Tap the image to enlarge
Piaget Altiplano 38mm Mens Watch White
Ref. G0A36125
The Altiplano is the watch that established Piaget's reputation as the house most willing to treat thinness as an engineering challenge rather than a cosmetic one. The 430P inside this piece is 2.1mm thick — not a figure to repeat to yourself, but a constraint that shaped an entire school of watchmaking and that Piaget has been refining since the 1950s. At 6.4mm total, the case disappears under a shirt cuff in a way that few watches at 38mm manage, and the 55-gram weight means it registers on the wrist almost as an absence. The diamond-set bezel — 78 brilliant-cut stones, each caught differently by angled light — keeps the watch from reading as purely technical, sitting somewhere between the jeweller's workshop and the movement atelier that produced what is inside it. The white dial with its baton indices gives nothing away and asks nothing of the wearer; the alligator strap and rose gold ardillon buckle are the right close to a watch this considered.
- Reference
- G0A36125
- Brand
- Piaget
- Collection
- Altiplano
- Case size
- 38mm
- Case thickness
- 6.4mm
- Case material
- Rose gold
- Case shape
- Round
- Dial
- White
- Crystal
- Sapphire
- Movement
- Manual
- Calibre
- 430P
- Water resistance
- 30m
- Bracelet / strap
- Leather strap
- Strap colour
- Brown
- Clasp
- Buckle
- Lume
- Luminous
- Condition
- Ex-display
- Retailer
- Mappin & Webb
Additional specifications
- Power reserve
- 43 hours
- Weight
- 55g
- Gem set
- Yes
Learn more about Piaget
Georges Piaget set up a workshop on the family farm in La Côte-aux-Fées in 1874, producing movements for other houses. The name did not appear on dials until 1943, and the decision that defined the company came a decade later.
In 1957 Piaget released the calibre 9P, a hand-wound movement two millimetres thick. The 12P automatic followed in 1960 at 2.3mm, then the thinnest automatic in the world. Thinness became the house obsession and its competitive territory, pursued through decades of records and continuing in the Altiplano line — including complete watches, case and all, under four millimetres.
Extreme thinness forced Piaget into a distinctive aesthetic. There was no room for conventional dials, so the company used hardstone: lapis, opal, turquoise, tiger's eye. The 1960s and 70s cuff watches, with woven gold bracelets and gem-set bezels, made Piaget as much a jeweller as a watchmaker, and the Polo of 1979 gave it an integrated gold sports watch of its own.
The company remained family-run until 1988, when it was acquired by Cartier — later folded into Richemont — and it continues to manufacture ultra-thin calibres at La Côte-aux-Fées while assembling and gem-setting in Geneva.
- 1874
- Georges Piaget founds the workshop at La Côte-aux-Fées.
- 1943
- The Piaget name is registered as a brand.
- 1957
- The 9P sets an ultra-thin benchmark at 2mm.
- 1960
- The 12P becomes the thinnest automatic movement.
- 1979
- The Polo launches.
- 1988
- Acquired by Cartier, later Richemont.
Also in 6 collections
This watch appears in the Piaget Altiplano range (8), Back in Stock (4,868), Leather Strap Watches (1,037), Dress Watches (557), Pre-Owned, Ex-Display & Vintage Watches (369) and Solid Gold Watches (163).
Manufacturer’s guarantee
Best of 2 retailers
What the specifications mean
A slim watch on leather, made for wearing with a shirt.
Strengths
- 38mm suits most wrists
- 6.4mm is unusually slim for a 38mm case
- Sapphire crystal, which resists scratching
- Luminous hands and markers for low light
Worth knowing
- 30m means keeping it away from water
Piaget Altiplano alternatives
Watches from other brands at a similar price, style and size, so you can see what else your budget can buy.
| Specification | G0A36125 | 7149/0 | E2643 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | £17,475 | £13,950 | £20,495 |
| Case size | 38mm | 39.5mm | 40mm |
| Water resistance | 30m | — | — |
| Movement | Manual | Manual | Manual |
| Strap | Leather strap | Stainless steel bracelet | Stainless steel bracelet |
| Power reserve | 43 hours | — | — |
| This watch |
|
|
Your new watch
Frequently asked questions, and things you should know about this watch
Can I swim with it?
No. At 30m it will survive rain and handwashing, but not submersion of any kind.
Water resistance explainedWill the glass scratch?
Unlikely. Sapphire is second only to diamond in hardness and shrugs off everyday marking.
Sapphire, mineral and acrylic comparedDoes it need a battery?
No. It is hand-wound, so it needs winding every day or two but never a battery.
Quartz, automatic and solar comparedHow long does it run for when it's not worn?
About 43 hours fully wound — enough to survive a night off the wrist, but not a full weekend.
Is it a men's or women's watch?
Listed as men's, though at 38mm it sits in the range that suits anyone.
Cheapest place to buy
Both Goldsmiths and Mappin & Webb list it at £17,475, so choose on delivery and warranty rather than price.
More Piaget watches like the Altiplano
In stock, and close on style and price
