THEN AND NOW
Aside from the El Primero, 1969 was a milestone year for Zenith because it launched a monumental symbolof stoicism in the face of annihilation – the Defy collection
THE YEAR 1969 MARKED a giant step for humankind when we made the first-ever moon landing. It was also significant for Zenith as it saw the unveiling of the El Primero, the world’s first independently conceived automatic chronograph. Against a backdrop of the Quartz crisis, Zenith stood its ground for mechanical movements with Defy, a timepiece with a singularly edgy design and robustness that stood in defiance of mass-produced electronic watches.
Nicknamed coffre-fort in French (which means bank vault), Defy’s bold, octagonal case paired with a 14-sided bezel, three years before the arrival of the Royal
Oak, defined the audacity of thought and boldness of innovation for the Le Locle manufacture. Opening up new horizons for creativity, its steel “ladder” bracelet designed and manufactured by the famed Gay Frères company paired with a stunning geometric watch case, also defied traditional watchmaking conventions of the time.
While it bears the spirit of the integrated bracelet steel sports watch phenomenon, the modern ladder bracelet on the latest Defy isn’t fully integrated in the same way that its predecessor was.
The dial has also been kept incredibly faithful to its original. The popular fumé or gradient dials of the era is brought back, accented by the grooved applied hour indices, the date complication at 4:30 and the original sword hands that have been enhanced with “aged” SuperLumiNova to mimic vintage tritium.
A faithful interpretation of the brand’s first Defy model, the new Defy Revival A3642 is that symbol of rebellion reborn with an elite modern movement. While Zenith CEO Julie Tornare is adamant that “we don’t want to make replicas,” the Defy Revival A3642 is as close as possible to the original
A3642 from 1969 as it gets. Updated with a modern movement, the manufacture automatic Elite 670 operating at a frequency of 4Hz (28,800vph) while delivering a power reserve of 50 hours, the new Defy Revival A3642 exhibits its superlative movement through sapphire caseback in contrast to its early ancestor bearing a solid caseback with an embossed star.
The New Zenith Defy Skyline – The First High Frequency Luxury Spo s Watch
In today’s competitive luxury integrated bracelet sports watch segment, the new Zenith Defy Skyline brings another geometrically structured integrated bracelet sports watch to the arena with a sleek and evocative design paired with an unprecedented function. The latest subcollection within the contemporary Defy series, the new series of luxury sports watches debuts three watches featuring a new case design, new movement, and the El Primero’s first non-chronograph, high frequency three-hand timepiece.
The Zenith Defy family is home to some of the maison’s most experimental watches including a sapphire encased Double Tourbillon watch. It has served as a platform for the brand’s perspective on geometric, multifaceted octagonal steel case watches with angular 14-sided fixed bezels. Oozing late 1960s swagger, the latest iteration sidesteps comparison with an early ’70s newcomer but nevertheless, given short memories and the sports luxury watch zeitgeist, it is not completely unavoidable.
Revived once more in a limited run of
250 pieces last week, the Defy Revival
A3642 takes most of its design cues from the original factory drawings of the 1969
Defy, down to the smoky grey gradient dial. The Defy Skyline, on the other hand, is an enlarged modern update (at 41mm versus the previous 37mm) that distils much of the original vibe with one important twist ‒ the use of the brand’s most signature calibre, that is the El Primero.
Once you discover that this is the first Zenith El Primero that isn’t a chronograph, you’ll notice that the “sub seconds” dial sports 10 indication rather than 60, a reflection that the 36,000 vph high frequency chronograph will complete its rotation in 10 seconds thanks to constantly running 1/10th of a second hand that makes steady jumps in fixed increments reminding the wearer of the fleeting nature of time and the precision of the 5Hz movement within. Hence, the new Zenith Defy Skyline makes real the foundational ethos of the pocket watch: robust precision.
Available in three metallic dial options in black, blue, and silver, the new Defy
Skyline features a simplified case shape with a 12-sided bezel positioned to echo the hour markers. Delivered on a steel bracelet with a satin-brushed surface with chamfered and polished edges, seamlessly following the contours of the faceted ca se. A fourpointed star, echoing the old star that used to decorate the solid case backs, is cut or stamped into the dials in a monogram pattern that fills the face of the timepiece save, for the subsidiary seconds at nine o’clock.
THE ZENITH DEFY FAMILY IS HOME TO SOME
OF THE MAISON’S MOST EXPERIMENTAL WATCHES INCLUDING A SAPPHIRE ENCASED DOUBLE TOURBILLON WATCH. IT HAS ALSO SERVED AS A PLATFORM FOR
THE BRAND’S PERSPECTIVE ON GEOMETRIC, MULTIFACETED OCTAGONAL STEEL CASE WATCHES WITH ANGULAR 14-SIDED FIXED BEZELS.