Gerald Charles Celebrates 25 Years with the Maestro “Tiger’s Eye” – and Debuts at Dubai Watch Week

With the Gerald Charles Maestro Tiger’s Eye Limited Edition, the brand presents a duo of timepieces marking two anniversaries at once: the 75th anniversary of Ahmed Seddiqi, a prominent Middle Eastern jeweller, and the 25th anniversary of the independent Swiss watch brand Gerald Charles. The Gerald Charles Maestro Tiger’s Eye special edition consists of two models – the Maestro 2.0 Ultra-Thin, limited to 20 pieces, and the Maestro 9.0 Tourbillon, limited to just three pieces – each distinguished by a dial crafted from tiger’s eye.

However, the Gerald Charles Maestro Tiger’s Eye edition not only celebrates the milestones of both houses, but also highlights their collaboration at the Dubai Watch Week, held from 19 to 23 November at the Dubai Mall Burj Park. This year marks Gerald Charles’ first participation in the event. Founded in 1950, Ahmed Seddiqi has long been the brand’s trusted retail partner in the region. Today, the family-run business stands as the leading distributor of fine watches and jewellery in the Middle East, representing over 100 brands across more than 50 locations. Over its 75-year history, it has earned a reputation for trust, service quality, and curatorial expertise. Here, we take a closer look at the new Gerald Charles Maestro Tiger’s Eye models and their significance for Gerald Charles.

An Introduction to the History of Gerald Charles

When Gérald Charles Genta – arguably the most prolific watch designer of the 20th century – founded Gerald Charles in 2000, named after his first and middle names, the move could be seen as an attempt to give his creative energy a new outlet. It came after he had sold his first company, founded in 1969, to an Asian group in 1998; that company was later acquired by the Bulgari Group. Yet despite Genta’s extraordinary creative drive, his newly established venture did not achieve commercial success – largely due to his lack of business pragmatism. In 2003, Genta decided to sell Gerald Charles to the Ziviani family – trusted partners and long-time friends – while remaining the brand’s chief designer until his death in 2011. From that point onwards, Giampaolo Ziviani assumed leadership of the company as CEO.

A new chapter began in 2019 with the appointment of Federico Ziviani as CEO. He moved away from the earlier strategy of producing highly complicated timepieces in extremely limited numbers and steered the brand towards a broader, though still discerning, clientele. Today, Gerald Charles produces around 1,500 watches annually and serves as the custodian of Genta’s numerous original designs – many of them never published – created during the final eleven years of his life and entrusted to the company.

The Gerald Charles Maestro Tiger’s Eye Limited Edition in Detail

Case

The brand endows both Gerald Charles Maestro Tiger’s Eye editions with the distinctive case design of the Maestro line – now regarded as the brand’s signature – originally conceived by Gérald Genta in 2005. For this particular form, Genta drew inspiration from the curved façade and octagonal roof of a 17th-century Roman building designed by the Swiss-Italian architect Francesco Borromini.

As one of the final designs Genta created during his lifetime, the Maestro case is defined by the features of an elongated, irregular octagon, a two-tier bezel that adds visual depth, and a curved line at six o’clock – often described as a “smile” – echoing the building’s undulating façade. Together, these elements form a case that harmoniously combines angular and fluid lines, making it not only one of the few truly asymmetrical watch cases on the market, but also a canvas for continual reinterpretation in new materials and executions.

For the new Gerald Charles Maestro Tiger’s Eye models, the brand presents these Baroque-inspired lines in a so-called Colormix finish for the first time – a bronze-toned brown achieved through a proprietary blend of chemical and physical surface treatments. According to the brand, this process was developed internally and, until now, used exclusively for internal components. For the Maestro Tiger’s Eye, the treatment has been applied to the external case for the first time and enhanced to deliver greater scratch resistance and durability. Both models feature cases measuring 39 × 41 mm, with a total height of 9 mm and water resistance to 10 bar. Completing the construction are a screw-down crown adorned with a clous-de-Paris motif – a pattern of tightly arranged miniature pyramids – and a flat sapphire crystal with anti-reflective coating on both sides.

Dial

At the heart of the Gerald Charles Maestro Tiger’s Eye limited editions lies not only the debut of the Colormix case finish, but also a dial of particular significance to Gerald Charles. The dial is crafted from tiger’s eye – a gemstone that evokes associations with vintage watches of the 1970s. The stone forms through the gradual transformation of bluish-grey hawk’s eye (crocidolite) into quartz, during which oxidation of the iron content produces the characteristic golden, brown, and amber hues. At the same time, the parallel alignment of fine crystal fibres within the stone creates the distinctive chatoyant effect on its polished surface, reminiscent of a predator’s eye.

To preserve this optical play of light – which changes tone depending on the viewing angle – Gerald Charles has, for the first time, dispensed with hour markers and a minute track. Instead, slim baton-shaped hands in gold, filled with white Super-LumiNova, ensure legibility without disturbing the overall aesthetic. On the Maestro 9.0 Tourbillon, the lower section of the dial reveals the 60-second tourbillon, featuring an in-house developed titanium cage shaped in the form of the GC logo.

Movement and Strap

Inside the Maestro 2.0 Ultra-Thin works the calibre GCA2000, an automatic movement measuring just 3.7 millimetres in height with hours, minutes, and seconds display. It is composed of 189 components, runs at a frequency of 4 Hz, and offers a power reserve of around 50 hours. The bridges are decorated with Colimaçon finishing, Geneva stripes, and perlage. The Maestro 9.0 Tourbillon houses the calibre GCA9000, an automatic movement only 4.8 millimetres thick with a tourbillon at six o’clock and a central winding system powered by a 22-carat pink gold rotor featuring a honeycomb motif. Here too, the movement operates at 4 Hertz and offers a power reserve of 50 hours. Its bridges are finished to a high standard with Côtes de Genève, Colimaçon finishing, and perlage.

Both Gerald Charles Maestro Tiger’s Eye models are fitted with a sand-coloured vulcanised rubber strap that has a matte, lightly textured surface. The top side is decorated with a clous-de-Paris pattern, while the reverse features a tapisserie motif incorporating the GC logo. The polished stainless-steel pin buckle is finished in the same Colormix tone as the case and engraved with the brand’s logo.

Price and Availability

The Maestro 2.0 Ultra-Thin “Tiger’s Eye” is limited to 20 pieces, while the Maestro 9.0 Tourbillon “Tiger’s Eye” is restricted to only three. Both models are available exclusively through Ahmed Seddiqi & Sons in Dubai. The Maestro 2.0 Ultra-Thin ‘Tiger’s Eye’ is priced at around EUR 22,090, while the Maestro 9.0 Tourbillon ‘Tiger’s Eye’ comes in at approximately EUR 107,664.

geraldcharles.com

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