W&W 2025: Zenith Celebrates 160th Anniversary With Trilogy of Most Famous Chronographs

A trilogy refers to a series of three different works that are linked together and can be considered either as a single work or as three separate works. 

You could be forgiven for thinking that this is already about the three new watches that the Swiss brand Zenith is presenting at Watches & Wonders 2025 to mark its 160th anniversary. 

And even if this – I must confess – Wikipedia entry actually describes objects from the visual arts, literature and the world of film, the Blue Ceramic Chronograph Trilogy – 160th Anniversary Edition from Zenith could hardly be described more aptly. 

Because, of course, it’s also about movements – chronograph movements to be precise. But it’s not only about movements, as the name suggests: these watches can be purchased individually or as an anniversary set. The timepieces were created where all Zenith watches have always come from: Le-Locle. The small town in the Nauenburg Jura, together with the neighbouring municipality of La Chaux-de-Fond, is considered the cradle of Swiss watchmaking – and is home to the Zenith manufacture.

Even if the brand’s fascination lies primarily in the legendary El Primero and its high level of chronograph expertise, it is well worth taking a look at the productive beginnings of the company, which was founded in 1865 by Georges Favre-Jacot. It is one of the oldest watch manufactures in Switzerland with vertical integration. This means, among other things, that all movements are produced in-house and only components such as hairsprings, rubies and screws are bought in.

Zenith, El Primero (and Rolex)

Legendary, revolutionary, incredible – these are just some of the superlatives attributed to the El Primero, the first automatic chronograph movement in watch history. This first grounder breaker appeared as early as 1969. With 5 Hertz or 36,000 vibrations per hour, it is a so-called high-speed oscillator, equipped with a ball-bearing rotor, column wheel control and horizontal clutch. 

At some point, even Rolex could not resist it, making use of a modified El Primero (Spanish for ‘The First’) in the Daytona chronograph in 1988 as part of the renaissance of mechanics in the watch world – which thus became an automatic model for the first time.

Thanks to Rolex’s high demand for this powerful and reliable automatic chronograph movement, El Primero production at Zenith resumed in full after it had initially been discontinued in 1975 at the height of the quartz crisis. It has not been stopped since, and today, the legendary calibre is almost synonymous with high-frequency timekeeping and an important pillar of Zenith’s image and success.

Zenith – A synonym for automatic chronographs in a class of their own

The actual triumph of the El Primero, and thus of Zenith as the master of automatic chronographs, began around two decades after the birth of the historic movement – and it has continued uninterrupted for more than three decades.

Thus, it comes as no surprise that Zenith has chosen three timepieces, each limited to 160 pieces with a stop function and automatic El Primero at its heart, as its anniversary edition, featuring dedicated cases made of radiant blue ceramic.

Chronomaster Sport 160th Anniversary Edition

The Blue Ceramic Chronograph Trilogy – 160th Anniversary Edition naturally includes a Chronomaster Sport. Zenith announced its claim to leadership in the field of chronographs with the launch of this model 2021. 

Romain Marietta, Products Development & Heritage Director Zenith, proudly announced at the launch: “The name Chronomaster Sport is an important and very strong name and means ‘Master of Chronograph’. I think the movement makes us one of the leaders in the chronograph segment. And we want the Chronomaster Sport to become the benchmark for chronographs.”

A year later, the brand’s CEO at the time, Julien Tornare, said: “With the Chronomaster Sport, we are celebrating the El Primero, so to speak.”

The anniversary model is equipped with a 41 mm ceramic case, water-resistant to ten bar, with pump-style pushers and faceted lugs. This protective case comes in a new blue colour that was specially developed for the anniversary trilogy.

The intense colour tone is taken up by the sunburst dial, which is adorned with the three-colour overlapping counters in Zenith’s characteristic 3-6-9 constellation. Faceted indices and hands coated with Superluminova complete the face of the Chronomaster Sport 160th Anniversary Edition. 

The precision presented there, including the central chronograph seconds hand, is generated by the El Primero 3600 at 36,000 vibrations per hour (5 Hertz). 

