Panerai Jumps On 2021’s Ceramic Watch Trend With A Beefy New Chronograph

The famous Italian watchmaker has got in on the ceramic watch action with a rather handsome flyback chronograph.

Panerai Jumps On 2021’s Ceramic Watch Trend With A Beefy New Chronograph

The Panerai Luminor Chrono Flyback Ceramica (ref. PAM01298).

Black ceramic watches are all the rage this year, it seems, with many of the world’s top luxury watch brands unveiling exciting black ceramic versions of their most iconic watches. Audemars Piguet dropped a ‘murdered-out’ 34mm black ceramic Royal Oak. Tudor surprised fans with their Black Bay Ceramic. IWC Schaffhausen revived an icon with their ‘Tribute to 3705’ – and has kept the hits coming with their TOP GUN releases. The list goes on.

Not to be shown up before the year draws to a close, Italy’s favourite horological sons, Panerai, have also joined the ceramic watch action with a rather handsome flyback chronograph: the Luminor Chrono Flyback Ceramica (ref. PAM01298). Stealthy yet imposing, complex yet refined, it’s a stunning watch that nicely footnotes a year of exciting releases from the Florentine watchmaker.

The black colour scheme, punctuated by the pops of red from the chronograph seconds, minutes and hours hands, looks amazing, but it’s not just a pretty watch. Because ceramic weighs substantially less than most metals, it makes this rather hefty 44mm watch wear remarkably light. Needless to say, ceramic is also far more scratch-resistant than most metals too, which is a real boon for a tool watch.

As the name implies, it’s a flyback chronograph, meaning you don’t have to stop the chronograph function to reset it. Interestingly, the dial features calibrations for nautical miles, in line with Panerai’s nautical focus. On that note, it also features 100m of water resistance.

L-R: the Panerai Luminor Chrono Flyback Ceramica (ref. PAM01298) and the Panerai Luminor Chrono Flyback Verde Militare (ref. PAM01296).

Of course, the other big watch trend this year has been green dials, and Panerai hasn’t disappointed in that regard either. Alongside the ref. PAM01298, Panerai has also released the Luminor Chrono Flyback Verde Militare (ref. PAM01296), which features the same movement as the former, a more conventional stainless steel case, and a rather unconventionally beautiful military green dial.

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These two pieces represent the latest entries in Panerai’s Chrono Complicazioni collection – a watch family characterised by a combination of high-tech materials, complex calibres and limited quantities. Accordingly, the ref. PAM01298 is limited to only 500 pieces, while the ref. PAM01296 is further limited to 110 pieces and is an e-commerce and phone sales exclusive.

Find out more about these two cool chronos at Panerai’s online boutique here.