Parmigiani Fleurier Tonda Hijra Perpetual Calendar celebrates the Islamic festival of Eid

To mark Eid (July 20, 2021), the Islamic calendar's greatest holiday, Parmigiani Fleurier has launched three new jewel-set models of the Tonda Hijra Perpetual Calendar, which won the highest innovation award in the Calendar & Astronomical Watch category at the 2020 Geneva Grand Prix Watchmaking (GPWG).

Celebrating culture and technology

　The three precious stones - diamond, ruby ​​and emerald - were chosen to represent the national colours of Middle Eastern countries: green has special significance in the Islamic world, while red and white appear in almost all flags of the region.

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　Released in 1441 on the Hijri calendar, the Tonda Hijra Perpetual Calendar, named for Rabi Al-Ahri (the name of April), is, as its name suggests, a wristwatch with a unique complication. Traditionally considered the highest level of watchmaking complexity, perpetual calendars are one of the three "super-complications," but they almost always use the Gregorian calendar. The in-house caliber PF009 was based on a Parmigiani Fleurier table clock released in 2011, which itself had its roots in an antique pocket watch with an Hijri calendar that Michel Parmigiani personally restored. In 2020, Parmigiani completed the creation of the Tonda Hijra Perpetual Calendar, a wristwatch-sized perpetual calendar based on the Hijri calendar.

A year and a half after the release of the Tonda Hijra Perpetual Calendar, Parmigiani Fleurier has announced three limited edition gem-set models. In Islamic societies, men are prohibited from wearing gold jewelry. The Tonda Hijra Perpetual Calendar has an all-platinum case, and no gold is used in the movement components. The cases of the new models are set with diamonds, rubies, or emeralds. Rubies and emeralds are colored stones chosen to pay homage to the national colors of Middle Eastern countries. Each gem-set Tonda Hijra Perpetual Calendar model is limited to 10 pieces.

Tonda Hijra Perpetual Calendar

　The three new gem-set Tonda Hijra Perpetual Calendar models strike a delicate balance between opulence and simplicity. Arabic aesthetics are deeply rooted in an appreciation of geometric patterns and a mathematical, abstract approach to beauty. This is exemplified by the linear baguette-cut precious stone designs, which emphasize clarity and structure. Because baguette cuts offer less sparkle and fire than round brilliant cuts, all stones used in the Tonda Hijra Perpetual Calendar had to be as uniform in color as possible and free of inclusions.

The Grand Dorge, with its platinum rotor reminiscent of water

A simple complication of the Hijri perpetual calendar

　The counter at 12 o'clock indicates the 30-year cycle, with leap years indicated in sand-colored text. The counter at 3 o'clock uses hands to indicate the months of the Islamic calendar, with the holy month of Ramadan indicated in red. The aventurine moon disc at 6 o'clock features a polished moon recreating the lunar phases of the Northern Hemisphere. The counter at 9 o'clock indicates the date; a white marker visible through a circular aperture indicates a 29-day month, while a sand-colored marker indicates a 30-day month.

　There are many different types of calendars, all of which are different. The Gregorian calendar is a solar calendar, consisting of 12 months of 30 or 31 days, with the exception of February, calculated to fit into a 365-day solar year. The Chinese and Jewish calendars are lunisolar, using 12 lunar months of 29 or 30 days, with appropriate leap months, to roughly align with the solar year within a few weeks. The Hijri calendar, on the other hand, is purely lunar, counting days based on 12 29- or 30-day months, with no attempt to align with the solar year at all.

Each year is about 10 to 11 days shorter than the Gregorian calendar.

　As a result, the Hijri calendar is 10 to 11 days shorter than the Gregorian calendar each year, resulting in a shift in the relationship between the months and seasons. This calendar is characterized by its highly regular nature compared to other calendars. The standard Hijri calendar alternates between 29-day and 30-day months, resulting in a 354-day year, known as a "common year." This approximates the lunar cycle of 29.5 days, which is very close to the actual lunar cycle of 29.53 days. However, this lunar cycle calculation results in a 0.03-day discrepancy. To compensate for this discrepancy, years with 355 days are occasionally added. These leap years are called "leap years," and the Hijri calendar has 19 common years and 11 leap years for every 30 years.