![]() ![]() 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. 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. Original Longines chronographs are very collectible.Longines is the exception to this almost universal rule. Longines produced some really beautiful sport chronograph watches in the 30's and 40's, using Longines own in-house movements. Longines timers are still used in many sporting events, especially equestrian and gymnastics competitions. They pioneered the "broken wire" system, as well as the first "photo finish" mechanism, which linked precision timing with a photographic record of the event. Longines was the first company known to have created precision timers for sporting events. Longines Chronographs in Sport and Aviation In fact, they produced distinctly different movements, though both are of similar excellent quality. was sold by the Wittnauer family and renamed the Longines-Wittnauer Co., a name that became so linked in the minds of the public that most assume that Longines and Wittnauer watches are the same. became the exclusive sales agent for Longines in 1880, starting a relationship that would last for 114 years. The Winged Hourglass logo first appeared on Longines watches in about 1867. The Longines "Winged Hourglass" (actually a winged clepsydra for those who care about such things) is the oldest registered trademark for a watch company, having been registered in 1880. This method of production proved to be very successful, and by the early 1900's the Longines factory employed over 1000 people and had achieved worldwide distrubution and success with its products. To accomplish this, Francillon built a factory on a piece of land known as "Les Longines" and the Longines brand was born. Francillon wanted to modernize the production of watches and believed that bringing all the final assembly and finish operations together into one factory would be a more efficient method of production. In the 1850's, Agassiz passed control of his company to his nephew, Ernest Francillon. In 1832, Auguste Agassiz began selling etablissage-produced watches under the name "Agassiz & Compagnie" and was particularly successful selling those watches in North America. Watches were produced using the "etablissage" method, where individual tradesman working out of small studios or their homes would produce parts (or sub-assemblies) which were then assembled and sold under the auspices of a single brand. In the early 1800's Swiss watchmaking was truly a cottage-industry. ![]()
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