There’s a parallel between Bvlgari and Singapore’s journey of independence. When founder Sotirio Bulgari took the chance and moved from Greece to Rome to set up his own jewellery business. Today, the Maison is known internationally and the Octo Roma Worldtimer SG60 pays homage to our city-state’s 60th year of independence.
Our city-state do not often appear on a worldtimer dial. New York gets the fanfare. Paris, the prestige. Tokyo, I mean, of course. But here we are—Singapore—marked out in red on the cities disc in black PVD. Set in a 41mm sandblasted steel case with black diamond-like coating, a matte black dial with luminous white indexes and black PVD-treated hands. A pop of red—courtesy of the lacquered central seconds hand—sweeps inside a 24-hour black and red ring.
Within, the in-house BVL 257 calibre does its job with quiet assurance. Descended from the BVL 191 architecture, the complication measures just 6.03mm thick, beats at 28,800 vibrations per hour and offers a 42-hour power reserve. At the back is a transparent sapphire crystal caseback—a peek at Bvlgari’s precision at work. The Octo Roma Worldtimer SG60 Edition comes with two textured rubber straps—black and red. With a water resistance of 100m, the timepiece is also resistant to being a generic commemorative edition.
This exclusive model will be shown at the BEYOND TIME pop-up at Paragon Mall until 10 August 2025. Opened to the public, one can head there for the watches, sure. But there’s also an immersive showcase of Bvlgari’s delicious history of watchmaking. Bvlgari may speak fluently in a language Singapore knows well—global appeal, being grounded, and never content to be an ornament—but the imp in me can’t help but imagine whether, in a decade’s time, Singlish would be a shared trait in the Maison’s vocabulary. Maybe.
