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Breitling Colt, c. 2010s

DocumentedDocumented from a dealer's listing; attribution and date as stated by the dealer.
Maker / attribution
Breitling (maker)
Date
c. 2010s
Country of origin
Switzerland
Object type
Wristwatch
Dimensions
Case 44 mm
Stock no.
40940264
Credit line
Dealer listing, Analog/Shift (40940264)
Catalogue title (original)
Breitling Colt (English)

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Record summary

Catalogued by Analog/Shift (dealer), New York (stock number 40940264), this is a wristwatch by Breitling, made in Switzerland, dated c. 2010s. The Atlas places it in the Contemporary Horology period (2010 – Present) of its Wristwatches collection. Recorded dimensions: Case 44 mm. The record is illustrated with 6 photographs.

Assembled from the source record's structured fields. Dates and attributions are given as the source states them; where a field is missing the Atlas leaves it blank rather than estimating.

Catalogue description

Dealer description — Analog/Shift

If you’re gonna spring for a good value tool watch, a Breitling Colt should be at the top of your list. Launched in the 1980s, the Colt was intended as a military timepiece, but its good looks, practical feature set, and myriad styles and sizes has since made it a favorite of civilians everywhere. Available in both quartz and mechanical versions, both are truly excellent value for money — especially if you can find a cool model from the 1990s or early 2000s. This particular variant, a Reference A17388, dates to the circa 2010s. Housed in a 44mm stainless steel case with a sapphire crystal, a signed crown, and a steel timing bezel with Breitling’s famed ‘rider tabs’ for easy grip, it features a black 'snailed' dial with luminous indices, a matching handset with a red-tipped seconds hand, an inner 24-hour scale, and a date window at 3:00. Powering this Colt is an automatic winding chronometer certified movement. Fitted to a stainless steel slant-link bracelet with a signed fliplock clasp, this is a watch that’s truly ready for anything.

Historical context

Contemporary Horology (2010 – Present)

Silicon components, connected watches, optical-lattice research clocks and a thriving independent scene.

Smartwatches became the world's best-selling watches, while mechanical watchmaking focuses on craft, innovation (silicon components, new escapements) and independent makers.

Read the period in the timelineMore wristwatches from this periodEarlier: Mechanical Renaissance

Atlas type guide

Wristwatches

Bracelet watches were worn by women from the early nineteenth century — Breguet made one for Caroline Murat, Queen of Naples, in 1810–12 — but the wristwatch only became a man's instrument with military use and aviation in the early twentieth century. Between the World Wars it overtook the pocket watch; the 1920s and 1930s brought rectangular Art Deco cases, water-resistant cases and the first automatic winding systems.

After 1945 the wristwatch became a carrier of identity — dress watches, sports and dive watches, chronographs, calendars — produced by Swiss, American, Japanese, German, Soviet and Chinese industries. The quartz revolution after 1969 and the mechanical renaissance since the 1990s, including the rise of independent watchmakers, complete the story.

What to look for

  • The reference number (between the lugs or inside the case back) and serial number, the starting point for dating.
  • The calibre: its maker and number are often stamped under the dial or on the bridge.
  • Originality of dial, hands and crown — refinished ('redial') dials are common.
  • Case material marks: 18K/750, 14K/585, stainless steel, gold-filled, plated.

Dating clues

  • Wire-lug cases: before c. 1925.
  • Water-resistant screw-down cases: from 1926.
  • Quartz movements: from 1969; sapphire crystals widespread after c. 1980.

General guidance written by the Atlas editors about this kind of object. It is not a statement about this particular piece; for that, rely on the source record above and on physical examination.

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