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Zodiac Powergraphic 1982 National Matches High Rifle Award Watch, early 1980s

DocumentedDocumented from a dealer's listing; attribution and date as stated by the dealer.
Maker / attribution
Zodiac (maker)
Date
early 1980s
Country of origin
Switzerland
Object type
Wristwatch
Dimensions
Case 34 mm
Stock no.
40991868
Credit line
Dealer listing, Analog/Shift (40991868)
Catalogue title (original)
Zodiac Powergraphic 1982 National Matches High Rifle Award Watch (English)

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Record summary

Catalogued by Analog/Shift (dealer), New York (stock number 40991868), this is a wristwatch by Zodiac, made in Switzerland, dated early 1980s. The Atlas places it in the Quartz Revolution period (1969 – 1990) of its Wristwatches collection. Recorded dimensions: Case 34 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

What is it about vintage watches that gets our hearts racing? It’s the quaint aesthetic, beautiful patina, and the history they represents that tugs at our heartstrings time and time again. And if we can betray the romantic in us for a moment, it’s the untold stories imbued into each and every mark, scuff and scratch that give a timepiece that undeniable charm we so desperately love. This Zodiac checks all these boxes — and more. Dating to the early 1980s, it features a 34mm yellow gold-capped case with a double-domed acrylic crystal, a signed crown, and an equally awesome, gold-capped expanding bracelet. The gloss-black dial features applied, faceted, gold-tone indices; a ‘dot’ minute track; a matching ‘alpha’ handset; and a central power reserve indicator. The caseback reveals that particular piece was presented as an award for High Rifle during the 1982 National Matches celebrating exceptional marksmanship with in the Air National Guard. Accompanied by its original inner and outer presentation box, this piece offers up an incredible opportunity to own an interesting piece of history.

Historical context

Quartz Revolution (1969 – 1990)

Seiko's Astron begins mass quartz timekeeping; traditional industries contract sharply.

Quartz and digital watches transformed the market after 1969. Swiss employment collapsed, Japanese and Hong Kong production soared, and the Swatch (1983) helped the Swiss industry recover; mechanical watches survived as luxury goods.

Read the period in the timelineMore wristwatches from this periodEarlier: Modern Mechanical Horology

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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