Citizen Celebrates 55 Years of Titanium Innovation

In a world of endless options and endless designs, it’s genuinely appreciated whenever a brand narrows its aperture and demonstrates a steadfast focus on mastering a medium. I was reminded of this last week while looking at a rock. Well, it’s more than just any rock, as it turns out, it’s actual titanium sponge foraged from the ground. I was at an event for Citizen, the brand that introduced the first titanium watch to the market fifty-five years ago and continues to innovate in watchmaking with this remarkable material. The rock could have easily been confused with an objet d’art (we were in a Chelsea gallery, after all), but instead, it forms the basis for an entire line of watches and has become synonymous with the brand.

To celebrate the fifty-fifth anniversary, Citizen organized an engaging and informative exhibition called “Super Titanium: The Beauty of Time.” Titanium, as I would soon discover in much greater detail, is far more than just a rock.

The History: Pioneering Titanium in Watchmaking

Citizen revolutionized the watchmaking industry in 1970 with the launch of the X-8 Chronometer, the world’s first titanium watch. The name X-8 carries a special meaning – X represents the unknown, while 8 represents the infinity symbol (∞), conveying the endless possibilities of titanium. 

Recognizing titanium’s immense potential long before it became a watchmaking staple, Citizen was among the first to harness its exceptional corrosion resistance and lightweight properties, qualities previously reserved for aerospace and medical applications. Despite titanium’s early challenges, such as difficulty in machining and polishing, Citizen persevered, refining their expertise and developing advanced surface-hardening treatments.

The brand continued to innovate throughout the decades. In 1987, Citizen launched the first ATTESA model, which utilized new processing technology to give titanium a soft metallic glow. This resulted in an elegant business watch – a departure from the rough, matte finish standard for titanium watches at the time. 

The year 2000 marked the beginning of the Super Titanium era with the ASPEC World Time, the first model to feature Super Titanium treated with Duratect, Citizen’s proprietary surface hardening technology. This innovation culminated in the creation of Super Titanium, a next-generation material strengthened with Duratect technology, setting new industry standards in resilience. Super Titanium delivers exceptional scratch resistance and all-day comfort as a material that is five times harder and 40% lighter than stainless steel.

Citizen continued pushing boundaries with the 2006 Promaster Eco-Drive radio-controlled watch, introducing Duratect MRK+DLC double surface hardening technology. In 2016, they launched the delicate Duratect Sakura pink, inspired by cherry blossoms, and in 2018, the Ultra-thin Eco-Drive One with an incredible thickness of just 3.53 mm. The brand’s commitment to innovation continued with gold-colored Duratect MRK in 2019, Recrystallized Titanium in 2022, and the unique Duratect DLC Blue the same year, which brings us to today.

Modern Day Developments In Titanium

It’s one thing to make titanium watches and to make the movements that power them, and Citizen has that covered, but did you know that Citizen also manufactures the machines that craft the watches from titanium? Their dedication to working with this special material includes leading the industry in figuring out how to use titanium in modern watchmaking. 

To learn more about it, I had the opportunity to sit down with Mr. Kazuma Sato, who traveled from Japan for the event. As an expert in the field responsible for developing the new colorways for Super Titanium, he shared insights into his creative process. A fan of antiques and vintage aesthetics, he aimed to create a color that wasn’t gaudy or flashy —a goal he and his team certainly achieved, letting functionality inform design, not the other way around.

Throughout the exhibition and conversations with Mr. Sato, I learned about the development of titanium through Citizen’s history and specifically about the creation of Duratect Amber Yellow. The exhibition displayed about 40 titanium samples used to define the exact color of the watch. All of them looked identical to the naked eye. A microscope invited closer inspection, revealing subtle differences between samples. Even more astonishing was how, under just 4x magnification, the untreated titanium appeared scratched and imperfect, while to the naked eye, it seemed smooth.

The Duratect Amber Yellow

Citizen’s latest innovation is Duratect Amber Yellow, a warm yet understated golden hue that complements all skin tones, suits any occasion, and embodies a sophisticated aesthetic for the modern wearer who values both style and substance. At the core of this innovation is Citizen’s Duratect surface-hardening technology, which enhances the hardness and color of the metal through multiple coatings applied to the base titanium. The brand’s manufacturing process was meticulously refined to create the most enduring shade that sets itself apart from conventional gold colors, offering a distinctive and versatile look.

Duratect Amber Yellow is created using a niobium-titanium alloy, eliminating nickel content and ensuring hypoallergenic properties. This makes it the ideal choice for individuals with sensitivities to metals such as nickel, cobalt, and chromium, which, as I was told, is up to 15% of folks. The first use of this material was for Citizen’s recently announced Amber Yellow xC watch, as shown below. 

We can’t speak about titanium without referring to its hardness, and measuring approximately 1,700-2,300 HV, Duratect Amber Yellow is 10 to 20 times harder than traditional gold plating and significantly more resistant to scratches, making it one of the highest levels of hardness within Citizen’s Duratect lineup. Beyond its resilience, this unique colorway, made by mixing various gases with titanium, was developed with a focus on functionality and universal appeal.

Named for its resemblance to natural amber—the fossilized resin of ancient trees—Duratect Amber Yellow mirrors the qualities of its namesake: gentle on the skin, exceptionally durable, and rich in visual depth. Just as natural amber has been cherished for generations, Citizen envisions timepieces featuring Duratect Amber Yellow as long-lasting symbols of style and craftsmanship, adding to the current color lineup, including Silver, Gold, Black, Blue, Pink, and Sakura pink.

This xC comes in at 27 mm in diameter and 8.2 mm thick. Powered by a Photoelectric Eco-Drive movement and, of course, in the Duratect Super-Titanium, this model is currently available in Japan. You can see it here, and it will be available in very limited quantities at the Citizen Flagship store in Manhattan later this summer.

All of these alloys and special processes bring me back to the rock. I’m no geologist, but I would venture to guess that raw titanium hasn’t changed much since it was unearthed for the first time. As titanium continues to grow in popularity and application, Citizen continues to lead the charge in finding ways to advance materials science with the goal of making a more comfortable, more broadly accessible, lightweight, and hard-wearing watch.

For more, visit Citizen’s website.

​Hodinkee 

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