The Glashütte Original Sixties Chronograph Annual Edition 2021

Move over blue, here comes green. And when Glashütte Original interprets the colour green, the result is sensational. Never afraid of playing with colours in its Sixties and Seventies collections, GO has come up with one of the most singular green dials on the market with its launch of the Sixties Annual Edition in 2018. This year, the eye-catching green dégradé (aka gradient) dial enlivens the Sixties Chronograph Annual Edition 2021.

The Sixties collection takes its retro design cues from some of the more flamboyant Spezimatic watches produced in Glashütte in the 1960s during the GDR chapter of Glashütte. Compared to the regular silver and black dials of the Sixties chronograph in the permanent collection, the Sixties Annual Editions stray off the beaten track of highbrow, classical Saxon watchmaking. 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 from its Sixties collection. Although they are not limited editions, the Annual Editions are only produced for one year. To date, we’ve seen the Green, Fiery Orange and Glacier Blue models.

groovy green dial

One advantage of using GO’s dégradé dial on time-only watches is that you get the full gradient effect as the colour transitions from a lighter shade in the centre to a more intense, darker shade on the periphery. Difficult to describe, the final effect of the green dégradé reminds me of green raindrops trickling down a windowpane.

As one of the few manufactures with its own dial manufacture, Glashütte Original can experiment freely. The textured green dial starts life as a silver blank. To create the irregular rippled surface on the dial, the blank is embossed with a pattern using a 60-tonne press followed by a second press to create the characteristic domed shape of the dial. After it has been galvanised, coats of green lacquer are applied to the dial. To achieve the gradient effect, Pforzheim’s dial makers hand-spray black paint on the perimeter before it’s popped in the kiln.

Chronograph

The 42mm stainless steel case has a slim height of 12.4mm and features vintage piston-style chronograph pushers. The problem with using a spectacular gradient dial on a chronograph is that the counters can interrupt the flow. However, the clean symmetrical two-counter layout (small seconds at 3 and 30-minute elapsed times at 9 o’clock with snailed interiors) provides minimum interference. Like other Sixties Annual Editions, the indices are milled into the dial to expose the underlying silver and the retro Arabic numerals at 12 and 6 o’clock along with the white minutes track are pad printed. The indices and the bent minute and central seconds hands follow the curvature of the dial. In contrast, the minutes track and the hand-applied Super-LumiNova dots are perched on the slope of the domed dial where the green colour intensifies to almost black. The baton hour and minute hands also have luminescent inlays.

Calibre 39-34

Thanks to the curved sapphire crystal glass on the caseback, not only does the watch sit comfortably on the wrist, but it also reveals the manufacture automatic movement. Based on GO’s calibre 39 architecture, the modular chronograph movement beats at 28,000vph and delivers a 40h power reserve. Decorated to GO’s high standards, including the classic three-quarter plate with Glashütte stripes, a swan-neck fine adjustment, a skeletonised rotor with double-G logo and 21k gold oscillating mass, bevelled edges and polished steel parts.

Availability & Price

The Sixties Chronograph Annual Edition 2021 comes with a brown nubuck calfskin strap with beige stitching and a pin buckle. The watch will be available for one year and retails for EUR 8,200 (incl. VAT).

For more information, please visit www.glashuette-original.com.