As longtime readers of WatchTime well know,
Grand Seiko is a brand that has become known for turning to nature as an influence for its timepiece designs. This past month alone, we saw the latest display of the watchmaker’s affinity for natural phenomena, the forest-inspired Heritage Hi-Beat “White Birch” Ref. SLGH005, and before that a pair of releases celebrating different elements of Japan’s Mt. Iwate.
As part of its 2021 collections unveiled this week, and in commemoration of parent company Seiko’s 140th anniversary, Grand Seiko continues the trend with the release of its largest nature-inspired collection to date, comprising four new Elegance GMT watches (an example below), each celebrating a segment of twenty-four seasonal phases observed in Japan.While at first glance this inspiration might seem complicated, in Japan it is common to break down each of the four traditional seasons that is spring, summer, fall, and winter into twenty-four total seasonal phases, o