Highs And Lows Of Panerai: Built for War, Perfected for Wonder

Welcome back to another installment of High and Low, the column where we explore the full range of a brand’s catalog, from its most accessible to its most aspirational pieces, across both our pre-owned and new collections.

What started as a simple exercise has become a fascinating lens through which to examine how brands define themselves. By looking at both extremes, you see a clearer picture of how a brand views its identity. Entry-level models often strip away the noise, with no bells, no whistles, just pure brand DNA, distilled. It’s where the core philosophy stands bare. On the other end, the flagship pieces showcase the brand’s full arsenal: mechanical innovation, finishing, complications, and ambition. Together, they tell the complete story, not just of where a brand is, but where it’s headed.

Panerai is sometimes dismissed as just a design brand. A two trick pony with the Luminor and the Radiomir models. But if you love history, you should love Panerai. And before you start mumbling something about Sylvester Stallone, The Rock, or making a lifted truck analogy, or dredging up some distant complaint about wartime associations, give me a second. Panerai watches are inextricably tied to the history of timekeeping, warfare, and 20th century innovation.

The Italian watchmaker played a foundational role in one of the world’s great collecting cultures, and its story is deeply intertwined with Rolex. Whether you like it or not, these two brands needed each other early on, and the modern tool watch might not look the way it does today without their collaboration on military dive watches (no, not the first dive watch, a debate I’ll happily sit out).

Panerai deserves a place in any serious collector’s conversation, not just for what it represents, but for what it reveals about the grand timeline of horology and the beautifully complicated web of history that still surrounds it.

A Very Brief History

Panerai’s story begins in Florence in 1860, when Giovanni Panerai opened a small shop at Ponte alle Grazie. It wasn’t just a boutique; it was a workshop, a watchmaking school, and the seed of a legacy.

By the early 20th century, Giovanni’s grandson, Guido Panerai, had transformed the family business. Under the name Orologeria Svizzera, the shop became synonymous with Swiss quality and Florentine ingenuity. Guido was an inventor at heart, the kind of person who couldn’t look at a problem without wanting to tinker with it. In 1915, he developed a luminous material using radium and zinc sulfide to illuminate gun sights for the Royal Italian Navy. He called it Radiomir, short for radio mire, or “radium sights.”

That single invention set Panerai on a course that would define its identity. The Italian Navy soon relied on Panerai not just for precision warfare instruments, but for something far more ambitious: wrist-worn tools that could survive the depths. By the mid-1930s, the Regia Marina was developing secret underwater assault vehicles, and they needed watches that could operate in pitch-black, high-pressure environments.

The first Radiomir prototype. Image: Panerai.

Enter Giuseppe Panerai, Guido’s son, who understood that no Italian company could build a waterproof watch at the level the Navy required. So he did what many great innovators do: he looked abroad for collaboration. In 1935, he reached out to Hans Wilsdorf’s Rolex, a company already pioneering water-resistant cases with the Oyster. Together (allegedly), the two developed a prototype based on Rolex pocket watch movements, fitted into massive 47mm cushion-shaped steel cases. The result was the reference 2533. There were supposedly only two ever made but according to an original invoice that has surfaced, the original 2533 had an 9ct gold case and a 16 3/4 Ligne movement with 17 jewels (assumed to be a Montilier 663) was sent to Florence on October 24, 1935.

These early Panerai watches were never meant for civilians. They were military tools, produced in small numbers, and used by Italian frogmen on clandestine missions during World War II. Panerai dials glowed in the dark thanks to their radioactive Radiomir compound, later replaced by a safer tritium-based mixture called Luminor in the 1960s. The names of these two luminous substances would become synonymous with the brand’s most iconic models.

In 1956, Panerai created the GPF 2/56, known as the Egiziano Grosso, for the Egyptian Navy, an enormous 60mm beast of a dive watch complete with a rotating bezel and the crown-protecting bridge (crown guard) that they would become famous for. But by the 1970s, the Italian Navy’s needs evolved, and Panerai’s contract work came to an end. The brand faded into quiet obscurity, still known to insiders but invisible to the general public.

The GPF-2/56, which was later nicknamed the “Egyptian.” Image: Panerai.

That changed in the 1990s. Panerai reemerged with civilian versions of its military designs. In 1997, Richemont (then Vendôme) acquired Panerai, refining its production and positioning it firmly within the luxury sphere. What was once a supplier of secret military instruments became a cult favorite among collectors and celebrities alike.

Today, Panerai sits at the crossroads of history and modernity. The Radiomir and Luminor aren’t just models; they’re monuments, reminders that behind every design lies purpose.

And that brings us to this edition of High and Low. Because to understand Panerai, you have to see the whole spectrum. From the stripped-down, purpose-built tool watches that defined its military roots to the highly engineered, precious-metal marvels that showcase its modern ambitions, the brand tells a story of evolution without erasure. In both extremes, you can still feel the same pulse—the rhythm of history, craft, and the sea.