This can be admired through the sapphire crystal caseback. This reveals the satin-finished finishes as well as the column wheel, the horizontal clutch and the skeletonised oscillating weight with the engraved lettering ‘160th Anniversary’. The watch has a power reserve of 60 hours.

The Chronomaster Sport 160th Anniversary Edition comes with two bracelets: a blue ceramic bracelet with a ceramic folding clasp and a blue rubber strap with a stainless steel folding clasp. The price is 23,700 euros.

Defy Skyline Chronograph 160th Anniversary Edition

The first Defy of the modern era appeared in 2017. However, the first model with this name caused a sensation back in 1969. 1969? There was something there. That’s right. In that year, the El Primero was the first automatic chronograph movement to enter the world of watches. But not in a Defy. 

In 1969, this watch made a name for itself as a diver’s watch instead. Initially without a diving bezel and water-resistant to 30 bar, a few months later with a diving bezel and submersible to twice this depth. A new edition of the latter, the Defy Revival A3648, delighted the watch community last year.

This year, the Zenith manufacture is celebrating its 160th birthday with the Defy Skyline Chronograph. It shares with the Chronomaster Sport 160^th Anniversary Edition the blue ceramic for the 42 mm case with sapphire crystal caseback and also its inner workings in the form of the El Primero 3600, which means that the central chronograph seconds hand also completes a full rotation in ten seconds – six times faster than a standard chronograph.

The radiant blue of the case, which is water-resistant to ten bar, is echoed on the dial, whose engraved geometric motif is inspired by the brand’s four-pointed star. The hands and indices are coated with Super-LumiNova to ensure perfect readability at all times.

Equipped with a user-friendly strap changing system integrated into the case, the three-link ceramic strap can be easily exchanged for the blue rubber strap with star pattern and stainless steel folding clasp supplied at the touch of a button. The Defy Skyline Chronograph 160th Anniversary Edition is available for €24,800.

Pilot Big Date Flyback 160th Anniversary Edition

The Pilot is the Zenith collection with the longest history – and therefore naturally part of the trilogy celebrating the brand’s 160th anniversary. Its founder Georges Favre-Jacot secured the French term “Pilote” as early as 1888, followed by the English term “Pilot” in 1904. Zenith quickly became a renowned manufacturer of pilot’s watches and on-board instruments, which accompanied many famous adventurers in the early days of aviation. Among them was Louis Blériot, who was the first person to fly across the English Channel in 1909.In 2023, Zenith introduced the new, completely revised Pilot collection, which is now being expanded to include the Pilot Big Date Flyback 160th Anniversary Edition model. Lovers of the colour blue will also get their money’s worth here thanks to the 42.5-millimetre ceramic case with titanium crown and rectangular pushers.

The blue dial, which is also reminiscent of the corrugated metal outer layer of the legendary Junkers commercial aircraft, does justice to the name and history of the collection. The hands and numerals are coated with Superluminova for easy readability at all times. 

The El Primero 3652, which can be admired through the sapphire crystal, has a flyback function and a large date. Thanks to a patented mechanism, the date can be changed in a rapid 0.007 seconds.

The flyback feature deserves special mention. This allows a chronograph to be reset and restarted with a single movement. This gives pilots the opportunity to measure flight stages practically and quickly one after the other. This made it easier to navigate at high altitudes, especially in the pre-digital era. The 160 Pilot Big Date Flyback 160th Anniversary Edition watches are fitted with a blue rubber strap with Cordura effect and triple folding clasp. This can be easily exchanged for the white alternative included in the scope of delivery without tools. Price: €16,500.

Blue Ceramic Chronograph Trilogy – 160th Anniversary Edition

The three chronographs in Zenith’s 160th anniversary edition are limited to 160 pieces each and can be purchased individually or as an anniversary set. They are available in Zenith boutiques, online shops and from the manufacture’s authorised dealers worldwide.

For those who cannot decide on one of the exceptional chronographs, Zenith has developed a high-quality wooden box in which the blue anniversary timepieces can be stored appropriately.

zenith-watches.com