The Zenith G.F.J., with its bright blue lapis and mother-of-pearl dial, brickwork details and hero movement, quickly became the social media sensation of the 2025 Watches and Wonders, with journalists and collectors worldwide choosing it as a favorite. A few things account for the popularity of the watch, whose social media hits rivalled that of the new Rolex Oyster Perpetual Land-Dweller.
Foremost is the movement, a genuine milestone in watchmaking from the 1950s that gives the watch high credibility among collectors and adds not only cachet but value as a collectible. Caliber 135 is one of the legendary movements that entered and eventually won multiple prizes in the famous observatory chronometer competitions held in Neuchâtel and Geneva, Switzerland, as well as Kew Teddington in England, and Besançon, France, in the first part of the 20th century. The golden years of the competitions, which judged accuracy and reliability, were 1950 to 1954, just before the quartz revolution. Zenith’s caliber 135 was the star of that era, with five consecutive first prizes. Altogether, the movement received 235 chronometry prizes, a record in the history of watchmaking. The movement was discontinued in 1962, but Zenith’s revival of the caliber reproduces its basic architecture, including an outsize balance wheel for accuracy, while adding improved technology that increases the power reserve from 40 hours to 72 hours, along with its reliability and precision.
The name G.F.J. stands for Georges Favre-Jacot, who founded Zenith in 1865. In his endeavor to create “the perfect watch,” Favre-Jacot created movements that over the years won a total of 2,333 chronometry prizes, more than any other brand. The aesthetics of the watch is also a nod to the founder. Favre-Jacot, a stickler for vertical integration, opened a brick factory to supply the materials for building the Zenith manufacture, located in Le Locle, Switzerland. The brick pattern is engraved on the outer dial ring, on the center links of the bracelet and on the buckle of the strap version. The dial is another big draw. Blue is the dial color of the moment, but among the materials used to convey the color – which range from enamel and ceramic to simple embossing – nothing is more saturated and vibrant than the hardstone lapis lazuli. The center seconds – which is outsized on the dial to emphasize its accuracy – is mother-of-pearl that is dyed an equally striking blue color in another shade.
The G.F.J. is a 160-piece limited edition, celebrating the brand’s 160th anniversary, in a 39 mm platinum case. Strap options include a dark blue alligator strap, a black calfskin strap, a blue Saffiano calfskin strap or a seven-row platinum bracelet. It is priced at $49,900. The watch can be purchased as part of a boxed set that includes three other Zenith 160th anniversary pieces with cases and bracelets made of bright blue ceramic. They include the Chronomaster Sport 160th Anniversary Edition 41 mm ($22,700); the Defy Skyline Chronograph 160th Anniversary Edition 42 mm ($23,800); and the Pilot Big Date Flyback 160th Anniversary Edition 41 mm ($15,500).
This article was originally published on forbes.com and all figures are in USD.
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