Zenith Chronomaster Shadow original prototype circa 1970 – Photo by Zenith. It was agreed that the timing was perfect to complete the black chronograph project that had begun almost 50 years ago - and the “Shadow” was born. According to Zenith, longtime employees had heard of and even seen the rare prototype, despite few records existing about the so-called “mystery” watch.įast forward to last year when Zenith began celebrating the 50th anniversary of the famous 5Hz El Primero chronograph, and as the story goes, the team at the manufacture in Le Locle, Switzerland went into a secret walled-off attic where the company’s founder Charles Vermot had once hidden all the plans and parts necessary to produce the El Primero movement.Īmong countless artifacts was a box containing the original prototype of the black chronograph that reportedly had not been seen by anyone since the early 1970s.
Only a limited number were ever made and the timepiece was never brought to market. Shortly after Zenith debuted the automatic El Primero movement in 1969, the company produced a prototype manual-winding chronograph - in a blackened steel case. Inspired by a black chronograph prototype from 1970, the Chronomaster Revival Shadow is presented in an A384 case, Zenith’s first watch to house the El Primero.
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