(PRESS RELEASE) The 20th anniversary of Spring Drive is celebrated this year with a new design in Grand Seiko’s sport collection that showcases the watches’ capabilities to withstand the most demanding sport environment. The design brings a new edge to the collection with its sharp corners and bold case and a new creation celebrates the anniversaries of both Spring Drive and Japan’s iconic monster, Godzilla, in a striking commemorative edition.
Grand Seiko and Godzilla share an unlikely but common history. Godzilla made its debut in Japan in 1954 and it was in this first Godzilla film that the creature appears in Ginza, the birthplace of Seiko, and destroys the famous clock tower which rises above the Wako store, a retail establishment of Seiko’s that first opened its doors in 1952.
The strength of the Grand Seiko watch is met with the power and force of the king of monsters and with it a brand new creation in the sport collection is born.
Godzilla, the King of All Monsters
The creature makes its fierce presence on the watch in a number of ways. Godzilla’s signature roar and the “heat ray beam” that it shoots from his mouth to strike his opponents is expressed in the rays of the red dial. The shark strap is applied black and red to re-create the tone and rough texture of the monster’s skin. Most notably, the strong angular case of the watch brings to life the magnitude of Godzilla.
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A Celebration of Spring Drive and a nNew Level of Performance for Sport
The watch carries Spring Drive Caliber 9R15 and has high shock and temperature resistance. It is also specially adjusted to have an enhanced precision of 0.5 second a day. The design of the hands as well as the Lumibrite on the hands, hour markers and bezel, and the high definition dual-curved sapphire crystal with anti-reflective coating all allow for enhanced legibility making it the perfect watch for any sports situation. Thanks to the curve of the lugs and the low center of gravity of the case the watch sits comfortably on any wrist.
The design of Godzilla is an original made exclusively for the commemorative piece.
Two Icons on the See-Through Case Back
The see-through case back is stamped with the scene where Godzilla destroys the iconic clock tower that had long been the symbol of the area and still stands today at the main intersection of the Ginza district. Its design pays homage to the Grand Seiko lion and is illustrated by Shinji Higuchi, co-director and special effects director for the movie “Shin Godzilla” (2016). Shinji Higuchi comments, “just as the lion is the king of beasts, Godzilla, the king of monsters, would be appropriate for the case back of this Grand Seiko watch. I wanted to create a completely new Godzilla and gave my best to design this in the image of what can be called ‘Grand Godzilla.’”
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The watch will be available as a limited edition of just 650 in November, 2019 at selected Grand Seiko and Seiko boutiques and selected retail partners across the world.
Godzilla 65th Anniversary Limited Edition
- Spring Drive 9R15
- Driving System: Automatic
- Power reserve: 72 hours
- Accuracy: ±0.5 second per day (±10 seconds per month)
- Number of jewels: 30
Specifications:
- High-intensity titanium case
- Sapphire crystal bezel
- High definition dual-curved sapphire crystal with anti-reflective coating
- See-through screw case back, Screw-down crown
- Diameter: 44.5mm, Thickness: 14.3mm
- Water resistance: 20 bar
- Magnetic resistance: 4,800 A/m
- Shark strap with three-fold clasp with push button release
Approximate recommended retail prices in Europe: €12,700
Limited edition of 650