Vintage watches from Longines: The incredible stories and secrets behind the timepieces

He is an expert when it comes to pre-owned watches! As Head of Brand Heritage at Longines, Daniel Hug fills the Collector’s Corner with fine rarities and, in the process, uncovers masterpieces and the occasional secret.

In our chat, Daniel Hug reveals how precise a collector’s item needs to be, why sustainability is trending, and why Albert Einstein gave his Longines to a spy.

‘Pre-loved’ is a big topic and an international market. What do you think makes vintage watches so fascinating?

As is often the case, a trend needs a counter-trend. For many people, electronic gadgets are indispensable. However, they are always short-lived and subject to technical progress. At the same time, people have a need for consistency. Longines watches are often bought for special occasions – weddings, graduations, etc. Our mechanical watches have a lifespan of 100 years. They can still be repaired by our in-house specialists at any time, and if necessary components can be replaced.

That is true sustainability – a term that is used very loosely today. We at Longines have always embodied this idea with our watches. The Zulu Time, for example, was first produced in 1925 and still works.

And with this in mind, Longines has launched its own Certified Pre-owned (CPO) programme?

To make Longines’ rich heritage come alive, we are constantly scanning the market – at auctions, collectors. If a Longines piece seems interesting, we acquire it, disassemble it into all its individual parts at our ​“Atelier Heritage”, clean it, repair it if necessary, and reassemble it. Then the certified watches are listed on our website with a two-year guarantee and a description – and also in our Collector’s Corner. At present, this is located in our boutique in Geneva, as vintage models are particularly popular in Switzerland.

When is a model of interest to you? When does a watch become a collector’s item?

There are two criteria: the watch must have a story, an interesting owner, an exciting history behind it, or a special purpose. Or it has cahieved a technical milestone.

Your personal favourite?

That is definitely the watch previously owned by Amy Johnson. She was the most famous female aviator in Great Britain, flying from England to Australia in 1930 as the first woman to make the flight solo. Her watch was no ordinary timepiece, but a model that is synchronised with sidereal time. While we, with a view to keeping things simple, measure time in 24-hour days, astronomers work with sidereal time when observing the stars – the actual time it takes for the world to make a complete revolution. That’s 23 hours, 56 minutes and four seconds. Pilots could only orient themselves by the sun and stars. That is why they used a sextant for the latitude and a precise clock for the longitude for astronomical navigation. With their watches based on sidereal time, Longines helped them to orient themselves faster in the air, as there was no need to convert to 24-hour time.

Navigation was a highly complicated matter back then. There are recordings showing Amy Johnson with P.V.H. Weems, the navigation expert of the time, and of course with her Longines. It is truly impressive how bravely these women kept pace with the men and also shaped a new visual style. While wide dresses were actually en vogue, they wore breeches and boots – the only trousers allowed to be worn by women at the time. They were pioneers, just like Longines.

Longines has achieved many milestones in the technical field. Which one impresses you the most?

Longines has indeed produced numerous innovations. The flyback function on the chronograph is definitely one of the greatest achievements for me. It is used by many pilots and enables the precise calculation of distances during a flight. It was patented in 1935, although the first flyback chronographs were already available in 1928/1929. This is typical of Longines: very often, the functions were first tested, experience gathered, and the patent filed at a later stage.

With such a rich history, what role does the Longines archive play, which dates back to 1867 without any gaps?

A big one! It is a real treasure trove, with every Longines watch produced since 1867 documented. We receive around 12,000 requests a year, all of which are processed by my team. All you need to do is provide the serial number and you will receive information about the production date, the movement, and the case, and in some cases the dial, the retailer, and the country to which the watch was delivered. Longines had a global presence early on, often including exotic destinations such as Argentina and Lebanon. After consulting the archive, you will receive not only the information but also a certificate of authenticity. The archive still exists in physical form, with thick books stored in Saint-Imier, and is also available digitally.

Famous names such as Albert Einstein and Walt Disney have owned Longines watches. Do you know more about them?

There is a truly fascinating story to tell about Albert Einstein and Longines. He owned a Longines pocket watch, which can today be found in the Natural History Museum in Bern, and a Longines wristwatch, which he received as a gift from his rabbi on his arrival in L.A. in 1931, complete with engraving. He wore this gold watch, which can be seen in photos, and then gave it to his last lover when she returned to Russia. This is documented in correspondence. The really exciting part of the story only came to light a few years ago: this lover was a Russian spy and was particularly interested in information from Albert Einstein concerning Robert Oppenheimer. Here, too, there are photographs showing them together. In view of the new Oppenheimer film, this connection has a particularly topical relevance.

Which vintage watches are currently en vogue?

Watches with a tool-like character: pilot’s watches, diving watches, chronographs. And jewellery watches for ladies. Today, Longines has a balanced ratio of 50 per cent men’s and 50 per cent ladies’ watches. Elegant watches, often in gold or platinum, and featuring stones, were also produced early on. This is a trend that can still be seen to this day. In particular, rectangular watches from the 1930s that also have a rectangular movement. These are rare. The historic Conquest models from the 1950s are also in high demand. In the past, typical men’s watches had 35 mm cases, but today they are often worn as ladies’ watches in this size. Unisex is definitely also a trend, with boundaries becoming increasingly blurred.

The collector’s items of tomorrow are in demand. How do you manage to transfer the notion of the vintage timepiece into current collections?

Vintage is everyewhere right now. At Longines, sustainability has been part of how we operate for a long time. Our watches have a lifespan of over 100 years. And our history can be experienced. We achieve this with new models that form a common thread running from the past to the present. It’s not about creating a copy of the old models, but rather about presenting the original watch in a new guise. Our team is happy to provide inspiration for this and we work closely with the product development team. This has resulted, for example, in the new Conquest collection or the new Ultra-Chron. This diving watch from 1968 has been reissued, with typical historical features such as red hands and an ultra-high frequency movement. The perfect combination of style and precision.

Thank you for the conversation!

longines​.com/​c​o​l​l​e​c​t​o​r​s​c​orner

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