Narrowed to Hour and Minute: The GPHG 2026 ‘Time Only’ Nominees

“Time Only” is the most exacting room at the GPHG. Introduced in 2024 and won last year by Daniel Roth’s Extra Plat, it admits watches that show only hours and minutes, leaving proportion, finishing and conviction to argue alone. The category sits at the centre of a prize in transition. The Academy has replaced the men’s and ladies’ divisions with Essential, Complication and Gemset, so every watch is judged on merit rather than presumed wearer. 

This year’s 84 nominees have already begun their journey, starting in Mumbai this week, before the jury, chaired by horology media pioneer Wei Koh, convenes ahead of the 7 November ceremony.

Six Nominees, Six Ways to Read the Hour

Each nominee approaches the hour differently, some through engineering, others through craft or colour. Together they show how much a watch can say with two hands.

Bvlgari Octo Finissimo 37 Satin-Polished Titanium

Three years at Le Sentier produced the BVF 100 caliber, 20 percent smaller yet offering 20 percent more power, up to 72 hours. It lets the faceted Octo settle into a 37mm titanium case, proving thinness can still be an argument.

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Chopard L.U.C 1860

Chopard marks three decades of its Fleurier manufacture with a white gold dial, guilloché by hand in a sunburst of Areuse Blue, named after the nearby river. A dress watch of measured reserve gains a distinct sense of place.

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Laurent Ferrier Classic Origin Beige

A softly rounded case frames a warm beige dial, while the hand-wound LF 116.01 carries a long-blade ratchet valued for its smooth winding and its sound. Its pleasures are tactile and private, and that discretion is its authority.

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Naoya Hida & Co. NH Type8A

At 31mm, the smallest of the six carries numerals cut deeply by hand into a machined dial, an idea Hida has pursued since 2012. Traditional lettering meets contemporary precision, and the tension persuades.

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Parmigiani Fleurier Toric Petite Seconde

A hammered white gold dial sits above two bridges cut from solid rose gold, in an edition of 30. Small seconds and dress proportions revive the Toric with disciplined elegance and a collector's gravity.

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Piaget Polo 79 Sodalite Watch

Roughly 2.8 carats of sodalite form the first ornamental stone dial in Piaget's contemporary Polo range. The integrated-bracelet icon gains a jeweller's depth of colour, the most sensual entry of the six.

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Together, the six chart the prize's direction: towards craft that is felt rather than announced, and towards a judging culture that values authorship over category. Whichever watch the jury chooses, the shortlist has already made its case: in a category with no complications, the details carry the whole argument. Geneva will name its winner on 7 November.

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