Lot 27

Panerai. An extremely fine and rare "Trittico" comprising an oversized stainless steel water-resistant diver's wristwatch with 8-day movement, revolving bezel and brown-coloured dial, a compass and a depth gauge, made for the Egyptian Navy

The "Egiziano" reference GPF 2/56 Following a request of Commander Fawzi of the Egyptian Navy who attended the Commando School of the Italian Navy, Panerai developed the legendary reference GPF 2/56, its internal code derived from the month and year of its projection, February 1956. Nicknamed the "Egiziano" (Italian for "Egyptian") this model is the largest of all Panerai wristwatches ever made with an impressive diameter of 60 mm. It furthermore featured a revolving bezel graduated for 5 minutes. Most notably it was fitted with the well-known Angelus 8-day movement which already found use in a small number of Panerai's reference 6152. Earlier examples of GPF 2/56 were equipped with the "Radiomir" dial, later models had the "Luminor" version. Regrettably, no documentation survived in regards to the precise number of "Egiziani" produced. Scholarship however stipulates that no more than 50 watches were supplied to the Egyptian Forces and that few other examples were made as prototypes.

SIGNED OFFICINE PANERAI, FIRENZE; THE WRISTWATCH SIGNED RADIOMIR, 8 GIORNI BREVETTATO, REF. GPF 2/56, EGIZIANO MODEL, CASE NO. N.E. 018, MOVEMENT SIGNED ANGELUS, ALL CIRCA 1956

Details

Panerai. An extremely fine and rare "Trittico" comprising an oversized stainless steel water-resistant diver's wristwatch with 8-day movement, revolving bezel and brown-coloured dial, a compass and a depth gauge, made for the Egyptian Navy
Signed Officine Panerai, Firenze; the wristwatch signed Radiomir, 8 Giorni Brevettato, ref. GPF 2/56, Egiziano model, case no. N.E. 018, movement signed Angelus, all circa 1956
The watch Angelus cal. 16''' 8-day nickel-finished lever movement, 15 jewels, the dial consisting of two discs, the lower one coated with "Luminor" luminous substance visible through the cut out Arabic and baton numerals in the black matte upper disc, luminous subsidiary seconds and luminous hands, in large tonneau-shaped water-resistant-type case with revolving bezel calibrated for five minutes, crown protecting bridge, the back secured by six screws, large stainless steel buckle, case signed Mod. GPF 2/56, Brevettato, Mattr. N.E. 018, dial signed Panerai, movement signed Angelus; the wrist compass with stainless steel case and antimagnetic base secured by six screws, plexiglas dome with luminous rubber line to the inside, black dial, luminous capital letters for the cardinal points and indexes in high relief, immersed in a water-line and shock-absorber petroleum-based liquid, large stainless steel buckle; the depth gauge with stainless steel case and antimagnetic base secured by six screws, plexiglas dome, black dial graduated to 50/60 meters, luminous baton and Arabic numerals, luminous hand, large stainless steel buckle, compass signed Officine Panerai, Brevettato, depth gauge signed Radiomir Panerai
66 mm. wide, 69 mm. & 69 mm. diams. (3)

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Lot Essay

With two Officine Panerai Tokyo servicing invoices in Japanese with reception dates 25 March 2010 and 1 April 2008.

The present set is an extremely rare so-called "Trittico", a triple combination, made by Panerai for the Egyptian Navy. The watch, a very well preserved example of the celebrated "Egiziano" reference GPF 2/56, is an important witness of the development of professional divers' watches, reflected by its charismatically aged dial which turned from black to tones of warm hazelnut-brown. Such dials with nearly perfect patina are also referred to as "tropical" dials.

Both the compass and the depth gauge are distinguished by their very good, original overall conditions, the rarity enhanced by the presence of the original water-resistant leather straps and the large stainless steel buckles.

The "Egiziano" reference GPF 2/56 is described and illustrated in The Panerai in Florence by Dino Zei, p. 66, and in Vintage Panerai - The References by Ralf Ehlers & Volker Wiegmann, pp. 257 - 283.

Guido Panerai & Figlio
Guido Panerai & Figlio, founded in 1860 in Florence, advanced quickly to the official watchmaker of the Italian Navy and produced extremely modern and precise instruments. In 1936 the company, later renamed Officine Panerai, launched the first prototype of a diver's watch, the Radiomir. During World War II, watches and other instruments made by Panerai were standard-issue tools for Italian Navy frogmen, SLC torpedo riders and commandos, later also for naval forces of other countries such as Egypt.

The models were equipped with a crown protecting bridge, invented by Panerai in 1943 (patented in 1956). Its main functions are protecting the crown from shocks, compressing the sealing gasket with the lever to make the watch water-resistant to a depth of 200 metres and allowing the rewinding of the watch when submerged.

The instruments were fitted with brushed inox and stainless steel amagnetic cases, transparent plexiglas domes, black dials with luminous indications, leather straps and steel buckles. The compass features a luminous rubber band to the inside of the plexiglas dome.

The depth gauges were produced in various versions, corresponding to the maximum depth required.

For a description and illustration of the various "Trittico" components see The Panerai in Florence by Dino Zei, pp, 62, 70 & 71.

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