Giuliano Mazzuoli Manometro: Italian, Independent, Individualist

Giuliano Mazzuoli is an artist. His luxury watches are his portfolio, and the mechanical world is his muse. As a typesetter by trade, Mazzuoli escaped the obsolescence of printed pages by way of a greater anachronism; the mechanical watch. In 2004, Giuliano Mazzuoli launched his first luxury watch and most renowned design to date; the Manometro, Italian for “Pressure Gauge.”

From his Italian home, Mazzuoli and his family-run company design beautiful tributes to their favorite utilitarian objects. With a total staff amounting to barely one dozen workers – half of them immediate family – this is a watchmaker that stresses virtue over volume. Annual production amounts to less than one thousand pieces, and Mazzuoli’s artistic sensibility refuses to pander to common tastes.

Uniquely among modern watch brands claiming Italian roots, Giuliano Mazzuoli makes no effort to ride Panerai’s coat tails. Mazzuoli’s design approach and (nearly invisible) marketing efforts make no attempts to feign “military heritage” or play commando. Rather than a “spec-war” scowl, the Manometro is designed to elicit smiles from owners and onlookers alike. The Manometro is designed to resemble an automotive tire pressure gauge, and Mazzuoli is proud to declare the fact.

In fact, the Manometro is a celebration of its source material. While the uncluttered dial, lug-less case, and vivid calibrations are a dead-ringer for a tire pressure gauge, the finish and detailing would put even Ferrari’s F1 pit gear to shame.

Each Manometro is built in Switzerland to Mazzuoli’s exacting specifications. Brushed steel, rich dial details, and the signature knurled crown at 2 o’clock are rendered in materials that elevate the blue-collar charm of the inspiration to the level of white-glove refinement.

True to his vision of providing no-compromise materials, Mazzuoli fits the Manometro with a hand-stitched Tuscan leather calf skin strap. Its texture is luxurious, supple, and redolent of old-world craft. At the point where the strap joins the case flank, the Manometro features a clever metal insert that conforms to the case curvature and allows the Manometro to sit as secure on the wrist as a conventional watch despite its lug-less form. Gorgeous polished screws secure the metal inserts and enhance the visual appeal of the tan leather strap.

Inside its brushed steel 43mm case, the Manometro employs a Swiss ETA 2824-2 automatic movement. In an era when genuine ETA movements are being replaced by a growing number of ersatz imitations, Mazzuoli’s Manometro is distinguished by its use of the real thing. The 2824 date wheel has been removed in order to maintain the symmetry of the Manometro’s iconic dial. For precise synchronization to a reliable reference clock, the hacking function of the 2892 has been retained. The Giuliano Mazzuoli Manometro features 5ATM (50-meter) water resistance for water splash and rain protection.

See this rare, refined, and charmingly honest Giuliano Mazzuoli Manometro in high-resolution images on www.watchuwant.com.