickness of just 0.2 mm—in the caseback elegantly reveals the intricate workings of the tourbillon.
Above A transparent sapphire case reveals the flying tourbillon of the Piaget Altiplano Ultimate Concept Tourbillon (Photo: Piaget)
A transparent sapphire case reveals the flying tourbillon of the Piaget Altiplano Ultimate Concept Tourbillon (Photo: Piaget)
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Despite its remarkable slimness, the Altiplano Ultimate Concept Tourbillon is robustly designed for everyday wear. Enhancing its practicality, it features a 41.5 mm rigid cobalt alloy case—0.5 mm wider than its predecessor—and a water resistance of up to 20 metres.
Strapping on this astounding creation—nearly invisible from the side yet demanding attention with its sophisticated blend of deep blue and gold accents—is akin to wearing a piece of Piaget’s legacy. It is undeniable that the Altiplano Ultimate Concept Tourbillon is a bold expression of what is possible when craftsmanship meets unbridled creativity and innovation.
Specifications
Case: 41.5 mm cobalt alloy, blue PVD-treated; Movement: Manual-winding Calibre 970P-UC, one-minute peripheral tourbillon; Strap: Dark blue calfskin with 3D printed maille polonaise mesh motif and M64BC cobalt alloy pin buckle
