Like all Panerai watches, history is the great inspiration of
the new Radiomir 1940 3 Days Ceramica. The details
of this new creation also demonstrate the ability of the
Panerai manufacture in Neuchâtel to renew the heritage of
the brand through the haute horlogerie technical solutions
of contemporary sports watchmaking.
The new Radiomir 1940 case has a strongly technical
appearance of great aesthetic impact, thanks to the use
of a matt black ceramic, synthesised from Zirconium
Oxide. Compared to steel – the material of period Panerai
watches – ceramic provides higher performance in terms of
hardness, lightness and resistance to scratches, corrosive
elements and high temperatures.
The fascination of the watch is enhanced by its black dial
with its sandwich structure. The dot and bar hour markers
contribute to its minimalist design of great simplicity and
clarity. The overall modernism of the dial design is elegantly
set off by the ecru colour of the Super-LumiNova® used to
make the markers luminous, and by the image in relief of
the Silura a Lenta Corsa (human torpedo), a reminder that,
in spite of its apparently contemporary appearance, the
dial too was originally designed at the end of the 1930s
for the watches supplied by Panerai to the commandos of
the Italian Navy.
The P.3000 hand-wound movement, entirely created in
the Panerai manufacture in Neuchâtel, can be admired
through a large polished sapphire crystal window in the
back of the case. The calibre measures 16½ lignes – a
size that is characteristic of the period models – and it has
wide brush-finished bridges covering the greater part of
the wheelwork, a large balance wheel 13.2 mm in diameter
and two spring barrels which provide a power reserve of
three days. The P.3000 movement also has the device for
rapidly adjusting the time, which enables the hour hand to
move in jumps of one hour forward or backward, without
interfering with the movement of the minute hand or the
running of the watch.
The new Radiomir 1940 3 Days Ceramica (PAM00577)
is water-resistant to 10 bar (a depth of about 100 metres)
and it is supplied with a strap of brown untreated leather,
with contrasting hand-sewing, and closed by a trapezoidal
buckle. Like the case back, the buckle is made of titanium
for its non-allergenic properties and it has a DLC (diamondlike
carbon) coating matching the colour of the case.