Ever since the very first Greubel Forsey GMT, the terrestrial globe has held a unique place at the heart of the watch. Here, the depiction of the world is not mere decoration: it becomes the very instrument for reading universal time. Continents and oceans turn in step with the Earth, completing one full revolution in 24 hours.
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With the new GMT Balancier Convexe, Greubel Forsey takes this vision further. The blue that defines the globe now steps out of its setting and spreads throughout the entire watch. It appears on the amphitheatre that structures the movement, continues onto the hand-stitched rubber strap and reaches all the way to the rubber inserts of the titanium crown.
A new interpretation of the GMT, limited to just 22 pieces, combining a depiction of universal time, three-dimensional architecture and a new generation of Greubel Forsey mechanics.
The globe as a reading instrument
At Greubel Forsey, universal time is not read with an extra hand. It is read directly on the globe.
At the centre of the composition, the titanium globe shows the continents and oceans in their characteristic hues. It makes a full rotation in 24 hours, following the rhythm of the planet. Its presence gives the GMT function an immediately visual dimension: rather than translating the world into a series of numbers, the watch literally sets it in motion.
Around this globe unfolds the amphitheatre architecture that is one of the signatures of this creation. Each indication sits on its own level: hours, minutes, small seconds, second time zone, day/night indicator and 72-hour power reserve.
This construction in depth turns the dial into a genuine mechanical landscape.
An amphitheatre architecture
Reading the time, then, does not happen on a flat surface.
The various displays are arranged on several levels around the globe, creating a three-dimensional architecture in which each function seems to occupy its own territory. This layout preserves precise legibility while allowing the mechanical complexity of the timepiece to express itself.
The new GMT Balancier Convexe does, however, bring a significant change compared with its predecessor: the power reserve, previously visible only on the movement side, now appears directly on the dial.
To achieve this new distribution of indications, the calibre was entirely rethought around this function. It is no minor change: the movement gains 73 components to reach 496 parts, while also improving its chronometric performance.
At Greubel Forsey, the visible architecture is therefore inseparable from the mechanical architecture that lies beneath it.
Blue as the common thread
Blue is one of the most striking elements of this new GMT.
From the outset, the terrestrial globe of the GMT collection has shown its oceans in blue. With the GMT Balancier Convexe, this colour becomes a true aesthetic language.
It appears on the movement’s amphitheatre, lending greater depth to the construction. It also follows the watch all the way onto its hand-stitched rubber strap.
Even the titanium crown contributes to this visual continuity. Its blue rubber inserts echo the globe and extend the composition into one of the elements the owner handles most directly.
The colour is thus no longer only that of the world depicted on the globe. It becomes the colour of the watch itself.
A suspended escapement
At the heart of this complex architecture, the inclined escapement keeps its suspended position beneath a black polished steel bridge, both mirror polished and given a barrel polishing finish.
This bridge rests on polished steel pillars that heighten the impression of airborne mechanics.
The whole contributes to the distinctive Greubel Forsey aesthetic, in which the mechanical organs are never simply hidden beneath a dial. They are staged, separated by levels and volumes, like so many elements of a miniature architecture.
The new generation of the calibre thus retains one of the founding principles of the GMT Balancier Convexe while evolving its construction to bring the power reserve display to the front of the watch.
The world can also be read on the back
The caseback offers a second reading of universal time.
An engraved sapphire disc presents 24 reference cities corresponding to the different time zones. It allows universal time to be read in relation to each geographical zone.
A second scale distinguishes between summer and winter time.
One detail deserves particular attention here: Paris has given way to La Chaux-de-Fonds.
The choice is highly symbolic. For a watch designed and made in La Chaux-de-Fonds, the reference meridian now had to pass through the town that lies at the heart of Greubel Forsey’s activity.
The watch thus carries the identity of its birthplace right into its universal display.
The Convexe case, a sculpted architecture
The GMT Balancier Convexe features a Convexe case in titanium, measuring 42.9 mm in diameter.
Its distinctive feature lies in its curved construction, on both its upper and lower sections. This geometry allows the case to follow the shape of the wrist more closely and to sit lower than its dimensions might suggest.
Titanium also helps reduce the sense of weight on the wrist.
The hand-stitched rubber strap completes this approach. Its material ensures a secure fit while fully contributing to the watch’s aesthetic identity.
Right down to the crown, coherence is pursued in the finest details. The blue rubber inserts pick up the colour of the globe and bring this element, handled every day, into the continuity of the overall composition.
A GMT conceived as a mechanical object
With this new creation, Greubel Forsey does more than offer a new aesthetic variation of its GMT watch.
The GMT Balancier Convexe evolves several elements of the architecture at once: blue becomes omnipresent, the power reserve moves to the dial, the calibre is thoroughly reorganised and enriched with 73 additional components, while the caseback retains a detailed reading of the time zones.
The globe nevertheless remains the focal point of the whole.
It reminds us that universal time is not an abstraction. It is bound to a rotating planet, to meridians, to cities and to time zones that follow one another around it.
At Greubel Forsey, this reality becomes a mechanical sculpture in motion.
22 pieces for an exclusive creation
The GMT Balancier Convexe is the only GMT currently offered in the Greubel Forsey collection.
It is produced in a series limited to just 22 pieces.
With its 42.9 mm titanium Convexe case, rotating terrestrial globe, amphitheatre architecture, suspended inclined escapement and new 496-component calibre, this creation pursues a singular vision of universal time: showing the world rather than simply indicating it.
The blue of the oceans becomes that of the watch. The Earth turns at the centre of the mechanics. And time is read on several levels.
Key specifications
| Model | Greubel Forsey GMT Balancier Convexe |
|---|---|
| Case | titanium |
| Diameter | 42.9 mm |
| Architecture | Convexe case, curved on its front and back |
| Functions | hours, minutes, small seconds, second time zone, universal time, day/night indicator and 72-hour power reserve |
| Globe | titanium terrestrial globe, full rotation in 24 hours |
| Movement | GMT Balancier Convexe calibre |
| Number of components | 496 |
| Calibre evolution | +73 components compared with the previous generation |
| Power reserve | 72 hours |
| Escapement | inclined and suspended beneath a black polished steel bridge |
| Caseback | engraved sapphire disc with 24 reference cities and summer/winter time scales |
| Strap | hand-stitched rubber |
| Crown | titanium with blue rubber inserts |
| Limited edition | 22 pieces |
Frequently asked questions
A GMT watch by Greubel Forsey whose blue-painted titanium terrestrial globe rotates in 24 hours to indicate universal time. It is housed in the Convexe case, curved on its front and back.
Hours, minutes, small seconds, second time zone, universal time, day/night indicator and 72-hour power reserve.
The GMT Balancier Convexe calibre, which has 496 components, 73 more than the previous generation. Its escapement is inclined and suspended beneath a black polished steel bridge.
An engraved sapphire disc with 24 reference cities and summer/winter time scales, making it possible to read the time anywhere in the world.
22 pieces, in a 42.9 mm titanium case on a hand-stitched rubber strap, with a titanium crown featuring blue rubber inserts.
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