Hands-On With The Pragma P1 – Perseverance: A 100% Swiss High-End Chronometer With High Morals
Ask me whatever you want; there are no secrets. Do you want to know where the movement is from? The automatic caliber 1031-1 was developed in collaboration with Chronode SA. Please come up with something a bit more original. The spring bar? Okay, the spring bar is made by IsoSwiss from 316L steel and attaches the Atelier du Bracelet strap to the case. That strap, by the way, is made from 100% recycled material. Its re/cor exterior is from Cordura, and Ecovative makes the Forager inside. All in all, the 100% Swiss Pragma watch you see here is made with 82.7% recycled materials, and there is full disclosure about where everything comes from. That’s impressive on paper, for sure. But how does this ambitious timepiece hold up in real life? I had to know, so I went hands-on with the Pragma P1 – Perseverance, a high-end chronometer with high morals.
On paper, sustainability and luxury are a great match. Luxury brands can align with sustainability because they often embody vital elements, such as a limited production capacity, durability, and a high level of craftsmanship. These qualities contribute positively to the environment, support local communities, uphold employee well-being, and preserve valuable manufacturing skills. Is today’s consumer willing to pay, say, €30K+ for a watch and consider sustainability a key criterion when buying it? If you want to be optimistic, the answer is “yes.” Let’s explore that before going hands-on with a sustainable luxury watch.
Hands-on with the 100% Swiss Pragma P1 – Perseverance, a high-end chronometer with high morals
The musical drama The Threepenny Opera (Die Dreigroschenoper) premiered in 1928 at the Theater am Schiffbauerdamm in Berlin, Germany. The musical play was created by the German composer Kurt Weill and the German writer Bertolt Brecht, and in the song “What Keeps Mankind Alive?” (“Denn wovon lebt der Mensch?”), part of the finale of Act 2, there’s a famous line. Brecht wrote, “Erst kommt das Fressen, dann kommt die Moral.” Although it considerably loses its accuracy and power in English, it roughly translates to, “First food, then morals.”
Morals refer mainly to guiding principles, ideas that strongly influence a person when deciding or considering a matter. So, when considering spending more than €30K on a watch, you don’t worry if you can put enough food on the table for yourself and/or your family. It’s plausible that there is plenty of carefree spiritual room and opportunity to develop your morality and act accordingly. I can argue that keeping our planet clean is a moral responsibility since it directly affects human health, supports ecosystems, and preserves a livable environment for future generations. Buying durable, quality products made (almost entirely) from recycled materials that last more than a lifetime, like a mechanical watch, fits that moral. Indeed, a watch like the Pragma P1 – Perseverance suits it to a tee.
The Pragma P1 – Perseverance in the metal
If you want to know exactly what part of the watch comes from where and how sustainable it is, please visit the Pragma website or look at my introduction article. It provides a complete overview of all the parts that comprise the P1 – Perseverance. I will focus on the sum of its parts, the reference P1-St-CH00 with a purple dial.
This fluorite-purple dial is striking because of its nuanced hue rather than the presence of, say, a sunburst finish. That finish is overly used in the watch world to bring a dial to life, but it’s also a sign of designing on autopilot. This matte dial made by Comblémine from brass CuZn28 indicates that the watch’s designer, Kai-Hsuan Liu, puts in more thought than that. Liu, the brand’s Creative Design Director, worked at Hermès and owns a design studio. He has a soft spot for Swiss architects, and his strong point is fusing natural and technological elements.
The dial doesn’t follow current horological trends. It shows no brand logo, for instance. Two rotating discs, each with a concentric pattern and cutout, indicate the date and the small seconds instead of traditional small hands.
The second thing I noticed was the indexes. The ones near the two indicators are small, but the others are rather large and consist of two parts. They match the look of the central hour and minute hands. The length of the carefully detailed hands is perfect as well. While the minute hand reaches over the indexes, the hour hand touches the ends of the two-part applied gold indexes ever so lightly. The only writing on the dial is the word “chronometer” above the sub-seconds register at 6 o’clock.
A case made of solar stainless steel
The shape and details of the “solar stainless steel” case of the P1 – Perseverance best show Kai-Hsuan Liu’s love for architecture and Swiss architects like Markli, Botta, and Zumthor. The angular lugs tell of a fondness for brutalism. The brushed surfaces are reminiscent of the finely finished, highest-quality concrete often seen in Swiss architectural creations, and they contrast nicely with polished edges.
My favorite detail, however, is the result of the case construction. The case, developed with Voutilainen & Cattin, is from Panatere’s La Chaux-de-Fonds solar-powered furnace, hence the alloy’s “solar stainless steel” name. The bezel and the case back have eight small protrusions that perfectly fit into eight cutouts in the mid-case. They fit together like high-end, artisanal wooden furniture while also looking like a high-tech, precisely engineered construction. The smooth, flawless protrusions show a polished finish, creating a visual hook on the side of the case.
The P1 – Perseverance in numbers
The P1 – Perseverance’s steel case has a modest 39mm diameter, a 10.4mm thickness, and a 47.5mm lug-to-lug. These numbers tell of balanced proportions and promise excellent wearability. The perception of proportions is a matter of taste, although a mathematical formula can express proportion in numbers. The width of the bezel and the size of the detailed crown, however, create an appearance that can’t be described in numbers. How these design details are perceived is strictly a matter of subjective taste. I think both the bezel and crown suit a timepiece that takes inspiration from outside the world of watches. And by the way, the design of the crown is in line with the look of the large indexes, creating balance and coherence.
An environmentally friendly “motor”
Inside the P1 – Perseverance’s case, which is water resistant to 5 bar and features scratch-resistant sapphire crystals on the front and back, beats the 4Hz automatic Pragma 1031-1 caliber. This movement, developed in collaboration with Chronode, is certified as a chronometer according to the ISO 3159 standard. It also comprises 278 parts, including 100% recycled Grade 5 titanium bridges and plates. The balance comes from Atokalpa or Nivarox, while Crelier makes the 41 jewels.
The power reserve of the movement is a very healthy 60 hours. It’s also a very good-looking caliber with a luxury-industrial appearance. Among the finishes, we find fine graining, circular brushing, polished anglage, and a radiant Côtes de Genève-like pattern. There’s also an open-worked rotor that won’t get in the way of the view too much.
Final words on the purple P1 – Perseverance
Doing the right thing sometimes comes at a cost. The purple Pragma P1 – Perseverance made of solar stainless steel costs CHF 33,400 before VAT and shipping. That puts the watch in a category where undisputed sporty icons (whose names need not be mentioned) rule supremely. This is undeniably true. However, the newcomer Pragma doesn’t compete with the watches you’re thinking of right now — not a client’s first watch with those names, anyway. The Pragma P1 – Perseverance is a watch for knowledgeable and open-minded enthusiasts who already have timepieces with similar prices in their watch boxes. Pragma offers an interesting expansion of an existing collection. And it’s for people like that that I write the final few sentences.
Dear open-minded, considerate, well-off watch fans, if you have already gone to the Pragma website and bought yourself a Pragma P1 – Perseverance, please don’t let the watch put you on a moral high horse. Kudos for doing the right thing. Enjoy the applause for trying to make this world a better place by buying yourself a watch made almost entirely from recycled products. But please don’t treat us with a pretentious attitude. Instead, be an inspiring ambassador and spread the word of luxurious sustainability. And listen to The Threepenny Opera from time to time.
