Zenith is ending its year-long celebration of the El Primero’s 50th Anniversary by unveiling a unique platinum version of the product to be auctioned.
The watch will be auctioned during the Geneva Watch Auction X on November 9 & 10, 2019 at Hôtel La Réserve in partnership with Phillips in Association with Bacs & Russo.
The one-off creation celebrates the invention 50 years ago of the Zenith El Primero, the first ever automatic chronograph, with a surprising take on the iconic reference A386.
For the first time for an El Primero, the watch is made in PT 950 platinum, while in another first, the unique and precious dial is crafted from lapis lazuli, a vividly blue stone with flecks of gold.
The strap is made from calfskin for elegant simplicity, while the watch comes with a special 50-year international warranty.
According to Zenith, the final result is a visually captivating timepiece that is sure to please connoisseurs, enthusiasts and collectors.
Zenith CEO Julien Tornare said: “This will be the first and sole El Primero A386 in platinum and it is only fitting as we commemorate and celebrate a true breakthrough in the quest for precision in time measurement.”
Aurel Bacs, Senior Consultant of Bacs & Russo, added: “It was pure joy to work with the specialists at Phillips and the team at Zenith to explore the possibilities for realising a unique vision, creative and contemporary, that pushes the boundaries while respecting tradition.
“The result is quite becoming of the importance of the El Primero as a milestone in horology.”
The platinum El Primero will be unveiled on the eve of the auction, at a special event on November 8 at La Rèserve in Geneva, to crown the El Primero 50th Anniversary World Tour which travelled across 5 continents throughout 2019 in celebration of the first automatic chronograph in watchmaking history introduced in 1969.
