ZENITH CHRONOMASTER REVIVAL A384 SHADOW

- IN MEMORY OF THE ONE THAT GOT AWAY

With suitably stealthy aesthetics the Zenith Chronomaster Revival Shadow continues the story of the marque’s acclaimed chronograph collection.

If you are an enthusiast of sporty timekeepers then you’ll already know that Zenith’s El Primero is considered by many to be the daddy of all chronograph calibres. Back in 1969, it became the first ever mechanical automatic chronograph, and in its design, it integrated the column-wheel mechanism within the calibre, rather than as an added-on timing module.

The chronology of this illustrious chronograph is a rich tale indeed and it features Zenith’s "ordinary hero" Charles Vermot as the main character. He is, of course, the vanguard who is credited with saving Zenith’s mechanical know-how when, during the quartz crises, he secretly squirrelled away everything which would be needed to continue mechanical watch production when the time was right.

In 1984, having been abandoned for almost ten years Zenith re-awakened their El Primero collection, and they have refined and nurtured it ever since.

The Zenith Chronomaster Revival Shadow becomes the latest piece to be equipped with one of the Manufacturer’s precision chronograph calibres. Exhibiting eye-pleasing vintage design references, it also has an interesting backstory,

Back in 1970, Zenith created a prototype of a manual-winding chronograph which, unusually, had a blackened steel case. The model was never released commercially and the mythical timepiece was resigned to Zenith’s historical records. Until that is, an original prototype of that curious black chronograph was uncovered in the run-up to the 50th birthday of the El Primero.

In the creation of the El Primero Revival Shadow, Zenith considered “what may have been”. While they leaned heavily on the darkened aesthetics of the prototype piece, they shunning blackened steel in favour of a 37mm microblasted titanium case for the Revival Shadow. Adhering to this shadowy aesthetic, the matte black dial is equipped with a grey tachymeter scale and counters. SuperLuminova ensures legibility after dark.

While the historically important blackened steel model had a manual-wind movement, the new Zenith Chronomaster Revival Shadow is powered by the automatic in-house El Primero 4061. Beating at 36.000vph the impressive architecture of the movement is compelling and can be appreciated through the sapphire caseback.

The Zenith El Primero Chronomaster Revival Shadow comes presented on a black rubber strap with white stitching and a titanium pin buckle.

Fact File: Zenith El Primero Chronomaster Revival A384 Shadow

REFERENCE: 97.T384.4061/21.C822
MANUFACTURER: Zenith
CASE: Black titanium, micro-blasted finish, sapphire caseback
SIZE: ø 37 mm
THICKNESS: 12.6 mm
DIAL: Matte black dial, dark grey sub-dials, .
MOVEMENT: Zenith Automatic El Primero 4061 in-house Calibre with integrated column-wheel chronograph.
FUNCTIONS: Hours, minutes, small seconds, chronograph with 12-hour and 30-minute counters
POWER RESERVE: 50 hours
BRACELET/STRAP: Black rubber strap with white stitching
BUCKLE: Titanium pin buckle
WATERPROOF CHF 8,400