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Fine Lady's Gold Wristwatch, Piaget, c. 1960 — view 1 of 2
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Wristwatches · Wristwatch

Fine Lady's Gold Wristwatch, Piaget, c. 1960

DocumentedDocumented from an auction catalogue; attribution as stated by the auction house.
Maker / attribution
Piaget (maker)
Date
c. 1960
Country of origin
Switzerland
Object type
Wristwatch
Materials / technique
gold
Lot
Item 16051053
Credit line
Auction lot record: lot 635, Fine & Decorative Arts, Leland Little (2013), via LiveAuctioneers
Catalogue title (original)
Fine Lady's Gold Wristwatch, Piaget (English)

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

Record summary

Catalogued by LiveAuctioneers auction archive (lot Item 16051053), this is a wristwatch by Piaget, made in Switzerland, dated c. 1960. The Atlas places it in the Modern Mechanical Horology period (1945 – 1969) of its Wristwatches collection. Materials and techniques recorded by the source: gold. The record is illustrated with 2 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

Lot description — Leland Little

Fine Lady's Gold Wristwatch, Piaget circa 1960, centering on a round case, the face set with baton numeral indicators, completed by original woven gold strap and fold over clasp with attached safety chain, dial signed Piaget and numbered to the reverse, mounted in stamped 18KT yellow gold, accompanied by its original fitted box. 7 in. 22.8 dwt.

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

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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