Foreshadowing Credor’s Watches & Wonders debut in April (located alongside sister brand Grand Seiko), the Goldfeather GCBY991 Imari Nabeshima Porcelain is the brand’s first launch of the year. It pairs an ultra-thin hand-wound movement with a dial made using a traditional – and reputedly highly secretive – Japanese porcelain technique. But now the secret is out, cased in steel and limited to 60 pieces worldwide.

Initial thoughts

Originally envisioned in the 1970s as a vehicle for precious metal quartz watches, Credor later expanded into a catch-all brand for Seiko’s high-end offerings that didn’t fit the Grand Seiko aesthetic. Over the last few years, however, Credor has refocused and shrunk its catalogue from over 200 references in 2021 to fewer than 70 today, shedding legions of ladies’ quartz models while redoubling emphasis on artisanal crafts.

The porcelain-dialed GCBY999 embodies this tighter focus and exemplifies the brand’s new motto: “the creativity of artisans”.

Despite the Goldfeather branding – and Credor’s original purpose – the GCBY999 is cased in stainless steel. This is a welcome concession given the current price of gold, which is near all-time highs, especially since Seiko generally charges a higher premium for precious metal models than is typical for Swiss brands.

As a result, the GCBY999 is good value within the Goldfeather lineup, despite its artisanal dial. The watch retails for JPY1.98 million in Japan, equivalent to about US$12,600, which is about half the price of a white gold Goldfeather with a conventional brass dial.

The village of secret kilns

Given the concession of the steel case, the GCBY999 is all about its dial, made by Hata Mantoen Co. in Saga Prefecture, the traditional heart of the Japanese porcelain industry.

The Nabeshima clan, which controlled the region until the late 19th century, moved production of high-end porcelain from Arita to nearby Okawachiyama, which is surrounded by mountains and relatively inaccessible, to protect its trade secrets. Dubbed the “Village of Secret Kilns”, it functioned as a miniature closed city, producing Nabeshima ware for the Japanese elite for centuries, though it now serves a wider audience.

An example of contemporary Japanese porcelain: the Ruri Yaki Kaleidoscope Karakamon Ornamental Plate, priced at US$3,150. Image – Hata Mantoen Co. Ltd

The dial itself is rich in both colour and texture, and is the product of five firings in the kiln. Each dial begins life as an unglazed translucent white porcelain disc, before the blue gradient and first layer of feathers are added. Additional feathers and indices are added once glazed, resulting in a dial with exceptional depth.

Only after the final firing is the domed dial ground down to its final thickness of about 1 mm, which is quite thin for porcelain though relatively thick for a watch dial.

The dial itself is actually unsigned — “CREDOR” and “Goldfeather” are printed on the underside of the sapphire crystal, a trick often used in watches with special dials. The floating text suits the feather motif dial particularly well.

Ultra thin and mechanical

Despite the relatively thick dial and display case back, the GCBY999 is quite slim at just 8.3 mm, thanks to the ultra-thin cal. 6890. Functionally, the manually wound cal. 6890 eschews a running seconds hand, which helps intensify the focus on the artistic quality of the dial.

Essentially an updated and repackaged round version of the Seiko cal. 68 from the late 1960s, the cal. 6890 is a hair under 2 mm thick with presentable, if not quite artisanal, decoration. The thickness is nearly ideal given its 37.1 mm case diameter, avoiding the trap that some ultra-thin watches fall into when an overly large diameter results in a watch with the perceived proportions of a dinner plate.

Key facts and price

Seiko Credor Goldfeather 6890-01F0
Ref. GCBY991

Diameter: 37.1 mm
Height: 8.3 mm
Material: Stainless steel
Crystal: Sapphire
Water resistance: 30 m

Movement: Cal. 6890
Functions: Hours, minutes
Winding: Manual wind
Frequency: 21,600 beats per hour (3 Hz)
Power reserve: 37 hours

Strap: Crocodile strap with double fold clasp in stainless steel

Limited edition: 60 pieces
Availability: At Credor retailers starting February 6, 2026
Price: JPY1.98 million (~US$12,600) excluding taxes

For more, visit credor.com