The retro-inspired Ulysse Nardin Diver
Chronometer 42mm watches, the brand’s
new entry level dive collection, comes with
blue or black dials.
Diver Blue Shark
Limited Edition
Ulysse Nardin has
opted for a very thick
mesh, stamped from
sheet steel
UN DIVER CHRONOMETER 42MM
The second recently introduced dive collection from Ulysse Nardin maintains
a 300-meter water resistance rating and continues to woo true dive watch
collectors with requisite high luminosity on all hands, on the unidirectional
rotating bezel and on the 0. These Ulysse Nardin Diver Chronometer 42mm
watches, with blue or black dials, come with a selection of strap options,
including blue fabric, black leather, three-row steel or, in a first for Ulysse
Nardin, a stainless-steel Milanese mesh bracelet.
Since this is Ulysse Nardin, the company that pioneered the use of silicon
in watch movements, each 42mm steel watch is powered by automatic
caliber UN-816, which is based on a Sellita caliber, yet also utilizes Ulysse
Nardin silicon components.
Each watch is a three-hand model, which differs from the dials within
the larger (44mm) Diver Chronometer Collection that debuted earlier (see
previous pages). But the new collection does share the Chronometer 44mm’s
concave bezel and domed sapphire crystal design.
The Diver Chronometer 42mm, now the brand’s entry-level dive watch
collection, boasts a cleaner dial design, with a hint of beige and a central
seconds hand instead of a small second counter. Ulysse Nardin says the
76 | INTERNATIONAL WATCH | WINTER 2019
dial, which prominently features the GPS coordinates of Le Locle, the
manufacturer’s hometown since 1846, was inspired by a 1964 Ulysse Nardin
Diver Le Locle. The dial text is a retro touch that will particularly endear the
watch to geekier collectors. I like it.
On one model, the Diver Blue Shark Limited Edition, the dial is different,
but in another way. In place of the GPS coordinates you’ll find an orange
shark silhouette. This new watch also differs from the others with its blue dial
framed by a blue PVD bezel, orange accents and a blue strap. The 300-piece
limited edition also features a blue shark engraving on its caseback, echoing
the look of the Ulysse Nardin Diver Great White 44mm that debuted earlier
this year.
Ulysse Nardin explains that for its debut mesh bracelet, the manufacturer
has opted for a very thick mesh, stamped from sheet steel, stitched together
by hand, and finished with a retro-styled butterfly buckle.
The new collection represents a stylistic departure from the brand’s
larger, more contemporary dive models. The retro-look is, ironically, fresh
for a forward-thinking manufacturer like Ulysse Nardin. I don’t expect this
company to look back too often, but in this instance the historic inspiration
seems to have served them well. Prices begin at $5,800.