Panerai

Giovanni Panerai opens his first shop in 1860 at “Ponte alle Grazie” in Florence, serving not only as a watch shop and workshop, but also as the city's first watchmaking school: the history of Panerai begins here. After having used various Florentine locations since 1876, the shop moved to its current location in the 1920's for the reconstruction of the “Ponte alle Grazie”, located in the Archbishop's Palace in front of the Florence Cathedral under the name "OROLOGERIA SVIZZERA", a name that has meant high-quality watches in Florence for over a century.

On January 11, 1949, a patent was approved for use by Panerai with the name "Luminor" due to all the luminescent and self-luminescent materials used. Giuseppe Panerai realized that the link with radioactivity had to be handled with caution, considering the new reality created by the expansion of impressive military and civil atomic technologies. He decided that the luminescent substances should be given a new and more neutral name and were thus gradually identified by the name Luminor. After more than a decade, the Luminor was recognized with a new luminescent tritium-based substance (a hydrogen isotope), with very low and harmless emissions. This was the result of many studies and experiments, and Luminor gradually became, by convention of use, the common identifier of the Panerai diving timepiece, characterized by the crown-protection bridge.

Officine Panerai opens its new Manufacture on the hills of Neuchâtel in Switzerland. The new building houses in a single location all the highly specialized skills involved in fine watch-making, combining the excellence of Italian Design and the tradition of Swiss-made Technology. Since 2002 - when the first Panerai Manufacture was opened - Panerai has developed a full range of in-house movements with watch functions at the highest levels: from the GMT to a complete range of Chronographs, from the extended Power Reserve to the unmistakable Panerai Tourbillon.

It is part of the brand's history to provide a high luminosity even under water. Tritium was the first material used in the Panerai watches but it is no more authorized. We use now Super LumiNova grade A material for all dials and hands of our watches. The SLN material takes its luminescence from daylight or any artificial source of light. The watch should therefore be exposed to bright light in order to provide a glow in the dark. The luminescence decreases with hours but it is restored as soon as the watch is exposed again.

The majority of watches (without a chronometer certificate) have an average precision tolerance of between -5/+10 seconds per day in all positions. However, each caliber has its own specifications which are detailed in the user booklet.

.Browse Panari watches at LMFJ.com or visit Lee Michaels Fine Jewelry store at The Shops at La Cantera in San Antonio, TX. Panerai watches can be requested for viewing at any additional Lee Michaels location. Contact us to learn more.