Not all images were able to load for printing. Please close the print window and try again. The Piaget Polo 79, now in White Gold (Incl. Video)
After returning to its original shape in opulent yellow gold last year, the Polo 79 gets a more discreet (relatively speaking) attire.
Last year, Piaget made a bold move, resurrecting one of its most emblematic watches and designs… The Polo watch was back to its original shape and opulent full gold attire, with a case, bracelet and dial adorned with horizontal gadroons, highlighting Piaget’s unique legacy when it comes to creating fascinating shaped watches. The Piaget Polo 79 marked the return of the brand to the integrated elegant sports watch category, with a unique style and bold flair. Following the yellow gold version of last year, Piaget now releases a (slightly) more discreet version of the Polo 79 in white gold, and we’re having a closer look at it.
When it was relaunched with a modernized and sleeker design in 2016, the Piaget Polo adopted the design cues of luxury sports watches, slightly changing the face of the collection to become a cushion-shaped watch, actually much closer to the Emperador collection in terms of design. This was not how the original Polo watch was originally shaped. The model started its life in 1979 from a conversation between Yves Piaget and Efraim Grinberg, then the distributor of Piaget in New York. Bold and iconic, it demanded its own identity, becoming the first Piaget timepiece to carry a model name.
Its opulent integrated design was characterized by trademark horizontal gadroons, a full gold attire and a quartz movement. The Polo was a huge commercial success, making it to the wrists of the jet set and celebrities, including Ursula Andress. A classic of the flamboyant early-1980s, embracing the style of elegant sports watches of the era with a great consistency between the case, the bracelet and and even the dial. The Piaget Polo line was discontinued in the late 1980s before making a comeback in 2001 in a modernized version. And more recently, the evolution launched in 2016 features a cushion-shaped case and a sportier attire.
But last year, the original design of the Piaget Polo was revived, with the Polo 79, an opulent take on the integrated elegant sports watch made entirely in yellow gold – case, bracelet, dial, hands – an ultra-thin automatic movement. Reviving the style of the 1980s and continuing Piaget’s mastery of shapes, its unique take on elegance and extravagance, this new take on the seminal Polo was long overdue. And just like its illustrious predecessor, it was another instant hit that could not go without a continuation.
Historically, the Polo was mostly known in yellow gold, but it was also made available in white gold – and not only in this round-ish case we know now, but in several other shapes such as a bracelet-like model with a rectangular case (something for the future, Piaget…? Just throwing ideas on the table). Today, the Piaget Polo 79 makes a comeback in white gold, once again from head to toe, and although it’s still quintessentially Piaget, its monochromatic white attire brings a more modern, less exuberant twist.
If the Piaget Polo 79 certainly fits in the 1970s integrated sports watch category, it is truly in a class of its own. Whether rectangular or round, what made the Polo stand apart was how a series of horizontal gadroons created a distinctive ribbed pattern from the bracelet to the case, extending to the dial. As such, it is Piaget through and through, with that distinctive perception of luxury and flamboyance. Additionally, if the 1970s sports watches were mainly available in steel, the Polo was fully crafted in gold, capturing the purest spirit of the jeweler-watchmaker.
Just like the yellow gold version, the new Polo 79 white gold comes in a 38mm rounded case with a thickness of 7.35mm. Its signature polished gadroons, contrasting with the horizontally-brushed surfaces, are maintained across the case, dial and bracelet to the point that it almost seems to have been made from a single cast. The dial features a tone-on-tone minute track with pearl-like dots of varying sizes paired with dauphine-style gold hands. And this time, everything is white gold, without a single touch of colour anywhere.
Seamlessly integrated into the case, the bracelet softly tapers towards the triple folding buckle that is smartly integrated into its profile. It is highly tactile and flexible, with a pleasing sense of fluidity. It is a modern construction with screws to assemble/disassemble the bracelet on the inner side.
The Piaget Polo 79 White Gold relies on the extra-thin automatic calibre 1200P1. With a diameter of 29.9mm, it’s only 2.35mm in thickness, which won’t come as a surprise from Piaget. It is wound by an off-centred micro-rotor, which is now anthracite-coated instead of gold coloured. The movement beats at 3Hz, and it delivers 44 hours of power reserve. The decoration is traditional with a circular-grained plate, bevelled bridges, circular Geneva stripes, sunburst-brushed wheels and blued screws.
All in all, the Piaget Polo 79 in white gold isn’t a total surprise, but the new material and colour palette do freshen things up, giving it a rather different flair. It remains faithful to both its yellow gold counterpart, as well as the original Polo and Piaget’s tradition of elegant flamboyance and ultra-thin watchmaking, just in a more monochromatic way – which, of course, we approve…
Similar to the yellow gold edition, the Piaget Polo 79 White Gold is not limited and will retail for EUR 85,500 (incl. taxes). For more details, please visit www.piaget.com.
