Gérald Genta Biretro Jump Hour Ref. G.3734 in Steel, circa 1996

In 1996, Gérald Genta unveiled the Biretro: the first wristwatch to combine jumping hours with retrograde date and minutes. A circular aperture at 12 o’clock displays the hour, which jumps at each full hour; two twin sectors frame it for the minutes and the date, hence the name – a contraction of “bi-retrograde”.
Reference G.3734 embodies this concept in a 36 mm round steel case with a convex bezel and ribbed flank, powered by a Gérald Genta caliber based on the ETA 2892-A2. The steel version with white dial, as here, is in our view the purest.
The example offered is in excellent overall condition: mirror-polished surfaces intact, dial and retrograde sectors impeccable, slightly domed sapphire crystal flawless. The movement, recently overhauled by one of our experienced watchmakers, runs within the strictest tolerances. The new Made in France camel grained calfskin strap is complemented by the original Gérald Genta steel pin buckle.

In 1996, Gérald Genta unveiled the Biretro: the first wristwatch to combine jumping hours with retrograde date and minutes on a single dial. It was an innovation owed to a man who was no newcomer – already the author of the Universal Genève Polerouter (1954), the Omega Constellation (1959), the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak (1972), the Patek Philippe Nautilus and the IWC Ingenieur SL (1976), Gérald Genta had founded his own house in Geneva in 1969 to secure a field of expression free from the specifications imposed by the great manufactures. The Biretro is one of the most accomplished expressions of that freedom.

The technical gamble is matched by a graphic one. At 12 o’clock, a circular aperture displays the hour, which “jumps” forward one step at each full hour. A wide arched sector occupies the upper half of the dial for the minutes, whose hand travels along the arc in sixty minutes before returning instantly to zero. At 6 o’clock, a twin sector houses the retrograde date hand. The symmetry of the whole – two sectors framing the hour aperture – is precisely what gives the model its name: Biretro, a contraction of “bi-retrograde”.

Reference G.3734 embodies this concept in a 36 mm round steel case, with a convex bezel and a finely ribbed flank, and a solid caseback secured by six screws. The caliber, signed Gérald Genta and based on the ETA 2892-A2, beats at 28,800 vibrations per hour and incorporates the jumping-hour and twin retrograde hand modules developed by the house. The reference also exists in yellow gold and in steel and yellow gold, as well as in several dial colours. The all-steel version with white dial, as here, is in our view the “purest”.

The example we are pleased to offer is preserved in excellent overall condition, with its gleaming mirror-polished surfaces intact and its ribbed flank crisply defined. The white dial and its two retrograde sectors are impeccable, as is the slightly domed sapphire crystal. The automatic movement has undergone a complete overhaul by one of our experienced watchmakers and runs within the strictest tolerances. All three indications – jumping hour, retrograde minute, retrograde date – operate smoothly. The watch is offered on a new Made in France camel grained calfskin strap, fitted with the original Gérald Genta steel pin buckle, engraved and signed. It also comes with our Steel Warranty Card.

Sold to Bulgari in 2000 and then dormant for around a decade, the Gérald Genta brand never reissued the original Biretro identically; the bi-retrograde complications that formed its DNA were gradually absorbed by Bulgari into the Octo collection. To own a steel G.3734 in this condition is to hold a fragment of the personal work of the most influential watch designer of the second half of the 20th century.

This Gérald Genta Biretro Jump Hour ref. G.3734 is preserved in excellent overall condition.
The white dial shows no flaws.
The 36 mm steel case retains its original proportions and finishes. The domed bezel is mirror-polished. The flanks are guilloché in the manner of Breguet watches. The caseback has a matte brushed finish and bears all of its engravings, including the reference number and the serial number – all in perfect condition.
The automatic mechanical movement has undergone a complete overhaul by one of our experienced watchmakers and runs within the strictest tolerances. All three indications – jumping hour, retrograde minute, retrograde date – operate smoothly.
The Made in France camel grained calfskin strap is new and complemented by the original Gérald Genta steel pin buckle, engraved and signed, in perfect condition.
An excellent example!

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