The New Zenith Defy Extreme Lapis Lazuli

A powerful trend sweeping across the watch landscape is stone dials. Featured on everything from elegant dress watches to complications, there is no doubt that watches are living a second Stone Age. Celebrating its 160^th anniversary, Zenith jumps on the stone dial bandwagon with its most technologically advanced and avant-garde chronograph, the mighty Defy Extreme, decked out with lapis lazuli counters.

Zenith’s Defy Extreme collection, released in 2021, is a high-testosterone brother of the Defy family with a powerful, angular case. Extreme in all senses, right down to the dual regulating organ, the regulator for the timekeeping beats at 5Hz while the second one for the chronograph whizzes at 50Hz to capture 1/100^th-of-a-second chronograph readings.

Similar to the Defy Extreme x Carl Cox but with inverted finishings, the hefty 45mm case, with a thickness of 15.4mm and a lug-to-lug of 51mm, stands out with its mirror-polished steel case and contrasting microblasted yellow gold accents featured on the 12-sided bezel and the shields of the chronograph pushers flanking the screw-down crown, protective measures to ensure the 200m water-resistance.

The star of the show is the vibrant blue lapis lazuli stone selected for the counters. Speckled with random golden pyrite inclusions, no two dials will ever be the same. The tricompax lapis lazuli counters placed over the openworked movement  – small seconds at 9 o’clock, 30-minute counter at 3 o’clock, and 60-second counter at 6 o’clock –  are accompanied by a fourth stone counter at noon with the linear power reserve indicator. Matching the vibrant blue lapis lazuli, the 1/100^th-of-a-second chronograph scale is also blue. Like the yellow gold elements of the case, the hands, the indices perched on the flange, and the Zenith star in the power reserve counter are gold-plated; all the hands and indices have Super-LumiNova inlays, and the central chronograph seconds hand has the signature openworked star counterweight.

Powered by the El Primero 9004, this automatic calibre, with its independent high-frequency regulators, has a large star-shaped rotor. To ensure there is sufficient petrol in the tank to power both escapements, the double-barrel has a 50-hour capacity when the chronograph is not engaged.

Fitted with an interchangeable strap system, the Defy Extreme is delivered with a black embossed rubber strap, a black Velcro strap and a mirror-polished steel bracelet. The Defy Extreme Lapis Lazuli is a limited edition of 50 pieces and retails for CHF 32,900 or EUR 34,900. More information at zenithwatches.com.