Since its founding in 1860 by Giovanni Panerai (1825-1987), the firm Officine Panerai has been known for precision instruments notably their professional dive watches and compasses. At the turn of the 20th century, Giovanni’s grandson Guido Panerai (1873-1934) expanded the business, and became the supplier of timepieces to the Italian state. Requests were received from various departments including the Marina Militare (M. M.), Carabinieri (C. C.), Polizia di Stato (P. S.) and similar to the present example the Guardia di Finanza (G. F.). In order to meet the needs of technical divers, Panerai developed a luminous mixture of sulphide and radium bromide named “Radiomir”, which was used to illuminate the dial for underwater viewing. The Italian navy took possession of the first Radiomir, reference 3646 in the late 1930s. In 1949, Panerai replaced the Radiomir with the Luminor, which used a new tritium based luminescent material.

Many early Panerai models were manufactured by Rolex and outfitted with movements signed by them, a relationship that lasted approximately 20 years, making these early timepieces amongst the most desirable vintage dive watches available. The reference 6152 and 6152-1 were introduced in the 1950s, with the 6152-1 having a slightly larger case and capable of housing either Rolex’s caliber 618, or the Angelus caliber 240. The present Panerai reference 6152-1 is one of 64 known examples with Rolex movement and crown guard mechanism, and one of only 33 known to have the Luminor dial. In lovely condition with later hands believed to have been fitted decades ago, the watch was issued to the Guardia di Finanza, as seen by the case back inscription “G. F. No. 5”, and one of the best-preserved examples. For collectors of vintage timepieces, early Panerai watches add an important horological element to their collection.