Have you ever wondered what a frozen dial would look like? Well, wonder no more, because the new-for-2022 Montblanc 1858 Iced Sea Automatic Date brings that aesthetic in not one or two, but three colorways. This watch is nspired not by tropical waters but rather by the glacial lakes of the Mont-Blanc Massif and the texture of glacial ice — let’s take an icy dive into the details. The case of the Montblanc 1858 Iced Sea Automatic Date watch is in stainless steel on all iterations and measures 41mm in diameter and 12.9mm in thickness. That’s by no means unwearably thick, but it’s destined to have noticeable heft, which is offset by the 300-meter water-resistance rating, should you feel inclined to dive hundreds of meters down into freezing cold waters. For us desk divers, that’s just cool to have. Likewise, the Montblanc 1858 Iced Sea is a “certified diving timing instrument,” according to the brand, conforming to the ISO 6425 norm. All that, plus each piece is subjected to the Montblanc Laboratory 500 Hour Test that assesses resistance to shocks, magnetism, temperature, and water pressure and “that their fasteners are reinforced for maximum security.” The hands and indices are all covered with white Super-LumiNova. Three shades for three types of ice is the theme, as the Montblanc 1858 Iced Sea Automatic Date comes in blue, green, and black. Blue ice can be found in Mont-Blanc’s Sea of Ice and is created by the inclusion of air bubbles in the ice, while green ice is found in Antarctica and is the result of the presence of microscopic snow algae blooms. Black ice occurs when the ice has no inclusions or air bubbles, therefore absorbing enough light to appear black. It can also be turned black by deposits of volcanic ash in its structure; examples of which can be seen in the polar regions. So, now you can match your next luxury watch to your favorite type of ice. Montblanc, which refers to itself as a Maison, as does basically every one of the Richemont group’s watchmakers, says it had to go through several trials before finding a technical solution to create an impression of depth and luminosity reminiscent of that of ice: “The dial makers employed an almost-forgotten ancestral technique called gratté boisé as the base.” If you Google that, you’ll soon end up in a publication by Ferdinand Berthoud – so yeah, seems pretty ancestral to me. Montblanc admirably managed to maintain its focus on legibility: The indices and indeed the cathedral-style hour and minute hands are huge and appear to contrast in finish and texture neatly against the colored backdrop – all essential to achieving real-world legibility. The bezel is in ceramic and is neatly color-matched to the dial. Does anyone remember the day when colored ceramics were basically unimaginable and all-ceramic watch parts came in were white, black, and maybe some chrome-y gray? Well, gone are those days, thankfully, so now you can enjoy fade- and scratch-proof ceramic in highly saturated blues and greens. There is a stainless steel bracelet in “charcoal” and regular steel, each with a taper that goes from 20mm at the lugs to 16mm at the clasp and each with a quick-adjust system built in. Alternatively, each model can be purchased on a rubber strap. The only bottleneck with the Montblanc 1858 Iced Sea Automatic Date is its MB 24.17 movement, which is basically a Sellita SW200. Its 41-hour power reserve is basically the shortest in this segment, and although that is matched with self-winding and a modern 4 Hertz frequency, 41 hours really is just not long enough for anything other than a daily wearer. Weekend-lasting power reserves (i.e. those at least 3 days long) can’t arrive soon enough for more watches in this admittedly highly competitive segment.
Category: Montblanc Watch
Montblanc 1858 Automatic Date 0 Oxygen The 8000
Joining the new Montblanc 1858 – The 8000 0 Oxygen capsule collection dedicated to the world’s 14 highest peaks is the Montblanc 1858 Automatic Date 0 Oxygen The 8000. It is a 41mm stainless steel watch, water-resistant to ten bar, and hermetically sealed against oxygen. On its ceramic bezel is a sleek-designed compass framing a dark grey Sfumato dial. This traditional technique creates a pattern reminiscent of the rough texture of mountains.
Luminous layers on the numerals and hands, as well as orange markers, ensure proper orientation in the field. The Montblanc 1858 Automatic Date 0 Oxygen The 8000 is powered by the automatic caliber MB 24.17, based on the Sellita SW200-1 a. In addition to this newcomer, the capsule collection also includes an automatic chronograph and two Geosphere world time executions.
Montblanc unveils the new 1858 Zero Oxygen 8000 capsule collection that pays tribute to the world’s 14 highest peaks and the inspiring alpinists who dared to climb them.
These mountains – all measuring over 8000 meters above sea level – are challenging and dangerous to ascend as there is hardly enough oxygen for a human body to physiologically survive for more than a few hours.Climbing to 8000 meters without supplemental oxygen requires great preparation, physical condition, technique, experience, and mental strength. As a result, only a few mountaineers have climbed all 14 peaks, and even fewer have done it without supplemental oxygen.
Reinhold Messner was the first to climb all 14 peaks without supplemental oxygen between the years of 1970 and 1986, while Nimsdai Purja was the fastest person to climb all 14 peaks in 2019.
Limited to 290 pieces, this timepiece takes inspiration from Nimsdai Purja, who successfully carried out a record-breaking ascent to Everest with the first Montblanc 1858 0 Oxygen timepiece in May 2022 without supplemental oxygen.
The Montblanc 1858 Geosphere Chronograph 0 Oxygen The 8000 Limited Edition houses Calibre MB 29.27, the Manufacture automatic chronograph movement with worldtime complication. It has a power reserve of approx. 46 hours.The dial hosts two 3D turning globes with the Northern Hemisphere at 12 o’clock and the Southern Hemisphere at six o’clock. North Hemisphere features 14 orange dots, marking the location of the 8000m peaks, surrounded by Day&Night indicators. Both hemispheres also use the colour orange to mark the Greenwich reference meridian for easy setting of the worldtime function.
The chronograph features a central seconds hand, a 30-minute counter at three o’clock, and a 12-hour counter at nine o’clock – all with orange-tipped hands. The chronograph is operated via pushers on either side of the crown.
Montblanc is presenting a new capsule collection at Watches and Wonders to add to the house’s “zero oxygen” collection.
These are four new watches that pay tribute to the world’s 14 highest peaks as well as to the brave mountaineers who succeeded in the great feat of climbing them.
