Chronomaster XXT Turbillon

Zenith Grande ChronoMaster XXT Tourbillon

The El Primero movement? An undisputed technical feat, acclaimed as the world's only chronograph with a heart beating at 36,000 vibrations per hour, thus enabling precision measurements to within the nearest tenth of a second.

The Tourbillon- the world's greatest horological complication, aimed at compensating for the effects of gravity by placing the escapement within a revolving carriage.

The waking dream of a brilliant mechanical specialist? To associate both concepts, thus defying the laws of cinetics. Logically speaking, since one draws energy from the dynamism of the other, the speed of the caliber should be significantly reduced.

After three years of research and development, the design-engineers and master-watchmakers of the Manufacture ZENITH have achieved the impossible: maintaining speed while preserving enough power to drive the tourbillon, and thus providing the calibre with a stable balance of energies. The Grande Chronomaster XXT Tourbillon was born.

And because one accomplishment often leads to another, a second patent has been filed right behind the first: the calendar disc is inserted between the bridge and the tourbillon carriage, turning in the opposite direction. That means that while the latter revolves in 60 seconds, the date changes at midnight in the opposite direction. A double "propeller " embodying a new kind of watchmaking genetics.

Symbolizing accelerated development, the "tourbillon" or whirlwind concept represents an extraordinary intervention in the customary cadence of things. At ZENITH; the tourbillon is upward-moving and represents the spiral of life, of accelerated progress; it disrupts the established equilibrium of linear time and sweeps us towards breaking with such patterns. That is exactly why, like a face painted by Picasso, the design of the Grande Chronomaster XXT Tourbillon is resolutely asymmetrical: the hour axis is not centered, and the hour-markers feature a crescendo movement towards the Tourbillon carriage which is set slightly to the left at 11 o'clock. The approach is resolutely modern In the white gold and black dial version, while the pink gold and guilloché dial model is in keeping with the noblest watchmaking traditions.

The engineering of this new 4005 movement, composed of 310 parts, is a source of endless fascination for the Cartesian mind. Meanwhile, the heart is immediately won over by the lyrical beauty of design at liberty. Through this virtuoso blend of technique and emotion, the Manufacture ZENITH has created its finest work ever.