Make a super statement of true elegance with the Spirit Zulu Time 1925

The Herald Scotland

3 days ago

This exceptional wristwatch marks the centenary of Longines' first dual-time zone watch – a timepiece forged not only from steel and gold but from a heritage of innovation, adventure and connection across meridians.
Now available at Longines' Glasgow boutique, the Spirit Zulu Time 1925 is priced at £3,750 and represents a meeting of fine engineering and cultural resonance.
Launched with British actor and Longines Ambassador of Elegance, Henry Cavill, the campaign evokes a single poignant question: What time is it there?
There is no doubt Cavill has become the ideal modern-day avatar for a watch that connects distant geographies with elegance and technical rigour.
'It gives me, at a glance, that immediate connection with [loved ones],' says the actor, noting how the timepiece offers more than functional precision – but also continuity in a fractured world.
The Spirit Zulu Time 1925 is far from a mere homage. It is a distillation of Longines' long-standing dedication to horological accuracy and innovation across borders.
Universal reference
IN 1925, Longines introduced its first dual-time zone wristwatch, the original "Zulu Time", whose dial was adorned with the maritime signal flag for the letter 'Z' (Zulu) – a reference to Greenwich Mean Time), the universal reference used by aviators and mariners alike.
To celebrate the centenary, Longines has crafted a 39-mm stainless steel case fitted with a bidirectional rotating bezel. A first for the Spirit Zulu Time collection, the bezel features an 18K rose gold cap with a circular-brushed insert and engraved 24-hour graduations.
It allows for the simultaneous reading of a third time zone—an increasingly valuable function for today's cosmopolitan traveller.
The use of rose gold not only adds warmth but subtly nods to the copper strip embedded in the ground at the Royal Observatory in Greenwich—literal and symbolic grounding for the Prime Meridian.
The dial is a masterclass in functional elegance. Matt black, it creates visual drama against rose-gold-coloured hands and indexes.
Treated with Super-LumiNova®, they glow softly in low light, ensuring legibility in even the most far-flung cockpit or cabin.
Five stars rest just above the six o'clock marker, a traditional Longines motif signifying the highest quality movements – accompanied by a discreet date window and a commemorative engraving of the years '1925 – 2025'.
Turn the watch over and you'll find another first: a transparent case back revealing a rose-gold-coloured PVD rotor engraved with a planisphere crossed by the Prime Meridian.
Inside beats the Longines calibre L844.4, a COSC-certified self-winding mechanical movement with a silicon balance spring that makes it up to ten times more resistant to magnetic fields than ISO standards demand.
The watch's true significance, however, transcends technical detail. It stands as a continuation of Longines' commitment to making time visible, navigable and shared.
From the brand's early 'Turkish Watches' in 1908, made for the Ottoman Empire, to cockpit clocks used by pioneering aviators like Clyde Pangborn and Hugh Herndon, Longines has placed itself at the axis of geographical timekeeping.
In recent years, the Spirit Zulu Time line has evolved to accommodate the needs of a new generation of travellers, explorers and aesthetes.
Available now in Glasgow
THAT the Spirit Zulu Time 1925 is now available in Glasgow is not merely a retail announcement – it is an invitation.
Whether worn under the cuff of a three-piece suit or over the sleeve of a flight jacket, this watch speaks the quiet, articulate language of refinement and purpose.
For those who value not only where they are but where they've been – and those they hope to meet across the world's meridians – the Longines Spirit Zulu Time 1925 offers something few watches can: elegant precision wrapped in living history.
www.longines.com