Baltic Bicompax Perpétuel Edition
For those not yet accustomed to the brand, Baltic is a French Company founded by Etienne Malec as an ode to his late father after having inherited his watch collection. Offering affordable vintage inspired timepieces without skimping on quality, Baltic truly has made a name for themselves in the watch community - many collectors wearing these daily in our oh-so-safe European capitals.
The present watch is a collaboration between the Parisian brand and the newfound Emarati watch and art gallery Perpetuel. Founded by collector Hamdan Al Hudaidi - Perpetuel aims to both inspire and educate regional and international collectors.
71 pieces of the Perpetuel Bicompax will be made, as an ode to the year 1971 when the United Arab Emirates were founded. In addition, at 6 o’clock, the number 49 is written in eastern arabic script to commemorate the 49 years of United Emirates.
What makes this particular bicompax special is its rich green dial with eastern arabic numerals. The dial is textured - brushed and sandy according to Baltic, which makes it both legible and interesting to wear. The numerals have a golden lure to them that really catches the eye when glancing down at your wrist. The plexiglass domed glass also gives the watch a very vintage look and feel without taking any of the qualitative feel away.
This bi-compax comes in at 38mm in diameter making it exceptional for vintage lovers. The case is thin and, with the domed glass, only comes in at 12mm thick - allowing the watch to slip under a cuff very comfortably. The finesse can also be attributed to the solid caseback, a coherent choice, in line with the vintage aesthetic (sapphire casebacks are an option with the regular bicompax but for this limited edition only a solid caseback is available).
When photographing a watch, one often becomes of all its defects - but with this one we were taken by surprise. For the price, these Baltic watches are very well finished, the polishing is clean, dials are dust free (you’d be surprised how many brands have hairs and finger prints in their watches) and the textured dials are close to immaculate. The pusher action is nice and the winding is smooth - the large crown helps with this task.
On a more personal note, we were thrilled to hear about this collaboration as both Etienne and Hamdan are very good friends and it was an opportunity to support them both. The watch marks the beginning of what we hope will be an educational watch haven for enthusiasts in the UAE and neighbours.
The watch also brings a lot to the table, and I’m quite certain we will be seeing it on the likes of beginner and more experienced collectors (JCB, the Sfeirs and more have already shared pictures of them wearing their pieces). To us, this is what makes this limited edition such a tremendous success - fulfilling the ultimate goal of watch collecting which is to bring enthusiasts of all horizons together to enjoy a common passion.
Lug width : 20mm
Thickness : 12mm
Movement : Seagull ST1901 Manual wound
Hesalite Glass
Water Resistant 5 ATM
Only 71 pieces of the Bicompax have been made - most of them are already sold but it’s never too late to try your luck by contacting Perpétuel.
Retail price : 5500AED.