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Excelsior Park Dual Scale Steel Chronograph, 1960s — view 1 of 6
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Wristwatches · Wristwatch

Excelsior Park Dual Scale Steel Chronograph, 1960s

DocumentedDocumented from a dealer's listing; attribution and date as stated by the dealer.
Maker / attribution
Excelsior (maker)
Date
1960s
Country of origin
Unrecorded in source
Object type
Wristwatch
Materials / technique
steel
Dimensions
Case 37 mm
Stock no.
W-836
Credit line
Dealer listing, Bulang & Sons (W-836)
Catalogue title (original)
Excelsior Park Dual Scale Steel Chronograph (English)

View the source record (dealer listing) ↗ (opens another website in a new tab)Suggest a correction

Record summary

Catalogued by Bulang & Sons (dealer), Copenhagen (stock number W-836), this is a wristwatch by Excelsior, dated 1960s. The Atlas places it in the Modern Mechanical Horology period (1945 – 1969) of its Wristwatches collection. Materials and techniques recorded by the source: steel. Recorded dimensions: Case 37 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 — Bulang & Sons

When two scales are better than one… If you had to choose, which would you go for – tachymeter or telemeter? Well, we are taking that conundrum away and offering a watch with both! This cool, large size 37mm steel chronograph features both a ‘Base 1000’ tachymeter and a telemeter. The former measures speed and the latter allows you to measure the distance that a sound occurs from your location (useful in combat situations!). The caseback features an engraving ‘N 323’. Our best guess is that this is a military mark, but we can’t be sure. The black dial features painted arabic numerals and crisp, original printing. The hands are all white and the hour and minute hands have luminous in-fill, which is a nice match to the hour markers. The watch houses a high-quality Excelsior Park 4-68 movement that has been fully serviced by our watchmaker. Specifications - Excelsior Park Chronograph - Steel 37mm case - Dates to the 1960s - Arabic numerals - Excelsoir Park 4-68 movement - Will come with a Bulang and Sons strap - Fully serviced by our watchmaker - Includes a handmade single leather watch pouch

Historical context

Modern Mechanical Horology (1945 – 1969)

Tool watches for divers, pilots and astronauts; electric watches anticipate the electronic age.

The classic era of the mechanical wristwatch: dive watches, chronographs for motor racing and space flight, GMT watches for jet travel, slim dress watches, automatic calendars, and the rise of Japanese manufacturers alongside Swiss, American, German and Soviet industries.

Read the period in the timelineMore wristwatches from this periodEarlier: Golden Age of Mechanical Watchmaking

Atlas type guide

Chronographs and split-seconds watches

A chronograph is a watch with an additional seconds hand that can be started, stopped and returned to zero independently of the timekeeping. Louis Moinet built an early example in 1816 and Nicolas Rieussec a recording 'chronographe' in 1821; Adolphe Nicole's heart-shaped reset cam (patented 1862) made the modern return-to-zero possible. Split-seconds (rattrapante) chronographs add a second hand that can be stopped for intermediate times; flyback chronographs restart instantly.

Chronographs were essential tools for doctors (pulsometer scales), artillery (telemeter), engineers and sport. In wristwatches, Valjoux, Venus, Lemania and later the automatic chronographs of 1969 (Zenith El Primero, the Chronomatic Calibre 11 group and Seiko 6139) are milestones.

What to look for

  • Push-pieces on the case band or a single button in the crown (monopusher).
  • Subsidiary registers for minutes and hours; tachymeter, telemeter or pulsometer scales.
  • Column wheel versus cam control visible in the movement.
  • Calibre markings of specialist makers (Valjoux, Lemania, Venus, Landeron).

Dating clues

  • Pocket chronographs with heart cam reset: after 1862.
  • Wrist chronographs: from c. 1910; two-button designs from the 1930s.
  • Automatic chronographs: from 1969.

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.

Read next:Flyback chronographChronograph

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