Gérald Genta (1931–2011) was a legendary Swiss watch designer, often called the “Picasso of watches.” He revolutionized luxury watchmaking with iconic designs such as Audemars Piguet’s Royal Oak, Patek Philippe’s Nautilus, and creations from his own eponymous brand—renowned for bold geometry, integrated bracelets, and for bringing luxury steel watches to prominence in the 1970s.
The Gérald Genta brand, founded by the legendary designer in 1969, specialized in innovative, complicated, and often whimsical high-end watches. It became famous for integrating luxury with pop culture—most notably Disney characters—alongside technical feats such as jumping hours and retrograde minutes. Blending fantasy with serious horology, the brand continued this distinctive approach until its acquisition by Bulgari in 2000. Today, under the LVMH umbrella, the legacy of bold, somewhat avant-garde timepieces lives on.
At hand, we have an Octo model. The Octo line was introduced in 1991 and is defined by its complex octagonal case, featuring numerous finely executed facets that highlight Genta’s mastery of architectural design.
Bulgari acquired the Gérald Genta brand in 2000, integrating the Octo into its offerings, initially as a Gérald Genta collection under Bulgari management. Following Bulgari’s acquisition by LVMH, the Gérald Genta brand was revived in 2023 under the LVMH umbrella, honoring Genta’s artistic vision with new, boundary-pushing designs.
The watch presented here is an exceptionally high-complication example from the Octo line—and the most complicated watch we have offered over the years.
It features a perpetual calendar, moon-phase indicator, and a tourbillon—an innovative mechanism designed to counteract the effects of gravity on the movement. Additionally, the watch includes a 24-hour GMT inner bezel and a rotating world-time bezel, allowing the wearer to track multiple time zones simultaneously. All of this is executed in an impressive combination of platinum and tantalum.
The choice of materials is particularly remarkable. Platinum is notoriously difficult to machine—especially in a case with so many sharp angles and facets—while tantalum is prized for its exceptional corrosion resistance, high melting point, and ductility. These properties make tantalum vital for high-tech applications in electronics, aerospace, and medical devices, further underscoring the technical ambition behind this watch.
To give some perspective on its complexity at the time of introduction: the list price (these pieces were often offered as “price on request”) was approximately €350,000–€380,000, depending on local taxes. At the time, it ranked among the most complicated and expensive wristwatches money could buy.
We believe this piece should be scooped up by a savvy collector. Consider this: all these complications, in such rarity, coupled with the Gérald Genta brand’s revival under the LVMH Group—now heavily investing once again in La Fabrique du Temps Louis Vuitton to produce high-end complicated watches with in-house movements. We would not be surprised to see watches of this caliber commanding significantly higher price tags in the future.
The dial features a beautiful, slightly creamy tone, with sub-dials for the perpetual calendar, moon phase, and small seconds. A two-tone inner bezel ring supports the GMT function, while sharp dauphine-style hands complete the display.
The substantial 42.5 × 43 mm case, with its tantalum bezel, is in excellent condition. It is fitted with a cabochon-set crown and paired with the original Gérald Genta leather strap, secured by its original GG-signed 18k white gold folding buckle. On the case back, one can admire the Gérald Genta automatic Calibre 120-12, featuring a rotor adorned with a large stylized “G.”The watch has been fully checked, tested, and regulated by our trained watchmaker.
Extremely rare and produced in very limited numbers, high-complication Gérald Genta Octo models such as this are seldom seen on the market—especially in platinum and tantalum and with this extraordinary level of complication. Despite its technical ambition, material complexity, and historical significance, the model remains notably undervalued when compared to contemporary ultra-complications from Patek Philippe, Audemars Piguet, or Vacheron Constantin.
For the informed collector, this represents a genuinely smart acquisition: a groundbreaking watch by one of the most influential designers in horological history, combining avant-garde design with serious mechanical pedigree, at a fraction of what similar complication sets command today.
A rare opportunity to acquire one of Gérald Genta’s most ambitious creations—contact us to discuss this exceptional Octo in detail.
Specifications:
- Gérald Genta “Octa”Reference OTW.76 Complications
- 42.5 x 43 mm Platinum and Tantalum Octogonal case with Cabuchon setting crown
- serial 1x dating to the turnable Tantalum bezel with world time function
- Tourbilion/ Perpetual Calendar /GMT/ phase of moon complications
- Cream dial with phase of moon and Perpetual calendar sub dials
- Original Gerald Genta leather strap & Genta 18k white gold fading buckle
- Automatic Gerald Genta Cal. 120 12 movement
- Fully checked by our watchmaker
- 1 year mechanical warranty
- Free worldwide Fedex Priority shipping
