The New Gentissima Oursin Fire Opal from Gérald Genta Lights Up LVMH Watch Week
New-era Genta does it again with a piece that’s as tasty as a scoop of caviar.
Manhattan was in the middle of an absolutely freezing cold snap during LVMH Watch Week (and I am from Canada, so I know cold). Luckily, Gérald Genta brought the heat with the fourth installment of its fantastic Oursin collection.
Featuring a carnelian dial and bezel studded with rare fire opals, the Watchonista team has dubbed the Gentissima Oursin Fire Opal “The Caviar.” And in person, it’s even more delicious.
Here’s our in-person review.
Enchantment Under the Sea
Gérald Genta sits on the Mount Rushmore of watch design; we can thank him for the aesthetics of the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak and the Patek Philippe Nautilus, as well as the beloved jump-hour and retrograde timepieces from his eponymous brand.
Genta sold his patents to Bulgari in 2000. The brand was then revived by La Fabrique du Temps Louis Vuitton in 2023.
With this revival, the legacy of Mr. Genta was reborn not through recreations of his well-known grand sonneries but rather by recapturing the emotion of his aesthetics and ideas about construction, and the way the Gentissima collection has harnessed Genta’s intuitive, creative talents is an excellent example of this.
Ideas often came to him in dreams. And he loved nature, especially the sea. For example, the spiny bezel of the first Oursin from 1994 was informed by the sight of a sea urchin during an idyll on the Corsican Coast. It was a highly specific inspiration but one that provided limitless creative possibilities.
Fire & Water
According to Matthieu Hegi, Gérald Genta’s Artistic Director, “With this piece, we pushed the boundaries of the Gentissima Oursin creative concept to deliver something enshrined in rare gems, paying homage to Mr. Genta’s passion for organic colors, beautiful stones, and beauty in general.”
For this piece, Hegi used individually set Mexican Fire Opal to create the spines of the oursin (i.e., sea urchin). Not only does the color suggest the luxury of red salmon roe, but the fire opal also has a watery, droplet-like look, further underscoring the piece’s connection to the sea and Mr. Genta’s commitment to craft.
“The multiple ways a stone catches light was for him an endless source of fascination and its own definition of beauty,” explained Gérald’s wife, Evelyn Genta, in a press release.
With a diameter of about 36mm, the organic shape of the yellow-gold case features a glass-blasted finish which is enhanced with the natural radiance of 137 fire opals, each of which was painstakingly screwed into the case with a 3N yellow gold pin.
The orange cornelian dial sits under a faceted crystal cut into Mr. Genta’s signature shape, the octagon. This shape is also referenced in the subtly eight-sided innermost edge of the case. Its black alligator strap provides another tip of the hat to the 1990s dress watch style.
Core Principles
The intensity of the color of the opals and carnelian is what makes this edition of the Oursin explode like an underwater volcanic eruption. Enthusiasts will be happy to know that underneath the surface, the Oursin Fire Opal is just as powerful.
In a joint statement, Hegi’s collaborators and La Fabrique du Temps Master Watchmakers and Founders Michel Navas and Enrico said, “To complement the design, we focused on producing this piece using nothing but the highest attention to detail. We designed a specific oscillating mass in 18 karat yellow gold for the automatic GG-005 - Zenith Elite movement.”
This calibre beats at a frequency of 4hz and has a respectable power reserve of 50 hours.
Pricing & Availability
The Gentissima Oursin Fire Opal is a limited edition but because the brand did not specify a number, we can assume that the amount of work that goes into creating this marvel means that it is more of a limited production piece.
Available in May 2025, price will be given upon request. Check out the Gérald Genta website for more information.