Longines Automatic "Calatrava" Roman Dial Ref. 4120-1 (circa 1975)

WHY WE CURATED IT:
This was once a high-end dress/daily watch from Longines to rival the usual suspects, evidenced by the use of a flagship high-beat, ultra-thin automatic calibre, a cabochon-ed crown and early scratch-resistant sapphire crystal that was just making its way into the top Swiss watches of the day. A beautifully classical case with stepped bezel and short lugs with curvaceous edges. The dial is a slightly off-white eggshell-texture with appliqué “winged hour glass” logo and elegant elongated romans paired with exquisitely thin hands. Even with our exposure to so many more flamboyant and fascinating watches that pass through our hands, it’s often simple, well-crafted classics like this that draw us back during the real-world on-wrist phase of our testing. Testament to the quality of the movement used here (a high-grade Eterna base calibre before Eterna became ETA), the performance is nothing short of exemplary after a professional service. An absolute steal at this price point, and a lovely timeless daily/dress all-in-one with just a strap change. Serviced and warrantied.

CONDITION:
9.5/10, with very few signs of wear beyond a few hairlines. Overall presentation remains sharp edges remain defined, and appears to never have been refinished. Dial, hands, indices and crystal are clean. Original navy blue cabochon-ed crown. Caseback engravings deep and clear. New aftermarket strap and buckle. Movement serviced with a 6-month warranty, returning over-spec power reserve, strong amplitude, negligible beat error and accurate to ±1 sec/day averaged from 6 timegrapher positions.

DIMENSIONS:
34.2mm width excl. crown
37.1mm length incl. lugs
7.3mm thickness
17mm lug width
Visual dial width ~27.5mm
Wrist in photos is 15.8cm in circumference

CRYSTAL:
Sapphire

CASE:
Steel

WATER RESISTANCE:
Assumed none, as per vintage watches

STRAP:
Aftermarket black semi-gloss croc-embossed and buckle (14mm)

CALIBRE:
Longines Cal. L645.1 (Eternal Cal. 12892 base), 2-hander automatic

COMES WITH:
Watch, aftermarket strap & buckle

TERMS OF SALE:
Please read our “Terms of service” below. Thanks!