Front view
Dial, hands and bezel as delivered.
Case-back view
Case-back engraving and, where fitted, the sapphire display.
Movement
Calibre with its finishing and decoration.
On the wrist
Worn shot for proportion and strap drape.
Zenith · Defy
Zenith Defy 37 mm Mother-of-pearl Carbon
Reference 21029OR.24
Reference at a glance
- Brand
- Zenith
- Collection
- Defy
- Model
- Zenith Defy 37 mm Mother-of-pearl Carbon
- Reference number
- 21029OR.24
- Year / era
- 1983 · 1980s — quartz-crisis era
- Complication
- Minute repeater
- Movement
- In-house automatic chronograph
- Case material
- Carbon TPT
- Dial type
- Mother-of-pearl
- Strap / bracelet
- White rubber velcro strap
- Water resistance
- 300 m
- Limited-edition status
- Regular production, not a limited edition
Case, dial & bracelet
- Case dimensions
- 37 mm
- Case thickness
- 11.3 mm
- Case material
- Carbon TPT
- Bezel
- Smooth polished
- Crystal
- Box sapphire with AR coating
- Dial
- Mother-of-pearl
- Hands
- Faceted dauphine hands, polished by hand
- Indexes
- Applied faceted white-gold indexes
- Bracelet / strap
- White rubber velcro strap
- Clasp / buckle
- Triple-folding clasp with safety catch
- Water resistance
- 300 m
Movement
- Movement / calibre
- Calibre 87B — In-house automatic chronograph
- Movement type
- Manual-winding
- Frequency
- 21,600 vph (3 Hz)
- Power reserve
- 45 hours
- Number of jewels
- 21 jewels
- Complications
- Minute repeater
- Functions
- Perpetual calendar, leap year
- Watchmaker
- Finishing, assembly and timing are carried out in the manufacture's own atelier.
Production & market
- Production period
- 1983 – 1995
- Limited-edition quantity
- Not applicable
- Current market information
- Trades close to retail on the secondary market, with steady demand for full-set examples.
Designer
Marc Newson
Marc Newson is an Australian industrial designer whose work spans Qantas cabins, Apple hardware and Jaeger-LeCoultre's Atmos clocks; his watch design reduces the object to pure geometry and legibility.
Historical significance
Zenith Defy 37 mm Mother-of-pearl Carbon sits within Zenith's Defy line, introduced in 1983. It carries the house codes established since 1865 — carbon tpt case, mother-of-pearl dial and in-house automatic chronograph — and is one of the references collectors use to date the evolution of the collection.
Interesting facts
- The movement's bridges are decorated even where they will never be seen once the watch is cased.
- The case is finished by hand, alternating polished and satin-brushed surfaces in a single pass so the edges stay razor sharp.
- The bracelet tapers across its length, which is why the profile looks thinner on the wrist than the specification suggests.
The House
Zenith
Brand facts
- Founding year
- 1865
- Founder
- Georges Favre-Jacot
- Headquarters
- Switzerland
- Tier
- Luxury
- Major collections
- El Primero, Chronomaster, Defy, Pilot, Elite
- Signature technologies
- Proprietary case-hardening and polishing · In-house hairspring production · Certified chronometer regulation
- Famous movements
- In-house automatic, Superlative Chronometer · In-house automatic, chronometer certified · In-house manual-winding · In-house automatic chronograph
- Notable watches
- Zenith El Primero 42 mm Slate Platinum (1954) · Zenith El Primero 42 mm Mother-of-pearl Ceramic (1965) · Zenith El Primero 41 mm Skeletonised Sapphire (1975) · Zenith El Primero 40 mm Silvered 18k (1995)
Brand history
Zenith has spent more than 161 years refining a single idea: a watch should outlive its owner. From the earliest workshop pieces to today's El Primero, the house has balanced technical ambition with a recognisable design language, and its collections remain among the most closely followed by collectors worldwide.
Georges Favre-Jacot established Zenith in 1865, working from Switzerland at a time when precision was measured by hand. The founder's obsession with finishing and accuracy still defines every Zenith calibre produced today.
Historical milestones
1865
Georges Favre-Jacot founds Zenith in Switzerland.
1899
Zenith earns its first international recognition for precision timekeeping.
1969
The quartz era forces Zenith to redefine mechanical watchmaking.
1990
Zenith enters the modern collector market with its signature lines.
2024
Zenith continues to produce El Primero, Chronomaster, Defy and other icons in limited numbers.