With the Octo Finissimo Tourbillon range, Bulgari has reached a milestone in the development of ultra-thin watches with a major complication: its 1.95mm thin movement makes this flying Tourbillon the slimmest on the market since 2013.

Produced as a one-off and with no equivalent in the watchmaking world, Bulgari intends to etch the 2023 edition of Only Watch in stone for all time. The green marble used for this spectacular watch, named Verde di Alpi, comes from the Aosta Valley, the natural passage linking Switzerland and Italy, though the Alps. Its dominant colour in nature, evoking abundance, growth and energy, is offset with white veins, recalling the serpentines of alpine forests and snowy peaks.

The inspiration behind the piece came from ancient times when marble was featured in Roman architecture by most skillful artists of all time. Marble expressed Rome’s history and glory and was adopted in 1934 when the Bulgari store was enlarged and refurbished by the renowned Italian architect Florestano Di Fausto: he decided to unify the two separate buildings at ground floor with travertine marble and designed four large openings for display windows and a central doorway, all framed by green African marble cornices. Marble was also present inside the store in the floors decorated with the iconic eight-pointed star inlay, as well as in the columns and tables.