GREECE, ZENITH-STYLE

The Le Locle-based watchmaker has produced one of its most contemporary models in the colors of Greece and more specifically those of a famous island in the Cyclades for a 25-piece limited edition

Known for its evening festivities and its sometimes quirky fauna, Mykonos is the most visited island of the Cyclades. Surrounded by the Aegean Sea and basking in a warm climate, it is famous for its landscapes peppered with whitewashed houses and pointed-roof windmills, all under an intense blue sky rarely flecked with clouds in the summer. It is the beauty and picturesque charm of this Greek haven that Zenith wanted to reproduce in its special edition Defy Classic Mykonos Edition, limited to just 25 pieces and produced exclusively for its local retailer Gofas.

Sealed with a transparent window, the case back bears a white outline of the famous windmills as well as the word “Mykonos”.

In a nod to the narrow streets of the island lined with large round cobblestones, the central blue band of the white-edged rubber strap picks out the pattern of this characteristic paving.

Price: 7,900 EUR zenith.com

By Sharmila Bertin

HIGH FIDELITY

For El Primero’s 50 year anniversary, Zenith is celebrating with a trio of chronographs crafted from precious metals. They have all stood the test of time: a half century!

To celebrate the jubilee of its iconic chronograph, Zenith offers not just one but three timepieces, each created in a limited series of 50. What do they have in common? They of course all have automatic caliber with a high frequency of 36,000 vibrations per hour, here the El Primero 400, but they are also designed as closely as possible to the original model. In this way, each El Primero A 386 Revival comes to life at the heart of a 38mm diameter case in white gold, rose gold or yellow gold. On the white-lacquered dial we find the totalizers and the small second counter with three distinct tints. The whole is encircled by a tachymetric scale. The shape of the indexes and hands adopts the one that created the unique identity of the timepiece. This sporty composition is also capped with domed glass, just like the iconic model born fifty years earlier.

Last but not least, all El Primero A386 Revival chronographs have the benefit of an exceptional guarantee of 50 years!

Price: 19,900 CHF zenith.com

By Dan Diaconu

ULTIMATE PRECISION

This limited edition does everything it can to rise to a double challenge: ensuring precise time information and measuring to 100th of a second.

In its quest for the ultimate precision, Zenith does not cease in offering smart alternatives. The latest to date takes its shape in the 46 mm case of the Defy El Primero Double Tourbillon. The complex mechanical architecture equipped with two independent tourbillons and two chronograph counters can be seen on the dial. The layout gives it an open and futuristic appearance just like the other models in the Defy collection. In addition, the regulating movements also play a major part in the functioning of the watch. The movement at 10 o’clock is coupled with the chronograph measuring and displaying 100^th of a second. Operating at the frequency of 50 Hz (360,000 vibrations per hour) with its cage making one complete rotation every 5 seconds, this tourbillon is the fastest in the world. It drives the central second hand at the impressive speed of one sweep of the dial per second. The second tourbillon located at 8 o’clock and regulated at 5 Hz has a cage which performs one rotation per minute. Its function is to regulate the timepiece’s time information.

Two editions are available. One 10-piece edition is built around a platinum dial, the other 50-piece edition is made of carbon.

Price: 119,900 CHF (carbon) – 149,900 CHF (platinum) zenith.com

By Dan Diaconu

A CREATIVE FORCE

New technology, modern elegance. A featherlight case and cutting-edge engineering are united in the first model of the series, which integrates an innovative monolithic oscillator.

At Zenith, the future is now! The manufacturer continues to write its story in the latest chapter, which began in 2017 with the Defy Lab. On the agenda: a star-shaped ajoure dial, high-tech materials and a revolutionary oscillator! The Defy Inventor combines all of these features. Its 44 mm diameter titanium case is paired with a bezel made of Aeronith, an ultra-lightweight aluminum composite material. The monochromatic case helps set the scene for the components of the caliber, including a regulating organ machined in silicon which replaces the traditional spiral balance spring. This technical part, just 0.5 mm thick, oscillates at a frequency of 4Hz, or 128,600 alternations per hour. Thanks to this modern architecture, the case and the components of the caliber add to the esthetic appeal of the watch.

The timepiece comes with a black rubber bracelet covered with blue alligator leather and is equipped with a titanium folding clasp which combines comfort for the wearer and security.

Price: CHF 17,900 zenith.com

By Dan Diaconu

RAW MATERIAL

After a bronze version, the brand has released a limited edition of its Pilot watch combining a silver dial and case. The model has all the assets needed to become a collector’s item.

The 250 Pilot Type 20 Extra Silver watch is equipped with a vintage-look brown leather strap. It includes a leather flap, similar to the ones found on leather flight helmets until the mid-20th century.

Price: €7,900 zenith.com

By Dan Diaconu

THE COLOUR OF TIME

Enter a new dimension with the Defy collection, where omnipresent mechanical components merge with the materials to create an animated style of abstract timekeeping.

