Piaget has been making thin, elegant gentlemen’s dress watches with Piaget manufacture movements for decades. Classic, round two and three hand watches in precious metal cases will never go out of style, though to keep up with contemporary fashion they have had to expand their diameter while not augmenting their thickness these past ten years. Piaget has kept on top of this trend in its Altiplano collection by offering three distinct models in three different styles that stand up well in comparison with Patek Philippe Calatrava, Vacheron Constantin Patrimony, and Breguet Classique models.

The Altiplano 38 mm in rose gold, ref GOP 31114, has a current retail value of $16,000 (White gold models from Piaget command a premium to the rose gold models). Inside is the Piaget Calibre 430P. The movement is only 2.1 mm thick, and the case is all of 6 mm thick. Variations are in white gold, with both silver and black dials, yellow gold with silver dial, along with diamond set versions, most of which are exclusive to Piaget boutiques.



The dial has all of the Altiplano hallmarks: simple baton hands, painted hour indexes, and a slight curvature towards the edge of the dial, reminiscent of a quality many vintage watches possess.

The Altiplano 38 has a solid case back, which hides the beautifully finished 430P, but with a case and dial so beautifully executed, one might never miss a view of the movement.


 All Altiplano cut a lovely profile:


The Altiplano 40 mm in rose gold, ref GOA34113, has a retail value of $19,000. Inside is the  Piaget Calibre 838P, 2.5 mm thick, and with small seconds at 10 o’clock. The thickest of the watches in the collection, the case of the Altiplano 40 is 6.6 mm thick. I adore this whimsical take on the classic dress watch with subseconds, both for the placement of the subdial as well as for the design of it, with the right hemisphere having a classic printing of the seconds, and the left hemisphere breaching the recess and printing out the 35, 45, and 55 compared with the classic 10, 20, and 30 of the right half of the subdial.


The calibre 838P features Piaget’s characteristic finishing, with blued screws holding the bridges to the mainplate, a circular wave pattern, and beveling, perlage, and straight grain or polished finishes as appropriate to a high end watch manufacturer.



The Altiplano 43 mm in rose gold, ref GOA35131, has a retail value of $23,000. Inside is the new caliber 1208P, which with its microrotor is only 2.35 mm thick. The case is an almost impossibly thin 5.25 mm. The dial is on three levels, though it sacrifices the curvature at the outer rim for the sake of slimness.


The calibre 1208P is large, and is not swallowed up by the large case, allowing it to look proportional under the sapphire crystal case back.


I would be thrilled to own any one of these dress watches, but if I could only pick one I would choose the 40 mm model, as the diameter and dial design most suit my taste. I would prefer that the strap not be padded, as I think that works against the ultrathin feel of the watch, but I would never let a strap get in the way of my getting a watch.

Bill