Longines Comet Ref. 8475 circa 1970 | steel vintage mystery watch
Vintage Watch Update – 2 November 2023 | 3.11.23

Longines Comet Ref. 8475 circa 1970 | steel vintage mystery watch

Longines Comet Ref. 8475 Circa 1970

Headlining this week’s newsletter is one of the most creative and eye-catching watch designs of the 1970s. Known as the Longines Comet, this is also one of my favourite models of the era. The dial has two rotating discs – a black hour disc to the centre is mounted with a broad luminescent arrow-form pointer which indicates the hours on an off-white chapter ring; minutes are shown via the circular ‘comet’ mounted on the slim black outer disc which points to the minutes calibrated at the dial’s edge. This style of watch is known as a mystery watch since it is not immediately apparent to the viewer how the hours and minutes advance. In excellent condition, this is a great example of this unusual model.

omega-2413-circa-1947-steel-steel-wzottbd

Omega Ref. 2413 Circa 1947

Reference 2413 is a relatively rare Omega model that was first introduced in 1946. This is a wonderful example of the reference with a beautiful two-tone dial and a crisp steel case. The watch has a linear case design with a polished chamfered bezel that precisely meets the top of the case sides, thereby leaving no step between the two surfaces. The lugs have flattened sides and a distinctive downward curve.  The main body of the dial has a silk matte finish while the outer minute track is highlighted by a secondary tone. The gold hour indexes are applied and riveted to the dial’s surface. Positioned at 6 o’clock is a finely engine-turned subsidiary seconds dial.

Omega cal.23.4SC circa 1940 | mid-sized steel vintage manually wound wristwatch

Omega Cal. 23.4SC Circa 1940

A rare and charismatic wristwatch, this mid-sized model has a wonderfully aged, two-tone gilded dial with fine Roman and baton hour indexes. There are slim blued steel hands with a handsomely counter-poised subsidiary seconds which has a prominent roundel to its tail. Cased in steel and designed as a water-resistant model, the watch has a screw-down back and large crown. The bezel is twin stepped and each step has a chamfered finish while the lugs have a pronounced downward curve with broad, tapering chamfers.

Beneath the 6 o’clock position, the dial is marked: ‘Importé de Suisse’, this indicates that the watch was supplied specifically to the French market as Customs in France required imported watches to clearly state the country of manufacture in the French language.

Omega Ref. 920 hallmarked 1948-49 | 9ct gold vintage manually wound wristwatch

Omega Ref. 920 hallmarked 1948 | 9ct Gold

This wristwatch has a silvered dial which is fully calibrated with slim black painted Arabic numerals. The vibrant blued steel hands provide an interesting contrast and there is an engine-turned subsidiary seconds. In contemporary Omega catalogues, this model was listed as a Ref. 920. Omega’s Ref. 920 is an archetypal vintage wristwatch model with a brilliantly proportioned case featuring a polished chamfered bezel, gently down-turned lugs and flat, polished, snap-on back. The model was available with a variety of different dial designs and the gold case was made for Omega by the English based Dennison case company. Manually wound, the movement is the highly regarded Omega calibre 30T2 PC. There is light and even oxidation spotting to the dial’s surface.

Longines Ref. 8888 circa 1965 | steel vintage manually wound wristwatch

Longines Ref. 8888 Circa 1965

This smart Longines model with a case diameter of 35mm. The silvered dial, which is in lovely original condition, is fully set with raised Arabic numerals. The stainless steel case has a faceted bezel and chamfers to the edges of the lugs. There are scratches and nicks to the bezel and lugs. Manually wound, this wristwatch is powered by the Longines calibre 30L.

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