The black dress was very attractive. Now the watch is back and is just as enticing in white or blue. With an open-work dial designed like a modern sculpture, the Defy Classic by Zenith makes a big appeal, too, with its strong personality. The brand based in Le Locle, Switzerland, has benefitted from the skill and experience of the LVMH group’s R&D department in developing materials by adding new colours to the Defy’s 41mm-wide ceramic case with its polished and satin surfaces. But not just the case, since all the visible elements come in colour, too. The result? The monochrome composition roots the models in their times with an idiosyncratic style combining a sports feel with laid-back elegance.

The two new models come with a rubber strap matching the watch colour and a titanium folding clasp.

Price: 7,500 CHF zenith.com

By Dan Diaconu

CHARITY WORK

For Veterans Day, Zenith is supporting the work of a US charity providing help and services for former soldiers and their families.

A non-profit organisation, the Wounded Warrior Project aims to help former soldiers who have been wounded since 11 September 2001. Zenith has donated $25,000 to support their work. The brand has also released a limited edition of just 50 watches of the Pilot Cronometro Tipo CP-2 USA Edition. The timepiece is based on a 1960s model, the Cairelli, which was made for the Italian army. The new watch has kept up the military inspiration, but adopted the colours of the US flag. The dial comes in matte blue with lume-coated hands and numerals. The bezel scale is also blue and features a red triangle. American patriotism is also on display on the rotor decorated by Geneva waves and visible through the sapphire caseback. The rotor is open-worked to reveal a star decorated with the Stars and Stripes.

The 43mm-wide steel case houses an automatic chronograph movement with very contemporary performances. The calibre El Primero 405B with a power reserve of 50 hours drives the time information. Split-time measurements are measured with the central second hand and the 30-minute totaliser at 3 o’clock. The flyback function makes clocking up the times even easier.

The Pilot Cronometro Tipo CP-2 USA Edition is worn with a blue nubuck leather strap.

Price on request zenith.com

By Dan Diaconu

EVOCATIVE STYLE

Watchmaking and cars have much in common. So when two prestigious brands work together, the aesthetic and mechanic performances are all present and correct.

Zenith began its partnership with Land Rover three years ago. The happy collaboration is based on a shared taste for design and cutting-edge technique. After the Chronomaster El Primero Range Rover Velar, launched in 2017, the brand has just released the Defy Classic Range Rover Special Edition with a limited edition of 200 pieces. Like for the first model, the stylistic features of the watch echo elements in a Range Rover car, in this case, the Evoque. So the second hand and the rotor come in turquoise blue, a colour found on the steering wheel and seats of the SUV. The architecture of the skeletoned dial evokes the sculptural design of the wheel rims. The “diamond“ pattern on the car’s padded upholstery makes an appearance on the rubber watch strap.

Price: 7,500 CHF zenith.com

By Dan Diaconu

AVANT-GARDE ARCHITECTURE

Like a futuristic black knight, the new model from the Defy collection comes in black ceramic armour and seems to rise out of the night to take possession of your wrist. A stealthy look that perfectly matches the avant-garde architecture of this piece made by Zenith.

Despite its youth – officially launched in 2017 – the Defy watch is already fully grown up. It has such a strong personality that it already has all the makings of an essential element in the contemporary watchmaking world. But with apologies for the easy pun, the Defy defies time! It doesn’t go round it or flee it, but overcomes it. It lives in the present but is inexorably projected into the future, thanks to its avant-garde silhouette in particular. To add to the effect even more, Zenith has given it some new armour made of black technical ceramic. The Defy Classic Black Ceramic is adorned with a light and resistant material, a first for the collection.

The Defy Classic Black Ceramic model is powered by a famous automatic mechanical movement, the calibre Elite 670, but with a black, open-work version. The calibre runs at a frequency of 4Hz and provides a power reserve of 48 hours.

This latest member of the Zenith collections comes with a black rubber strap with a body featuring an embossed chequerboard pattern and a double titanium folding clasp coated in black DLC.

Price: 7,500 CHF zenith.com

By Sharmila Bertin

CARIBBEAN SUITE

Symbols of death are seen everywhere in popular culture in Central America. They now feature on the latest striking creations made by Zenith.

During SIAR 2018 (Salón Internacional de Alta Relojería), Zenith presented three unique models of the Defy Zero G, named Skull, Pirates and Virgen de Guadalupe. Along with the colours of the Mexican flag on an open-work dial, all three share impressive engravings that begin on the bezel of the 44mm-wide case and then flow onto the case back and strap. The first watch shows the symbol of the national festivities celebrating the dead, the Día de los Muertos. The second takes us to the Caribbean, the favourite haunt of pirates, with a skull and crossed swords. The last model is decorated with a Catholic icon that can be seen in the Basilica of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico City. The engravings were made with a chemical engraving process using a laser.

Price on request zenith.com

By Dan Diaconu