Glashütte Original brings sultry shades of silver and copper to their signature Senator Panorama Date Moonphase (live pics)

• An underrated feature on many watches from Glashütte, the new Glashütte Original Senator Panorama Moonphase shines with galvanised, frosted finishes in coppery salmon and snowy silver.
• The signature features are symmetrically opposed, giving the dial unique synergy.
• Available with three different strap options, and cased in a 40mm steel case, the latest additions to the Panorama collection start at A$18,100.

Glashütte Original is one half of the German contingent under the Swatch Group umbrella, but with the kind of independence that it operates from a design and manufacturing perspective, you almost wouldn’t expect it. Whether it’s their dial manufacturing (recently housed in a brand-new, state-of-the-art facility), movement production, or simply the design language, the watch that represents the brand best in my mind is the Senator. Its most recent significant upgrade saw the release of the Calibre 36 in the Senator Excellence in 2016, with numerous iterations since built upon the modular calibre, and establishing itself as a classically styled daily wearer. The latest addition to the collection is a pair of galvanised silver and copper dials for the (somewhat long-windedly named) Glashütte Original Senator Excellence Panorama Date Moon Phase, merging texture with the smooth finishes of its indices and hands.

Should you wish to go all-out traditional, it’s hard to look past the silver-dialled model. The high contrast makes for excellent legibility, but also lets the blued, applied Roman numerals and poire handset shine. Looking at its elements in isolation, they all share one thing in common. Whether it’s the oversized Panorama Date, or the moonphase tucked away between 10 and 11 o’clock, and even the counterbalance of the seconds hand – they need each other for their proportions to achieve the desired effect.

The overlaps of the indices, hands, and complications give the dials excellent depth, both thanks to the deep blued finish of the appliques, but also because of their construction. I’ll always be happy to call out a great set of hands, and this is one of them. The needle-thin seconds hand goes right to the very edge, and the undulating curves of the hours and minutes hands extend both in width and height. That said, I do find some choices a bit quirky, like writing “Glashütte” twice on either side of the pinion (and in different fonts too).

Now, this particular Senator Excellence isn’t exactly a cuff-slipping dress watch, though it might look it. One reason why the brand’s artisans are able to give it such intricate dials is that they’re fairly sizeable, fitted in a 40mm x 12.2mm steel case. By no means is this overbearing, however, and is in line with what most consider to be perfect dimensions for daily wear.

I’ve mentioned the sizing unusually before discussing the other dial colour, because I really do think it’s relevant, given just how much pop this copper tone has. It’s not one of those subtly salmon hues – when the light hits it just right, you’ll get flashes of electric blue from the hands, and burnt orange from the dial. GO’s designers clearly agree with me when it comes to this, as they’ve chosen to render the Panorama Date in blue, highlighting the brand’s signature even more.

As a result, there’s a whole lot of blue on the dial – all the printing, the sky of the moonphase disc, the hands, and the Roman numerals, in addition to the date. Again, it really works – maybe this is one of those examples where colour theory becomes more of a suggestion than a rule.

I’ve briefly mentioned the Calibre 36 in the introduction, but let’s expand on it here. Though it’s no spring chicken, it was designed with longevity and modularity in mind. In its most basic form, it’s a simple three-hander, with impressive basic specifications such as a 100-hour power reserve thanks to a powerful hairspring, and a custom-made Nivarox free-sprung silicon balance. To go in line with Glashütte tradition, however, the movement is still outfitted with a swan neck regulator, which would usually not be used for a free-sprung balance. I’m glad GO did choose to integrate it (in this case for isochronism purposes) – it looks beautiful set against the engraved balance cock.

To make it the Calibre 36-24 that sits in the Senator Excellence Panorama Date Moon Phase, GO added the 122-year moonphase and Panorama Date complications. These are all hidden beneath the large plate that’s a German watchmaking signature, but impressively, they do not affect the power reserve of the base calibre. This gives Glashütte the opportunity to apply ample decoration – a mixture of machine and hand-made finishes, with that aforementioned balance cock engraving certainly the highlight.

Glashütte Original Senator Excellence Panorama Date Moon Phase pricing and availability

The three new colours of the Senator Excellence are available now from Glashütte Original retailers. Price: A$18,100 (strap, pin buckle), A$18,700 (strap, folding clasp), A$20,200 (bracelet)