Longines WWW "Dirty Dozen -… - Fine Jewels, Watches & Luxury Accessories Online - Webb's

Lot No.

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Description:

Longines WWW "Dirty Dozen - Green-lander" ref: 23088 MoD Military issued World War II wristwatch. 38 mm stainless steel case with double stepped bezel and fixed (soldered) lug pins, closed case-back with MoD engravings, Longines calibre 12.68Z yellow gold gilt finishmanual wind movement. Black dial, Arabic numerals, Radium-lit cathedral style hands and dial markings, sub-seconds at 6 o'clock, acrylic domed crystal. Original pig skin leather strap with steel buckle and stays. In functional condition with a time keeping gain of +50 sec/day. Comes without box or paperwork. Original production was only 8,000 pieces. Duringworld war II the British Ministry of Defense in the 1940's developed a specification for military issue wristwatches. The specification is referred to as W.W.W., an acronym which stands for Watch, Wrist-let (i.e. not a pocket watch) and Waterproof. W.W.W. is marked on the case back along with the serial number and manufacturer code (F for Longines).The Longines reference 23088, was dubbed the 'Greenlander? by collectors due to its association with the 1952-54 British North Greenland Expedition, that ended up not being true. Nonetheless, the name stuck. In all there were 12 different manufacturers, who produced watches to this specification for the MoD, collectively they are referred to as 'The Dirty Dozen.' This watch has a beautiful Longines 12.68N movement with Breguet over-coil and blued screws contrasting nicely with the gilded plates, shock proofing on the balance pivots, designed to absorb the sort of jarring-impacts which can damage or break movement components. The watch has a great solid stainless steel case, which at 38 mm is large for a vintage watch, but well suited to contemporary tastes. The watch has fixed lugs to hold it securely to the strap, even in combat. '

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Category:

Horology (Clocks & watches): Watches - Wrist