The Low: Panerai Luminor Marina 1950 3 Days (PAM00312)

The PAM00312 is Panerai at its most honest: a stainless steel Luminor in the classic 1950 case. It is historical, big, unapologetic, and beautifully overbuilt. As Tim Mosso says, Panerai makes “the big watch that wears small,” though this one still carries presence. Its 44mm in diameter, lug to lug is 53.7 mm, 18 mm thick, and takes a 24 mm strap. It’s a watch that doesn’t care about your cuff clearance.

The 1950 case is much more sculptural in design than initially appears. The design is based on the ref. 6152 made for the Italian Navy in the, you guessed it, 50’s. It has a satin finish with a polished bezel, and that unmistakable crown guard. Conceived in the 1940s and appearing on production models in the 1950s, the crown guard is as practical as it is cool, offering more protection than a traditional crown guard while giving the watch its signature silhouette.

The dial keeps things simple. Matte black to reduce glare, with cut outs of the numerals and makers over a disc of Luminova (think Litbrite vibes on a watch). This is the signature sandwich dial construction that gives Panerai its trademark depth. The result is clean, legible, and functional without losing character. The watch is rated to 300 meters of water resistance and powered by the in-house caliber P.9000, an automatic movement with ceramic rotor bearings, a free-sprung balance, and twin mainspring barrels for a three-day power reserve. However, an automatic movement is not period correct for a watch trying to resurrect the ghosts of the 50’s. But to keep up with modern times and the pain of having to unlock the crown to wind the watch, it made the most sense. The finishing is understated, with linear satin graining that fits the tool-watch spirit.

This reference strikes the balance between heritage and wearability. It represents an era before marketing slogans and design drift, when Panerai’s identity was built on purpose. It’s not small, and it’s not subtle, but that’s exactly why it works. Panerai has always been about clarity of intent. They produce watches built to do a job and in my opinion look good doing it.

You don’t buy a Ford and skip the F-150. You don’t go to Naples and not order pizza. You don’t go to Ibiza and just go to bed after dinner. You don’t buy a Panerai to have an understated watch. The PAM00312 captures that perfectly: strong, focused, and confident without needing to explain itself.

The Luminor Marina 1950 3 Days is priced at $4,850. For more information on the PAM00312, click here. 

The High: Panerai Lo Scienziato Radiomir Tourbillon GMT (PAM00350)

The PAM00350, or Lo Scienziato, represents Panerai at its most ambitious. Produced in 2010 as a 150-piece limited series, this 48mm Radiomir is crafted from scratch-resistant black ceramic. Despite its size, it wears lighter than expected thanks to the material’s low weight. The case measures 18.4 mm thick, 57 mm lug to lug, and takes a 26 mm strap. The wire lugs pull the watch snug to the wrist, and the screw-down crown gives it a solid 100 meters of water resistance.

Now, I know I said the Luminor defines Panerai for many, but for me the Radiomir case is the most beautiful expression of the brand. Inside is where things truly go off the deep end. The Lo Scienziato houses an in-house caliber 2005/S, a hand-wound movement with three mainspring barrels for a six-day power reserve and 31 jewels. The star of the show is the 30-second multi-axial tourbillon, often nicknamed the “rotisserie chicken” by Tim Mosso for the way it spins and glides across multiple planes. More specifically, the tourbillon rotates at a right angle to the plane of the movement plate, and it’s also offset 45º from the vertical axis of the movement, an adaptation to the original (and patented Breguet tourbillon) which was designed for pocket watches. This is a specific adaptation of Breguet’s invention to a wristwatch is designed to reduce the amount of time the balance and spring are in any of the most extreme positions and therefore improving accuracy.

The tourbillon carriage is individually numbered and hand-finished, a rarity for any Panerai, and a subtle reminder that this piece sits far above the brand’s traditional tool-watch roots.

There’s also a GMT complication with an AM/PM indicator, a running seconds display at nine o’clock, and the ability to hide the second time zone hand for a cleaner view. That might sound like a minor feature, but on an openworked dial this complex makes a real difference.

The Lo Scienziato is the kind of watch that can make even hardened collectors pause. It’s bold, experimental, and mechanically fascinating, yet still unmistakably Panerai. The Radiomir case, with its smooth curves and wire lugs, keeps the watch grounded in the brand’s design language, even as the movement underneath pushes far beyond its military origins. It’s loud both visually and literally. You can hear it ticking from across the room, but I suppose that’s part of its charm.

The Lo Scienziato Radiomir Tourbillon GMT is priced at $54,950. For more information on the PAM 350, click here. 

Where the Luminor Marina 1950 captures Panerai’s purpose, the Lo Scienziato captures its potential. One looks back to history; the other looks forward to possibility. Together, they show the brand’s full spectrum, from rugged diving instruments to haute horlogerie showcase. And that’s what High and Low is all about — finding the threads that connect the everyday to the extraordinary and seeing how far a single idea can evolve without losing its soul.

The 1916 Company is a Authorized Panerai Retailer.