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Khaleej Times
2 days ago
- Business
- Khaleej Times
Longines clocks in 100 years with Spirit Zulu Time 1925
Since its founding in 1832 in the sleepy Swiss village of Saint-Imier, Longines has blazed a trail characterised by accuracy, style, and the spirit of innovation. The watchmaker registered its winged hourglass emblem in 1889 — a symbol that stands as the oldest unchanged registered trademark in the world. And fittingly, it was Longines that also led the way in taming time zones for the wrist, with innovations dating as far back as the early 20th century. These included pocket watches for the Ottoman Empire in 1908 and a patented dual-time model in 1911. But it was in 1925 that the brand ushered in a new chapter, debuting its first dual-time wristwatch emblazoned with the Zulu flag — 'Zulu' being the military code for UTC+0, the universal time that binds air routes, oceans, and minds. The new Longines Spirit Zulu Time 1925, a reinterpretation that equally embodies the spirit of elegance and adventure, honours the brand's 100th anniversary of that milestone. The Spirit Zulu Time 1925 is housed in a 39mm stainless steel case. It has a sleek 13.5mm profile, and its bezel, which is bi-directional and capped in 18k rose gold and rubbed to a gentle sheen that catches light like the copper meridian strip at Greenwich it so poetically depicts, is what really makes this commemorative edition stand out. A light triangle at the top anchors the raw metallic warmth, which is devoid of ceramic sheen and carved with a 24-hour scale. It's a subtle design that you notice only after a second look, rather than one that aims to wow with loudness. Gilded Arabic numerals and sword-shaped hands, lavishly filled with Super-LumiNova, shine brilliantly against the matte black dial, which acts as a magnificent high-contrast stage that elevates every detail into sharp relief. A diamond-shaped hour marker motif adds architectural structure, while a sharp arrow-tipped GMT hand sweeps with confidence across the 24-hour scale. At six o'clock, a date aperture with a colour-matched disc nestles discreetly beneath five polished stars — Longines' own measure of excellence — and a subtle engraving of the years 1925-2025 as a centenary cue that doesn't need to shout to be heard. A LITERAL WINDOW The custom calibre L844.4 beats purposefully and precisely inside. Developed from the ETA A31.L411, this self-winding COSC-certified movement has a silicon balance spring for enhanced magnetism resistance and a strong 72-hour power reserve. Its mechanical heartbeat, which hums at 25,200 vibrations per hour, honours traditional craftsmanship while resonating with contemporary dependability. And for the first time in the Spirit Zulu Time collection, the caseback is sapphire, offering a view of the rose gold-toned rotor engraved with a world map and the Prime Meridian. It's a beautifully literal window into the watch's global soul. Rounding out the experience is a stainless-steel bracelet with quick-release versatility, and an additional black NATO strap for when the mood shifts from boardroom to backcountry. The Longines Spirit Zulu Time 1925 is more than a GMT. It's a century-old story that is masterfully narrated across two time zones.
Khaleej Times
23-05-2025
- Business
- Khaleej Times
Breguet marks 250th year with the single hand Classique Souscription 2025
Two-and-a-half centuries ago, Frenchman Abraham-Louis Breguet, considered one of the greatest watchmakers of all time, etched his name into the annals of horology with a series of technical triumphs that forever altered timekeeping. The tourbillon, the gong spring, the pare-chute shock protector, even the world's first wristwatch — Breguet's inventions were as poetic as they were revolutionary. More than just an inventor, Breguet was an artist and philosopher of time, wielding restraint and elegance in an era known for baroque excess. As Breguet's eponymous house readies itself for its 250th anniversary, it pays homage not with pomp or mechanical fireworks, but with a watch so pure, so quietly audacious, it could only have been conceived by the master himself. Enter the Classique Souscription 2025, a single-hand wristwatch that harks back to the original Souscription timepieces of the late 18th century. It is both a resurrection and a revelation. The original Souscription watch was born of necessity and genius. Returning to post-Revolution Paris in 1795, Breguet needed a way to rebuild. He conceived a subscription model: pay a quarter of the price upfront, and a simplified, robust timepiece would be made to order. Not only was it an early example of direct-to-consumer marketing, but it was also the democratisation of haute horlogerie. Large in diameter, legible in enamel, and novel in having a single hand, these watches became a touchstone for the collectors and the curious. The 2025 reinterpretation channels this legacy with finesse. The grand feu enamel dial is an ode to purity — crisp, radiant, and graced by a solitary, flame-blue Breguet hand, inarguably one of the most recognisable of watch hands. The Arabic numerals, inclined ever so slightly, whisper of another era, while the chemin de fer chapter ring brings structure to the minimalism. In this unconventional layout, time is measured not with to-the-second precision, but with elegant approximation: the hand sweeps across the dial in 12 hours, with five-minute intervals marked between the hours. Reading the time becomes an act of intuition rather than obsession, a quiet ritual for those who embrace time as a fluid presence, not a constraint. This is not a watch for the hyper-scheduled. It is for those who move to a slower rhythm, who understand that sometimes, not knowing the exact minute is a luxury unto itself. It is for the poets and the philosophers, the aesthetes and the artisans — for those who savour time, not chase it. The 40mm case is fashioned from a proprietary 18K 'Breguet gold', a warm, blush alloy that melds gold, silver, copper, and palladium — a modern interpretation of 18th-century metallurgy. Gone is the familiar fluting; in its place, there are a satin-brushed middle and gracefully curved lugs, lending the watch an intimacy with the wrist that's rare for something this steeped in tradition. And then there are the secrets on the dial — the almost invisible 'Souscription' and serial number engraved in enamel using a diamond-point pantograph, a nod to the brand's historic war against counterfeiting. As Breguet CEO Gregory Kissling aptly puts it, this watch bridges the history the brand wants to share with the future it desires to shape. And for Breguet, whose 'pomme' hands have become icons in the watch world, it is a statement that one hand is — and always has been — enough.
