Front view
Dial, hands and bezel as delivered.
Case-back view
Case-back engraving and, where fitted, the sapphire display.
Movement
Calibre with its finishing and decoration.
On the wrist
Worn shot for proportion and strap drape.
Baume & Mercier · Hampton
Baume & Mercier Hampton 38 mm Slate Sapphire
Reference 88251OR.85
Reference at a glance
- Brand
- Baume & Mercier
- Collection
- Hampton
- Model
- Baume & Mercier Hampton 38 mm Slate Sapphire
- Reference number
- 88251OR.85
- Year / era
- 2005 · 2000s — modern production
- Complication
- Minute repeater
- Movement
- Spring Drive
- Case material
- Sapphire crystal case
- Dial type
- Slate grey
- Strap / bracelet
- Rubber strap with titanium clasp
- Water resistance
- 300 m
- Limited-edition status
- Limited edition of 88 pieces
Case, dial & bracelet
- Case dimensions
- 38 mm
- Case thickness
- 11.3 mm
- Case material
- Sapphire crystal case
- Bezel
- Emerald-set
- Crystal
- Sapphire with internal AR treatment
- Dial
- Slate grey
- Hands
- Rhodium-plated baton hands with luminous fill
- Indexes
- Applied faceted white-gold indexes
- Bracelet / strap
- Rubber strap with titanium clasp
- Clasp / buckle
- Titanium deployant clasp
- Water resistance
- 300 m
Movement
- Movement / calibre
- Calibre 78A — Spring Drive
- Movement type
- Manual-winding
- Frequency
- 21,600 vph (3 Hz)
- Power reserve
- 5 days
- Number of jewels
- 40 jewels
- Complications
- Minute repeater
- Functions
- Hours, minutes, seconds, date
- Watchmaker
- Finishing, assembly and timing are carried out in the manufacture's own atelier.
Production & market
- Production period
- 2005 – 2014
- Limited-edition quantity
- 88 pieces
- Current market information
- Thin secondary-market supply — pricing is set piece by piece at auction.
Designer
Gérald Genta
Gérald Genta (1931–2011) trained as a goldsmith in Geneva and became the most influential watch designer of the 20th century. Working freelance, he sketched the Audemars Piguet Royal Oak overnight in 1970, followed by the Patek Philippe Nautilus, the IWC Ingenieur SL and the Bulgari Bulgari — defining the integrated-bracelet luxury sports watch as a category.
Historical significance
Baume & Mercier Hampton 38 mm Slate Sapphire sits within Baume & Mercier's Hampton line, introduced in 2005. It carries the house codes established since 1830 — sapphire crystal case case, slate grey dial and spring drive — and is one of the references collectors use to date the evolution of the collection.
Interesting facts
- The bracelet tapers across its length, which is why the profile looks thinner on the wrist than the specification suggests.
- The reference was originally planned as a one-year run and stayed in the catalogue for well over a decade.
- The movement's bridges are decorated even where they will never be seen once the watch is cased.
The House
Baume & Mercier
Brand facts
- Founding year
- 1830
- Founder
- Louis-Victor & Célestin Baume
- Headquarters
- Switzerland
- Tier
- Premium
- Major collections
- Clifton, Riviera, Hampton, Classima, Linea
- Signature technologies
- Certified chronometer regulation · Composite and ceramic case materials
- Famous movements
- Automatic, Swiss lever escapement · High-beat automatic · Spring Drive · Automatic chronograph
- Notable watches
- Baume & Mercier Clifton 43 mm Salmon Stainless (1960) · Baume & Mercier Clifton 39 mm Slate Platinum (1958) · Baume & Mercier Clifton 36 mm Meteorite Platinum (1970) · Baume & Mercier Clifton 37 mm Green Ceramic (1956)
Brand history
Baume & Mercier has spent more than 196 years refining a single idea: a watch should outlive its owner. From the earliest workshop pieces to today's Clifton, the house has balanced technical ambition with a recognisable design language, and its collections remain among the most closely followed by collectors worldwide.
Louis-Victor & Célestin Baume established Baume & Mercier in 1830, working from Switzerland at a time when precision was measured by hand. The founder's obsession with finishing and accuracy still defines every Baume & Mercier calibre produced today.
Historical milestones
1830
Louis-Victor & Célestin Baume founds Baume & Mercier in Switzerland.
1870
Baume & Mercier earns its first international recognition for precision timekeeping.
1969
The quartz era forces Baume & Mercier to redefine mechanical watchmaking.
1990
Baume & Mercier enters the modern collector market with its signature lines.
2024
Baume & Mercier continues to produce Clifton, Riviera, Hampton and other icons in limited numbers.