Zenith

In Namibia, Alexandre Caizergues, a French sportsman and Zenith ambassador, has set a new world record. The kitesurfer managed to cross a legendary mark, having beaten the world speed sailing record - now it is raised to 100.19 km/h.

Alexandre Caizergues, a gifted sportsman and one of the best kitesurfers of his generation, came to the bay of Luderitz, Namibia, with an ambitious goal – he wanted to beat the previous world speed sailing record set in September 2008. Having trained for over a year, Alexandre finally reached his goal – he sailed at an average speed of 100.19 km/h over 500 meters.

The Swiss Manufacture Zenith is pleased to congratulate its ambassador on his remarkable record. The history of the brand is closely related to record-breaking performances on water.
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Since 1865, Zenith has cherished the tradition of introducing innovative mechanisms and groundbreaking timepieces. Now, the brand is pleased to reveal a new timepiece to join its highly successful Academy collection - the limited-edition Academy Zero-G watch that boasts Zenith’s revolutionary Zero-G Tourbillon.

The innovative Tourbillon Zero-G movement joined the world of watchmaking in 2008. The movement demonstrated a revolutionary self-regulating gyroscopic tourbillon carriage put on a cardan the same way as a marine chronometer. The gyroscopic carriage provided a flat position of the regulating organ, thus keeping the mechanism away from the gravity effects and significantly improving its accuracy.

The new Zenith Academy Zero Gravity Tourbillon watch demonstrates subtle aesthetic details and fine craftsmanship, including the stepped double-godrooned case, the sword-like hands, and the barleycorn and wave guilloche dial patterns. read more

Zenith is excited to present two new Left-Handed Captain Chronograph and Pilot Chronograph watches, created especially for the Only Watch 2011. With the winding crowns, placed at the left side, they are aimed at left-handed people, which constitute almost one quarter of the world population.

The first new Zenith watch, executed in gold, is developed for professional environment. The second one, clothed in steel, boasts a casual look and is more appropriate for leisure activities.

Inside the new Zenith Captain Chronograph and Pilot Chronograph watches is hidden the legendary El Primero calibre movement. Manufactured by the brand in 1969, it has gained the universal acclaim as the most precise series-produced mechanical calibre.

Each new Zenith watch is coupled with a leather strap, extremely comfortable to wear.
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Zenith has created a new timepiece reflecting classical styling and traditional values of the brand.

The new Elite Captain watch features a 40mm case sculptured in stainless steel or rose gold. The slightly domed sunray dial is synonymous to utmost elegance. It is completed with gently shimmering faceted applied indexes.

The heart of both Zenith watches is the brand’s in-house calibre Elite 670 Automatic movement. It incorporates 144 components and 27 jewels. Beating at 28,800 vibrations per hour, it provides a 50-hour power reserve.  read more

Yet, Zenith Chronomaster watches are created in the spirit of modernity, displaying such innovations as the opening in the dial over the movement's heart, the titanium chosen for the Concept model and the smile-like power reserve. This year Zenith has enriched its signature line by some novel features. read more

At Baselworld 2008, Zenith has unveiled a new Mega Port Royal Tourbillon. The watch reveals a tourbillon through a dial aperture, while the dial itself is covered with a grill, as though the creators of the timepiece wanted to put up an obstacle to admiring the complication.

The idea might have been suggested by the early wristwatches developed for soldiers in the first World War, with the grill protecting the glass crystal, or some of the earlier Cartier Pasha watches. The new Zenith Mega Port Royal Tourbillon features a black titanium case that goes on a striking rubber strap. The watch is equipped with the manufacture El Primero chronograph movement with its high-frequency tourbillon read more

The Zenith company was founded by Georges Favre-Jacot at the age of 22. The founder of the brand was one of the first watchmakers who came up with the idea of rationalizing the watch production with help of interchangeable parts read more

The Zenith legendary El Primero movement was premiered in 1969 as the first high-frequency mechanical automatic chronograph caliber to join the world of watchmaking. The initial El Primero chronograph movement has subtly evolved over the time, yet maintaining its signature features. Now, it is presented as an El Primero 469 calibre to animate a vintage-styled model with a distinctive contemporary touch.

The new Zenith watch, to join the New Vintage 69 Collection, pays tribute to the legendary caliber.

With a remarkable balance frequency of 36,000 vibrations per hour, the movement guarantees 1/10th of a second precision. The fully integrated design of the caliber requires a minimum of space and measures short times in the most reliable and accurate way.
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Calibre 135, one of Zenith’s most amazing movements, reflects the brand’s quest for creating highly accurate and reliable movements. Zenith has cultivated this tradition since the day it was founded in 1865. Its history has been highlighted by remarkably accurate pocket-watches, followed by wristwatches also characterized by outstanding accuracy.

The first Calibre 135 joined the world of watchmaking in 1948. The mechanism boasted a number of innovative and sophisticated technical peculiarities and was awarded with multiple highly coveted Neuchatel Observatory chronometry prizes, with record-breaking five years in a row in the period between 1950 -1954. The list of recognitions features about 200 individual awards, with two-thirds of them being first prizes, and five for series-honors.

Ephrem Jobin, born in 1909, the world’s oldest living watchmaker, celebrating his 100th birthday in November 2009, played an important role in the development of the brand. In the period between 1939 - 1954, the watchmaker worked on the development of three complete calibres, and the legendary Calibre 135 in particular. read more