Wristwatches · Wristwatch
Jaeger LeCoultre, RAF-Air Ministry Issued Watch, Original Military Engravings, 6B/159, circa 1956
- Maker / attribution
- Jaeger-LeCoultre (maker)
- Date
- c. 1956
- Historical period
- Modern Mechanical Horology (1945 – 1969)
- Country of origin
- Switzerland
- Object type
- Wristwatch
- Stock no.
- vws4265cs
- Credit line
- Dealer listing, Vintage Watch Specialist (vws4265cs)
- Catalogue title (original)
- Jaeger LeCoultre - RAF-Air Ministry Issued Watch - Original Military Engravings - 6B/159 c.1956 (English)
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Record summary
Catalogued by Vintage Watch Specialist (dealer), United Kingdom (stock number vws4265cs), this is a wristwatch by Jaeger-LeCoultre, made in Switzerland, dated c. 1956. The Atlas places it in the Modern Mechanical Horology period (1945 – 1969) of its Wristwatches collection. 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 — Vintage Watch Specialist
A beautifully preserved RAF-issued Jaeger LeCoultre with classic military styling and timeless everyday wearability. Jaeger-LeCoultre has a long-standing association with military timekeeping, producing robust and highly legible watches for armed forces throughout the 20th century. The brand supplied watches designed to meet strict military requirements, prioritising precision, durability and clarity in demanding conditions. Its ties with British military-issued watches, particularly during and after the Second World War, reinforced Jaeger-LeCoultre’s reputation for dependable engineering and understated, functional design that remains highly respected among collectors today. What's on Offer This Jaeger-LeCoultre, Air Ministry issued watch is a superb example of a post-war British military timepiece, presented in very strong overall condition for a watch nearing seventy years old. The clean white dial has aged gracefully, developing subtle patina to the centre from what looks like Radium burn that adds warmth and authenticity without distracting from the crisp Arabic numerals and classic military layout. Finished on a NATO-style strap, this is an effortlessly wearable military watch with genuine provenance, understated charm and the sort of timeless design Jaeger LeCoultre has long been celebrated for.
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
Military, pilot and travel watches
The wristwatch owes much of its adoption by men to warfare and aviation. Wristlets — small pocket watches soldered with lugs and worn on a strap — were used in colonial campaigns and became standard equipment in the First World War, with protective grilles over the crystal ('shrapnel guards'). Louis Cartier's Santos (1904), designed for the aviator Alberto Santos-Dumont, is often cited as an early purpose-made pilot's watch.
In the Second World War governments specified watches in detail: the German B-Uhr observation watches, the American A-11, and the British 'W.W.W.' (the 'Dirty Dozen' set of 1945). After the war, jet travel brought GMT and world-time watches, which show two or more time zones at once — Louis Cottier's world-time mechanism and the Rolex GMT-Master (1955) are examples.
What to look for
- Military markings on the case back: broad arrow, issue numbers, 'W.W.W.', 'A.T.P.'
- High-legibility black dials with luminous Arabic numerals; oversized crowns for gloved hands.
- 24-hour hands and rotating 24-hour bezels or city rings on GMT/world-time watches.
- Wire lugs on early wristlets converted from pocket watches.
Dating clues
- Wire-lug wristlets: c. 1900–1925.
- Military specifications of the Second World War: 1939–1945.
- GMT and world-time wristwatches: mainly after 1950.
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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