Lot 254

Zenith

Super Sub Sea

A very attractive and rare vintage "Reverse-Panda" dial wrist chronograph

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According to renowned Zenith expert Manfred Rössler this is probably either a test piece or a prototype of reference A 277 with a misprinted minute counter displaying 45 minutes instead of 30 minutes. He illustrates and describes the timepiece on page 233 of his reference book "Zenith - Präzisionsuhren seit 1865" (Zenith precision watches since 1865), Ulm 2008.
This timepiece is original in all parts and extremely well preserved – the case remains unpolished and in excellent condition, the colour of the bezel is only very slightly faded. The luminous material of the hour hands and markers has taken on a greenish patina and creates an exciting, fresh contrast to the black dial.
This wrist chronograph is part of the first series which Zenith launched in the 1960s. It still has the five-pointed star on the crown, a second hand without luminous material and blued steel auxiliary hands; the movement is powered by calibre 146H, the predecessor of calibre 146HP. It was created by the Martel Watch company, which also produced movements for Universal Genève and was taken over by Zenith in 1960. Calibre 146 is one of the last Zenith manual-wound calibres before the El Primero era.
All in all, this is a one-of-a-kind wrist chronograph with a unique dial and a beautiful, gentle patina.