
Wristwatches · Wristwatch
Zodiac Sea Wolf with Quickset/Bakelite Bezel
- Maker / attribution
- Zodiac (maker)
- Date
- c. 1970
- Historical period
- Quartz Revolution (1969 – 1990)
- Country of origin
- Switzerland
- Object type
- Wristwatch
- Stock no.
- SQ2774980
- Credit line
- Dealer listing, Collectors Corner NY (SQ2774980)
- Catalogue title (original)
- Zodiac Sea Wolf w/Quickset/Bakelite Bezel (English)
View the source record (dealer listing) ↗ (opens another website in a new tab)Suggest a correction
Record summary
Catalogued by Collectors Corner NY (dealer), New York (stock number SQ2774980), this is a wristwatch by Zodiac, made in Switzerland, dated c. 1970. The Atlas places it in the Quartz Revolution period (1969 – 1990) 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 — Collectors Corner NY
The Zodiac Sea Wolf first arrived in 1953. It debuted on the same year as the Rolex Submariner amongst the first wave of commercially successful consumer-grade dive watches. Later known for their more colorful offerings, the Sea Wolf featured vivid pops of orange, green and blue, which made them more youthful and exciting than Blancpains and Tudors from the era. This particular reference 722-946B circa 1970 offers a practical quickset date, a glossy gilt dial with attractive patina, and a rotating bakelite dive bezel which has taken on an interesting hue of blue and grey. We love the smaller size of these Sea Wolf divers on wrist. They can be easily dressed up with a leather strap and are just at home on a single pass nylon strap for a sportier look.
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.
Related records
Wristwatches · c. 1960
Unusual Shaped Ladies Zodiac Wristwatch, c. 1960
LiveAuctioneers auction archive
Wristwatches · c. 1960
Zodiac Automatic Dive Stainless Steel Wristwatch, c. 1960
LiveAuctioneers auction archive
Wristwatches · 1970s
1970s Zodiac Spacetronic Electronic 36mm Men’s Watch Cal. 91 Runs
LiveAuctioneers auction archive
Wristwatches · 1960s
1960s Zodiac Glorious Cal. 1094 17J Gold-Tone Textured Dial Dress Watch
LiveAuctioneers auction archive
Wristwatches · 1970
Wristwatch by Heno, Switzerland, 1970
Museum Rotterdam
Wristwatches · 1960–1986
'Tri-Compax' calendar chronograph wristwatch in gold case, by Universal, Geneva, Switzerland, 1960–1986.
Science Museum Group, London
Wristwatches · 1969–1970
Beta 21 Quartz wristwatch movement, made in Switzerland, 1970.
Science Museum Group, London
Wristwatches · c. 1969
Omega Speedmaster Moonwatch, ref. 145022-69st, c. 1969
Antiquorum auction archive, Geneva
