Skip to content
Seiko Monopusher Chronograph, 1964 — view 1 of 6
View 1 of 6 · Image: S.Song Watches · original image source (opens another website in a new tab)

Wristwatches · Wristwatch

Seiko Monopusher Chronograph, 1964

DocumentedDocumented from a dealer's listing; attribution and date as stated by the dealer.
Maker / attribution
Seiko (maker)
Date
1964
Country of origin
Japan
Object type
Wristwatch
Stock no.
Product 11088318348
Credit line
Dealer listing, S.Song Watches (product 11088318348)
Catalogue title (original)
Seiko Monopusher Chronograph (English)

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

Record summary

Catalogued by S.Song Watches (dealer), Seattle (stock number Product 11088318348), this is a wristwatch by Seiko, made in Japan, dated 1964. 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 — S.Song Watches

When the name Seiko is mentioned, the first thought that comes to a watch collector’s mind is ‘value for money’, and with this Seiko Mono-pusher Chronograph Ref. 5717-8990, it is no different. First produced in 1964 for the Tokyo Olympics, this was Seiko’s attempt as their official timekeeper to display their technology. Incidentally, this is the first chronograph Seiko ever produced and it is one of my favourite Seikos. It is a mono-pusher chronograph with no registers and a silver sunburst dial, giving off a very clean design.

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

Related records