Gerald Genta Introduces The Gentissima Oursin 41, With Meteorite Dials

In June of 2024, Gérald Genta introduced the Gentissima Oursin, whose design was originally created by Genta in 1994, and which, according to his wife Evelyn Genta, was inspired by Genta’s encounters with the sea urchin (“oursin” means sea urchin in French) during an earlier vacation to Corsica. The sea urchin is an echinoderm and it is shaped like an oblate sphere, studded with spines, and the Oursin design was and is a stylized representation of the animal. The first series of Oursin watches were all in titanium, and all 36.5mm x 9.6mm and each one was studded with 223 beads on each case – gold with diamonds, white gold, and yellow gold spikes (the latter on a black DLC coated titanium case, which gave it a very urban neo-punk vibe). This week, Gérald Genta has announced two new versions of the Gentissima Oursin, this time in larger, 41mm titanium cases studded with 234 white gold beads, and with blue or green meteorite dials.

The watches are paired with rubber straps with a rounded surface texture that reflects the case designs, carrying the texture through the entire watch – it’s a small detail in itself but one which gives a feeling of design continuity that sets the 41mm models apart from their predecessors. The Oursin 41mm watches also share the same design for the crystals with the earlier models – the upper surface is curved, but the inner surface has eight facets, which is a shout-out to Genta’s affinity for octagonal designs.

The larger size means a generous amount of real estate for showing off the crystal structure of the iron-nickel meteorite from which the dials are made. These patterns, called Widmanstätten patterns, after one of the first scientists to observe them (Count Alois von Beckh Widmanstätten) in 1808, were formed early in the history of the solar system, when fragments of the iron-nickel core of an early planetoid began to slowly cool. The key word is “slow” – the patterns are giant metallic crystals whose size is due to the millions of years necessary for the metal to cool, and so they cannot be reproduced artificially.

The watches are powered by the same Zenith Elite caliber – here designated GG-005 – which powered the earlier Gentissima Oursin models, running at 28,000 vph/4Hz in 27 jewels, with a 50 hour power reserve.

While the overall effect of the case has been perhaps slightly tamed from earlier models (especially from the black PVD and gold Gentissimo Oursin, which paid a real visual homage to the spiky exterior of the sea urchin) they’re also more harmonious in feel; less decorative or subsversive, maybe, but also more versatile, and the color treatment given to the meteorite dials gives them a cool and cosmic character. Meteorite’s a well known alternative dial material, but there will always be, if you ask me, something charming and even philosophically thought-provoking about having something in a timepiece that’s such a strong physical representation of what deep time really means.

The Gerald Genta Gentissima Oursin 41, references EEEH01A1 (blue) and EEEH02A1 (green): cases, sand-blasted grade 5 titanium, with 234 white gold beats; sapphire crystals front and back; 41mm x 9.84mm, with meteorite dials and gold hour and minute hands. Movement, GG-005 caliber, Zenith Elite with redesigned oscillating mass, running at 4Hz with a 50 hour power reserve. Rubber straps, 19-16mm. Price, CHF 25,000. 

The 1916 Company is proud to be an authorized retailer for Gérald Genta watches; contact us for pricing and availability.