Panerai Immersion exhibition will open in Florence at the Museo Marino Marini in September 2026, marking the brand’s centennial milestone for its historic boutique at Piazza San Giovanni (Saint John’s Square in Florence), the company said.
The Panerai Immersion exhibition returns to the Museo Marino Marini in Florence a decade after the brand staged a major show there in 2016 called Dive Into Time, Panerai said. The new exhibition uses the museum’s historic architecture and subterranean spaces to create an immersive route that traces the brand from its Florentine origins to deep sea and contemporary exploration contexts.
Panerai CEO Emmanuel Perrin said the brand sees its heritage as a foundation for future development, not as an archive to be preserved without purpose. He said the exhibition reframes the story to show how Panerai integrates professional techniques, performance standards, and an exploratory spirit into contemporary watches.
Panerai Immersion exhibition traces the brand from Florence to the deep sea
The exhibition begins in 1860 Florence, outlining how the Panerai family developed two lines of business: Orologeria Svizzera, a watch shop, and G. Panerai & Figlio, which supplied precision instruments to the Italian navy, Panerai said. Panerai has more than 160 years of watchmaking history, and the show highlights the technical needs that shaped its watches, the company said.
Because the watches were originally developed for military missions, the company said core capabilities such as legibility in darkness, high water resistance, robust construction, and long power reserve were built from practical need. The exhibition presents those design drivers as living technical requirements that continue to shape multiple Panerai collections today.
An immersive route through military workshops and ocean depths
As visitors move through the route, they enter a staged military workshop and then descend into a deep sea environment that simulates high pressure, darkness, and silence. The settings are designed to convey how professional instruments perform under extreme conditions, and how those requirements inform watch design.
The journey returns to surface scenarios that show modern exploration settings, including frozen lakes, polar landscapes, humid jungles, and rough seas. Panerai said those scenes demonstrate how principles born from military use extend to contemporary explorers who need watches that withstand low temperature, moisture, heavy impact, and long term wear.
Visitor information and reservations
Immersion exhibition details
Venue: Museo Marino Marini (a museum in Florence), Piazza San Pancrazio, Florence
Dates: Sept. 11 to Sept. 19, 2026
Hours: 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.
Reservations: Online bookings open July 23, 2026
Website: https://www.panerai.com/hk/en/focus/immersion.html
Panerai said the exhibition coincides with the 100 year anniversary of its historic boutique at Piazza San Giovanni, reinforcing the brand’s ties to Florence. Tickets and timed entries will be available on the brand website, the company said.
