No other top tier maker went to the trouble of duplicating numbers in this way. Another nicety is the matching of case and movement numbers that is often found on antique Longines watches from the 1930s and 40s. Whereas the jewels present in the movements of almost all Rolex and Omega watches are simply press fitted into holes machined into the plates, those on classic Longines mechanisms are typically held in threaded brass sleeves, correctly known as chatons, that wind down into the plates.
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The attention to detail present in pre-war vintage Longines watches is quite extraordinary. This isn’t biased personal opinion, but simply a matter of fact observation based on twenty five years of handling movements by all the major brands on a daily basis in our business. Whisper it very quietly to avoid upsetting those who have paid vast sums from pre-war Rolex models, but the reality is that, judged impartially on a side by side basis, Longines movements from the company’s golden age are actually better designed, more sophisticated and better finished than those by either of these two brands. It would be impressive even to say that the movements in vintage Longines watches were equal in quality to those by Rolex and Omega.
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This integrity of production is becoming an increasingly hot topic among experienced vintage watch collectors and Longines has great credibility in this respect. If you buy a classic pre-war Longines wristwatch today, you’re acquiring a completely pure product from a definable single origin point, rather like a single malt Scotch whisky from a specific distillery. If should be appreciated that during its vintage years, Longines was one of the few major watch houses that manufactured its own movements entirely in-house, without purchasing any component parts from external suppliers. At this stage, it offered a diverse range of both rectangular and circular cased models, all built to the highest possible standard. Longines became a stylistic powerhouse in the 1920s and 30s, heavily influenced by the art deco movement that was very much in fashion during that period. Of all the first generation officers’ watches from this era, those by Longines are some of the most exceptional in terms of quality, offering a grade of movement finishing that exceeds that found on similar pieces by the other major houses at the time. In common with almost all the other major brands, Longines first added gentleman’s wristwatches to its range during World War I when officers serving in the trenches embraced the concept of an easily accessible timepiece carried on the wrist rather than one buried on the person under layers of uniform. Imier, making it an older concern than either Omega or Rolex.
The company has a remarkable history going back to 1846 when it was founded in the Swiss town of St.
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To return to our comparison with classic motorcars, vintage Longines models, which once held Ferrari status, oddly now command prices that we’d associate with lesser luxury marques like Jaguar or Mercedes.Įvery ingredient is there that should have made Longines the most desirable of all the vintage watch houses. This is very, very unusual and it is difficult to think of any other product, in any area of antiques, where the same obvious undervaluation has occurred. The relative position of Longines to Rolex and Omega in the vintage watch marketplace today has shifted from the place it occupied in the first instance. In the years between the two World Wars, Longines was a more expensive and more prestigious brand than both Rolex and Omega, yet today, its vintage watches can be bought for substantially less than those of its two competitors. An incredible 92% of the respondents replied that in this situation, they would own a Longines. In 1913, a study was commissioned by the New York Times that asked the public which brand of luxury watch, among various other things, they would prefer if price was not a consideration. Longines is the exception to this almost universal rule.