Entrepreneur Silvio Berlusconi spotted wearing a Gérald Genta

In October 1986, media magnate Silvio Berlusconi attended an AC Milan versus Juventus match at Turin's Stadio Comunale as a guest of industrialist Gianni Agnelli, fresh from acquiring the Rossoneri the previous February. The encounter between 'new money' and 'old money' captured international attention, and Berlusconi's wrist bore a watch equally symbolic of precision and prestige: a Gérald Genta Perpetual Calendar ref. G.2132.4 in 18k yellow gold on a black leather strap.

The ref. G.2132.4 represents the pinnacle of independent Swiss watchmaking from Geneva's Gérald Genta manufacture. The perpetual calendar complication displays the day, date, month, and moon phase across three subsidiary dials, eliminating the need for manual adjustment until the year 2100. The movement is a hand-wound calibre of exceptional finesse, positioned behind a cream dial featuring applied indices and Arabic numerals. The case diameter sits at approximately 37mm—purposefully understated—with a stepped bezel and signature T-bar lugs that create an optical bridge between case and strap. Water resistance is modest at 30 metres, reflecting the dress-watch intent rather than durability demands.

Gérald Genta's perpetual calendar watches occupy a rarefied category among haute horlogerie collectors. Unlike mass-produced complications from larger manufactures, each ref. G.2132.4 was hand-assembled during the 1980s in strictly limited numbers. The yellow gold variant commands particular respect for its material integrity and patina development over decades. The ref. G.2132.4 production run spanned the early-to-mid 1980s, making Berlusconi's 1986 sighting contemporaneous with the model's active manufacturing window.

Berlusconi's choice reflected his documented appetite for Swiss haute horlogerie and the symbolic weight such pieces carried in European business circles. A perpetual calendar on the wrist signalled not merely wealth but intellectual sophistication—the wearer understood complications, precision, and patrimoine horloger. The pairing of Gérald Genta's Geneva craftsmanship with Berlusconi's ascendant media empire underscored how watchmaking operated as cultural currency among elite Italian industrialists.

Today, the Gérald Genta Perpetual Calendar ref. G.2132.4 in 18k yellow gold trades on the secondary market between $35,000 and $50,000 USD depending on condition and service history. Original cream dials with intact lume command premiums. Retail pricing from the manufacture is no longer available, as Gérald Genta ceased independent operations in 2000, though the brand has since resumed limited production under new ownership. Collectors view the 1980s perpetual calendar watches as the apex of Gérald Genta's independent era.