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Bulgari
It all began when
a Greek silversmith left his native village of Epirus in 1879 and emigrated to
Italy. There, five years later Sotirio Bulgari opened his first shop in Rome: in
1905, with his two sons Constantine and Giorgio. He moved to the Via Condotti, still
the flagship of Bulgari shops today.
In the first decades of the 20th century, the two brothers laid the foundations of a flourishing jewelry business. By the late 1970's the firm of Bulgari had become an international jeweler supported by its own 44 shops, including those in New York, Paris, Monte Carlo, and Geneva.
Although the firm had been selling watches since the 1920's using movements from the top Swiss manufacturers like Audemars Piguet, Jaeger-LeCoultre, and Vacheron Constantin, it was not until 1977 that the firm launched its own first important collection. It was so successful that, three years later, Bulgari Time was founded in Neuchatel, Switzerland, to manage the creation and production of Bulgari watches.
To make sure the quality of the inside working matched that of the Bulgari cases the firm signed a joint venture with irard Perregaux in 1989 for the production of the movements.
An early example of the Bulgari watch is the gold pocket watch made in the 1930's. Fitted with an Audemars Piguet movement, it was bought by the Count Galazzo Ciano as a gift to celebrate a friends appointment as Italian Ambassador to Turkey. Ottavio de Peppo had served in the Italian Foreign Ministry under Ciano for four years---a period engraved on the back, the Roman figures XII to XVI marking the twelfth to sixteenth years of the Facist era.
Another fabulous creation was a bracelet watch designed as a serpent. Created in the late 1940's, its supple and flexible body is of polished yellow gold. The movement, by Movado, is concealed in the jeweled head. In the 1970's the snake wristwatch became more stylized consisting of plain flexible spirals devoid of head or tail, and became a central theme of Bulgari's work at the time.
There are six different collections in
the current Bulgari line. 
Most popular in Bulgari-Bulgari, a classic round model in two sizes with the Bulgari name
engraved twice on the bezel. The watches have Swiss quartz or mechanical automatic
movements, the cases are 18 karat gold or stainless steel and fitted with saddle leather
straps or matching bracelets, some have diamond-set dials. The Antiteatro line takes
its name from the concave designs of the case between crystal and dial. There are
two sizes, in 18 karat yellow or white gold, some with diamonds, sapphires, rubies and
Emeralds on matching gold bracelets. They have Swiss quartz movements. Mens
models are available in plain 18 karat gold or stainless steel. Parentesi, Alveare
and Antalia are small collections of ladies integral bracelet models in 18 karat gold,
some with diamond-set dials.
In the Sports Line, which has Swiss automatic mechanical movements in gold or stainless steel cases on a strap or bracelet, are a selection of scuba diver's watches with certified chronometer movements and water resistant to 660 feet. There is also a line of Quartz Chronometers.
Bulgari also offers a pair of Grande Complications. A Minute Repeater, which marks the hours, quarters, and minutes, and has a sapphire caseback to reveal the movement, is available in 18 karat gold or platinum; a Tourbillion model has an open-work dial in an 18 karat case with gold hands and numerals on a silver dial.
Bulgaris star performer is the Bulgari-Bulgari. First produced in 1977, the original version has a gold case and leather strap and is now considered a classic. Like Quadrato, Bulgari-Bulgari is also available on the famous Tubogas Wraparound Snake Bracelet.
