Oris Year of the Fire Horse Limited Edition

On 17 February 2026, the Chinese New Year kicks off with the Year of the Fire Horse, the seventh animal in the Chinese Zodiac and a symbol of power, speed and confidence. Echoing the attributes of the zodiac animal, Oris has equipped this 43mm stainless steel model with its powerful calibre 113, an advanced hand-wound movement with a mighty 10-day power reserve and a full business calendar indicating the day, date, week and month, an engine that’s been recently introduced in the Big Crown Business Calendar.

In keeping with Chinese cultural traditions, the dial flaunts a deep red tone with golden accents, symbolic colours associated with good fortune and prosperity. The business calendar is displayed on the dial with a 52-week calendar ring on the periphery, indicated by a gold-plated central pointer hand with a pink tip. The months are featured beneath the weeks, spelt out in full and placed between the applied indices and Arabic numerals 12 and 6.

The most eye-catching detail of the dial is the two recessed sub-dials at 9 and 3 o’clock, with their pronounced gradient effect transitioning from a lighter-coloured centre to an almost dark wine colour at the perimeter. Hosting the large date window, the small seconds counter at 9 o’clock is aligned with the power reserve indicator on the right, with the day of the week aperture placed in between the two.

Here, Oris has decided to have some fun and added two pink horses to indicate the remaining power reserve in the mainspring. The galloping horse at the top indicates a full 10-day tank, while the horse resting below indicates the watch needs winding. Unlike traditional linear power reserve indicators, this patented countdown gauge is managed by a worm gear, an exclusive Oris development found in its in-house calibres, controlling the speed at which the indicator moves around the dial.

Released in 2017 with the dressier Artelier series, calibre 113 is a member of the Oris calibre 100 series, the brand’s first modern in-house movement launched for its 110^th anniversary in 2014. Progressively adding complications and envisioned as a practical, office-oriented companion, the Calibre 113 incorporated a business calendar. Not the most frequent movement used at Oris, it reappeared earlier this year inside a lively-coloured Big Crown model.

The steel case of the Year of the Horse has a 43mm diameter, a thickness of 13.1mm, and a lug-to-lug span of 50.5mm, an undeniably large model designed, no doubt, to ensure that all the calendar functions have plenty of breathing room on the dial. Fitted with a domed anti-reflective sapphire crystal over the dial and water-resistant to 50 metres, there are no fiddly correctors in the caseband, and the functions can be conveniently controlled using the crown.

Compared to the recent Big Crown model, the Year of the Horse reverts to the more traditional layout of the first Artelier calibre 113 models, without a railway minute track, and the date window at 9 o’clock intersecting the running seconds dial. For a more elegant feel, the hour and minute hands with needle-like tips, the applied baton markers with dots and the hands in the two sub-dials are gold-plated. Visible on the caseback, the 34mm manual-winding calibre 113 beats at 21,600vph. Two brushed bridges give way to the large barrel and the balance wheel exposed in an aperture below.

In keeping with another Chinese tradition regarding the lucky number “8”, the Year of the Horse is a limited edition of 88 numbered pieces. Paired with a dark brown Shell Cordovan (horsehide) leather strap with a steel folding clasp, the watch is delivered in a wooden box and retails for CHF 6.650. More information at oris.ch.