Longines

This extremely rare and attractive Longines reference 4356 was delivered in 1948 to Longines-Wittnauer in the USA. It is a spectacular example of the celebrated Weems. The double signed dial as well as the “LXW” on the movement confirm that importation to America.

The developer of this navigation watch was the lieutenant commander for the United State Navy P.V.H Weems.

In 1929, Navy Captain Phillip Van Horn Weems in conjunction with Longines, and Wittnauer, developed the Weems Second-Setting Watch for nautical navigation. Given the turbulent cockpits and the thick gloves needed for altitude flying, the Weems had typically an oversized case and crown.

Before this invention, it was almost impossible for pilots to set their watch on the right second. This means that the watch set to the correct hour and minute may still be in error as much as 30 seconds, which, near the equator, represents an error in longitude of 7.5 miles. The second-setting watch was devised to permit the exact second to be set, thus avoiding the correction ordinarily required by the navigation watch. This is done by rotating the inner seconds dial. The hour and minute hands are set in the usual way. When the minute hand is properly set, it should of course be exactly at a minute division when the second hand is at 60.

Pilots could listen to the time signals from the Radio.Time.Signals. from 5 minutes before each hour to the hour, the silence after 50th seconds of the fifth minute indicates at once the number of minutes of signal yet to be sent. The rotating inner dial displayed the correct minutes and graphically showed the margin of error from the original set time.

The original Longines Weems Second setting are extremely rare. Indeed, few were produced and only wealthy individuals could afford them.

This exceptional example has been preserved in outstanding condition. The oversized case shows incredibly strong proportions and retains its original crown. The dial has its enamel outer ring in beautiful state with elegant rail track and Breguet numerals matching the hands. The inner rotating grainé dial has a nicely contrasting eggshell coloration. Incredibly rare, the watch even has its original strap and buckle in remarkable condition.

This lot is an incredibly rare opportunity to acquire a specimen of the legendary model that can easily be considered as one of the very best examples to have ever appeared on the international market.