Designed to let you ease your way through time zones and appear in the boardroom after a dip in the ocean, the self-winding Z4 is a watch that minds its own business and minds it well.

Harry Winston’s ideal traveller’s watch is the fourth in the Project Zalium series, launched by Ronald Winston in 2004 as “watches of finesse and force.”

The 44mm case accommodates two separate hour-and-minute dials for your business and leisure time. The associated graphic displays of daytime and nighttime, for each time zone, reveal, at a glance, when to place calls around the globe.

By pressing the repeater-style trigger on the left side of the case, you can click from one time zone to the next.

The easy-to-read date, quick-set by the crown, is framed vertically in the interplay of discs for the minute display and hour.

Completing the indicators is the tiny rotating shuriken symbol — a multi-bladed throwing weapon, a feature of all Project Z watches — which shows that the movement is functioning normally.

The sophisticated time-zone module was constructed in-house by Harry Winston on a robust, self-winding calibre.

Blue on carbon black or white on anthracite grey balance clarity and discretion on four levels of the dial.

Zalium is the hard, light, zirconium alloy of which Z watches are crafted. Developed for use in jet engines, its hypo-allergenic properties and extreme resistance to corrosion make it ideally suited for watchcases. Its hue is a matte battleship grey with a celestial lustre and a dark, sophistcated gleam. The case has mobile lugs for comfort on the wrist, and those “in the know” will recognise Harry Winston’s emblematic motif protecting the crown.

Harry Winston is producing a limited edition of 300 Z4 watches. As an embodiment of Harry Winston’s promise to deliver “nothing but the exceptional,” this elegant and beautifully crafted watch is well-deserving of its place among the Project Z models.

Reference	:	400/MATZ44ZC.K1
Movement	:	Self-winding, Cal. GP 3196
Balance	:	28,800 v/h
Power reserve	:	45 hours
Jewel bearings	:	35 rubies
Indications	:	Two independently set hours and minutes dials; two 24-hour discs showing day and night; vertical date indication; rotating shuriken symbol in lieu of small seconds
Controls	:	Trigger in the caseband at 10 o’clock to set the hours of the second time zone; three-position crown
Case	:	Zalium, 44mm x 11,12mm with mobile lugs
Strap	:	Black natural rubber
Water resistance	:	100m (10ATM)

The fundamental design of the Project Z series has survived bewildering changes in fashion. The 44mm case exhibits intensity without being aggressive — even in a formal suit, you can wear its most technically surprising dials. The emblematic arches of Harry Winston’s Manhattan showroom discreetly protect the crown, and the Zalium gleams as if with hidden life.

Zalium was developed by Ronald Winston, a noted chemical engineer, who, like his father, Harry Winston, knew how to distinguish a great diamond from a good one. As an MIT (Massachusetts Institute of Technology) researcher of rocket propellants, he became an expert in the special zirconium alloys used in jet and rocket engines. He realized that a metal that could withstand superheated corrosive gasses in the high-stress interior of a rocket motor would be perfect for the creation of an indestructible wristwatch. In addition, zirconium is non-reactive and hypo-allergenic (it is used to make surgical implants and instruments), harder than titanium and almost as light. Its lustre hints at the fact that it is more commonly found on the moon than on Earth. Ronald Winston identified one zirconium alloy that seemed to give off a special gleam. He named it Zalium for zirconium (Zr) and the allium lily.

In 2004, Harry Winston unveiled Project Zalium to produce watches based on innovative designs and a material never before used in watchmaking. The Z1 self-winding chronograph, with its triple retrograde indications, established the theme for the subsequent annual series of Z watches — high technology with practical utility and groundbreaking designs that remained true to the heritage of traditional watchmaking.

The second year took the Z concept a step further — or deeper — with the first Zalium diver’s chronograph, water-resistant to 200 metres. This use-designed watch is a fine example of form accommodating function in handsome style — toughness and dependability within a unidirectional bezel set in platinum. The blend of rare metals and a natural rubber wrristband heralded the fusion of materials that have, since, become a regular feature of sports watches.

Demonstrating how a sound basic concept can spark a designer’s imagination, the Z3 extended Project Z’s range of expression to that of a self-winding tourbillon with an offset chapter ring at 12 o’clock for the hours and minutes. The Z3 offered a choice between two styles — Sport and Vintage — to show how a few details can transform the character of a watch. Its movement was developed with Peter Speake-Marin, a highly regarded English watchmaker, well-established on the shores of Lake Geneva. Noted for his flair and attention to detail, Peter previously developed Harry Winston’s manually wound Excenter Tourbillon.