Zenith El Primero Jean-Louis Etienne Watch to Honor Bold Adventurer

Zenith has created a timepiece to honor Jean-Louis Etienne, the first explorer who performed a solo flight over the desert of ice in the North Pole in a balloon. During his unique flight, Jean-Louis Etienne had to face the most extreme conditions. The Poles have the most extreme temperatures: -45°C in the North and -65°C in the South.

The bold explorer and French doctor has recently presented a sneak preview of the Zenith watch held on an “Ice” theme and commemorating his incredible Arctic expedition. The presentation, sponsored by the Wall Street Journal, took place in Los Angeles.

For every expedition, Jean-Louis Etienne thoroughly prepared the equipment characterized by the highest level of reliability necessary to bring him back alive from the extreme environment. For Zenith, these extreme conditions are the best to test the reliability and resistance of its equipment.

The Zenith El Primero Jean-Louis Etienne watch is animated by the El Primero Striking 10TH movement, the only series-produced mechanical caliber that measures and displays up to 1/10th of a second. The legendary El Primero movement became the first ever in the world of horology to beat at 10 vibrations per second.

Sill representing the most sophisticated mechanical movement in the world, it guarantees outstanding precision. The watch equipped with the El Primero movement makes every 10th of a second visible. The movement of the El Primero Jean-Louis Etienne watch was designed in collaboration with the explorer and passed the most demanding reliability test, having crossed the Arctic Ocean on the wrist of the explorer.

The design of the new Zenith watch is dominated by two colors - ruthenium and black. The ruthenium color was inspired by so-called white nights, a period of the year when the sun never sets. As for the deep black shade, it symbolizes the polar night, when the sun never appears in the sky.

The face of the Zenith El Primero Jean-Louis Etienne watch is shielded by a curved crystal catching additional light onto the hands and three counters on the dial that offers supreme visibility even under reduced light conditions. You will notice a star on the tip of the direct-drive seconds hand. The star is the symbol of Zenith guiding all explorers - the North Star.

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