Piaget Brings Back the Trapeze Watch with Sixtie

For Watches and Wonders, Piaget revisits one of its most unconventional design codes with the launch of Sixtie, a new jewellery watch rooted in the experimental spirit of the late 1960s. The watch marks a return to the Maison’s boldest era—when horology and high jewellery collided to shape an entirely new category.

The year was 1969, and Piaget had just introduced its 21st Century collection at the Basel Fair. This was a turning point not only for the brand but for the wider watchmaking world. Led by designer Jean-Claude Gueit, the Maison began to blur the lines between timekeeping and ornamentation. Watches no longer looked like traditional watches—they transformed into cuffs, sautoirs, and striking design pieces. One silhouette stood out: the trapeze. Irregular and unexpected, it challenged form and convention, not unlike the trapeze dresses made famous by Yves Saint Laurent around the same time.

Nearly 60 years later, Sixtie revives this design with a contemporary sensibility. Produced in Piaget’s Ateliers de l’Extraordinaire, the new watch references its archival shape while embracing modern detailing. The case is asymmetrical and rounded, neither square nor round, deliberately designed to stand apart. The bracelet is made entirely of gold, crafted with interlocking trapeze-shaped links that feel as much like jewellery as they do watchmaking. Its construction is fluid and light, draping around the wrist like a second skin.

Subtle references to Piaget’s history are found throughout. Gadroons chiselled into the bezel echo the same visual language seen on Piaget pieces once worn by icons like Andy Warhol. The satin-finished dial is restrained but distinctive, with Roman numerals, baton hands, and golden hour markers all blending into the design rather than sitting on top of it.

While Sixtie plays with shape and structure, it’s also quietly extravagant. It resists trends and traditional proportions in favour of something that feels personal, almost intimate. Piaget describes it as a “watch jewel” rather than a “jewellery watch,” signalling a shift in focus from decoration to design intention. It’s not made to match—it’s made to define.