Glashütte Original Sixties and Sixties Chronograph Annual Edition 2020, in Glacier Blue

Glashütte Original watches are often very serious, sometimes a bit austere (in a good way actually, as it is part of their Saxon charm) and always beautifully executed. There’s no denying the instant quality feel of a watch produced by GO. A couple of years ago, the brand came up with a new concept known as “Annual Editions”, a more colourful and bolder offering of watches based on the Sixties collection. After nice green and fiery orange models, they’re back again this year. Meet the new Glashütte Original Sixties and Sixties Chronograph Annual Edition 2020, in Glacier Blue.

The concept of “Annual Editions” is pretty cool and every year the brand produces a couple of distinctive watches that aren’t limited in production or numbers, but that will only be available for a year. Launched in 2018 with the Textured and Green Sixties Annual Edition, followed by equally textured but now Fiery Orange watches in 2019, the brand is bringing a softer take for its Sixties Annual Edition 2020. No more bright colours, but something more toned down, but no less original. And also, there’s an unprecedented model for this Annual Edition.

The main point of interest in the Glashütte Original Sixties Annual Edition is the dial, which is unique to these models. The 2020 model has been inspired by the colours of the Alps and its glaciers, their clarity and their reflections. The result is a delicate but still rather striking glacier-blue colour, a light, not too saturated blue colour, with a soft dégradé (gradient) effect.

As always with Glashütte Original, some intensive work was done to achieve these dials, which are produced in-house in the Pforzheim-based dial manufacturer. The dial blanks are first given a sunray finish before being pressed into their characteristic domed shape and given a galvanic nickel coating. To achieve the striking dégradé effect they are then sprayed with dark blue lacquer, which gives them a dark edge. Then the entire surface of the dial is given a coat of glacier blue lacquer. This elaborate hand-crafting results in the individual colour gradient that renders each unique. In a final step, the dials are heated in an oven to burn in the colours, before the incised indexes (which aren’t applied, but sculpted into the metal), printed numerals and Super-LumiNova are executed.

On the contrary to the 2018 Green and 2019 Orange versions, comprised of a 39mm time-only and a 42mm Panorama Date model, the Sixties Annual Edition 2020 welcomes a new member, the 42mm chronograph. Of course, the classic time-only 39mm watch is still present in this year’s collection.

Both watches share the same overall design, with a case inspired by 1960s GUB watches – which we explored in this comparative article. The case has interesting shapes and is domed both top and bottom. The upper surface relies on an ultra-curved sapphire crystal, which follows the curvature of the dial and the hands. The caseback is equally domed, thanks to a curved sapphire crystal, offering a clear view on the movement (even on the side of the movement) as well as making the caseband thinner.

The Sixties Annual Edition 2020

A well-known model, the time-only version comes in a relatively thin and compact 39mm stainless steel case with short lugs and great comfort on the wrist. It is paired with a brown-grey nubuck calfskin strap with lightly contrasting stitching and a pin buckle. The strap matches very well with the light blue dial.

This 39mm version of the Sixties Annual Edition 2020 is powered by the in-house calibre 39-52, a reliable and tested movement that is the cornerstone of simpler watches at GO. Yet, it is nicely decorated with bevelled edges, striping and a double-G oscillating weight with a solid 22k mass. This time-only movement runs at 4Hz and stores 40 hours of power reserve.

Specs: 39mm diameter x 9.4mm height – stainless steel case, polished – sapphire crystal front and caseback – 30m water-resistant – Calibre 39-52, automatic, in-house – 28,800vph, 40h power reserve, hours, minutes, seconds – domed dial, glacier blue lacquer with dégradé effect – brown-grey nubuck calfskin, pin buckle – reference 1-39-52-14-02-04 – produced in 2020 only

The Sixties Chronograph Annual Edition 2020

The newcomer to this Annual Edition is based on an already existing model, the Sixties Chronograph. Larger, as it measures 42mm in diameter, it still comes in a compact and well-proportioned stainless steel case with vintage-inspired pump pushers. It is also worn on a nice brown-grey nubuck calfskin strap. Given the extra complication, the dial is more complex, with two large sub-counters – one for the small seconds, one for the minutes.

Powering this watch is a modular chronograph movement, still based on the Calibre 39 architecture, the Calibre 39-47. As such, its specifications and look through the caseback are identical to the time-only model above.

Specs: 42mm diameter x 12.4mm height – stainless steel case, polished – sapphire crystal front and caseback – 30m water-resistant – Calibre 39-47, automatic modular chronograph, in-house – 28,800vph, 40h power reserve, hours, minutes, seconds – domed dial, glacier blue lacquer with dégradé effect – brown-grey nubuck calfskin, pin buckle – reference 1-39-34-04-22-02 – produced in 2020 only

Price and availability

The new Glashütte Original Sixties and Sixties Chronograph Annual Edition 2020 Glacier Blue will be only produced for a year and is already available at some Glashütte Original Boutiques and selected retailers worldwide. The Sixties 39mm will be priced at EUR 6,600 and the Sixties Chronograph will be priced at EUR 8,100.

More details at www.glashuette-original.com.