The Watch: The 4266 is the Laureato that started everything. When Girard-Perregaux launched the Laureato in 1975, it was conceived from the outset as a quartz chronometer rather than a mechanical watch. The brand had established a dedicated electronic research unit in 1966 and, in 1971, introduced the GP350: a quartz caliber running at 32,768 Hz. That frequency became the universal standard for quartz watches, and remains so today. The first Laureato was COSC chronometer certified, making it one of the few quartz watches in history to carry that designation.
This 4266 has the original Laureato design that defined the category: an octagonal bezel on a circular case on a tonneau-shaped middle case, all integrated into a stainless steel/yellow gold bracelet with alternating polished and brushed surfaces. The case measures 35mm, sized for the proportions of the era when integrated bracelet sport watches were genuinely sporty rather than scaled up for modern wrists. The dial features the brand's signature Clous de Paris hobnail pattern, applied bar indices, gold-tone bar hands, and a date window at 3 o'clock. "Quartz Chronometer" is printed at 6 o'clock.
This is the design that Girard-Perregaux returned to for the modern Laureato relaunch in 2016, and seeing the original 4266 alongside a current production model makes clear how little the design needed to change. The integrated bracelet sizes for a 6.75" wrist.
