Colosseum

Italian Luxury Label Tod's to Restore Rome's Colosseum

Diego Della Valle, President of Italian luxury label Tod's, and Italy's Ministry of Culture have announced that the Tod's Group will finance a complete restoration of Rome's historic Colosseum with a monetary commitment of 25 million euros, or about $34 million. Mr. Della Valle (above left), Rome's Mayor Gianni Alemanno (right), Culture Undersecretary Francesco Giro and the Government Commissioner for central Rome's archaeological area held a press conference at the Colosseum's arena to announce the project.

Completed in 80 AD under the emperor Titus, the Colosseum is capable of seating 50,000 spectators and was used for gladiatorial contests and public spectacles such as mock sea battles, animal hunts and executions. The project will proceed in eight phases dedicated to the cleanup and restoration of the architectural icon. "We believe that because the Tod's Group is a strong global representative of 'Made in Italy', it is both an honour and our duty to contribute to the support of our country's image and credibility, as well as its cultural heritage," Della Valle declares.

Tags: architecture, Colosseum, Diego Della Valle, history, Italy, Rome, Tods

Bulova Colosseum Lady Ref. 63R117 Watch

by Ariel Adams (RSS feed) —

Filed under: Timepieces / Watches

The luxury look does not always have to hold a luxury price. The new lady's Colosseum watch (ref. 63R117) from Bulova (part of the Citizen group) is a fine looking mechanical watch with luxury accents at prices more akin to today's luxury-less budgets. Prices are about $1,000 - $1,500 for an automatic Sellita SW200 (ETA 2824-2 clone) movement, 34mm wide steel case, and a bezel with real diamonds, along with more diamonds on the face serving as half of the hour markers (other six are applied Arabic numerals).

The delicate construction of the Bulova Colosseum's multi-link bracelet will make for a very comfortable fit with a sophisticated look. I like the mother-of-pearl dial with open window to the movement's escapement. Most watches refer to this as an "open heart" window. Further positive qualities include a sapphire crystal, exhibition caseback, 100 meter watch resistance, and available crocodile strap and gold-toned case options. It is important to have good looking watches like this from Bulova to ensure that the demand for timepieces is met even when less cost effective luxury brands are out of many people's minds (and budgets) - at least for now.

Ariel Adams publishes the watch review site aBlogtoRead.com.

Tags: 63r117, Bulova, Colosseum, Lady, Timepiece, Watch