Meccaniche Veneziane is an Italian brand based in Venice. It was founded in May 2017, and in the space of just over three years it has already achieved exceptional results. Arsenale is a watch that at first sight looks fairly straightforward, but in actual fact it has a lot of technical features that increase its appeal.
When compared to the brand’s other two current designs, Redentore, close to the men’s dress watch genre, and Nereide, a dive watch, Arsenale has a tough look created by the bezel with studs marking the hours, and an Italian leather strap with feature stitching.
Its name comes from the Venetian Arsenal where the Most Serene Republic built the galleys that brought the city power and wealth, enabling it to dominate the eastern Mediterranean from the 9th to the 17th centuries. In its looks, the watch recalls the steel of modern naval craft and submarines. This technical appearance is reinforced by the fact that the bezel rotates, and so you can use the 12 o’clock pip on the bezel to time events approximately.
Case of the Arsenale watch
The 45 mm case has brushed, faceted crown protectors and lugs, matching the nicely-engineered fluting on the side of the bezel. The solid steel caseback has an engraving of the Arsenale with its twin towers.
Water resistance is 20 atm, so dive watch standard. In fact, Arsenale is a interesting combination of a “smart casual” watch to accompany an office outfit, with sports watch and dive watch features such as the unidirectional rotating bezel.
Dial
The dial of the Meccaniche Veneziane Arsenale is distinctive for the tapisserie base, the Venetian cross logo above the brand name, and the applied indices. The skeletonized hands are a perfect match for the indices, filled with white BGW9 SuperLumiNova that glows blue-green in the dark. The good vibes are improved yet further by the absence of the date window.
Movement
The Meccaniche Veneziane Arsenale is powered by the self-winding MV 145 movement, based on the Seiko NH35. It runs at 21,600 vibrations per hour, 3 Hertz, provides a power reserve of 41 hours, and has the stop-seconds function.
Meccaniche Veneziane Arsenale versions and prices
The Arsenale watch is available from the Meccaniche Veneziane online store, in a range of variants based on strap colour, milanaise bracelet, and case treatment (natural steel or black PVD). Prices start at €550 inclusive of VAT, which corresponds to about €450 without VAT. Some versions have gold-finish details in the circular bezel inserts and crown, presumably steel with PVD treatment. Visit the Meccaniche Veneziane website and online store to find out more.
