WALTHAM Esquire, 1970s

— A square, carved from its decade —

The American system of watch manufacturing — mass production from interchangeable parts — was realised by Waltham, America's oldest watch brand, founded in 1849.

The production system built by its founder Aaron Lufkin Dennison recorded output of thirty pocket watches a week and changed the industry that followed.

Waltham made military equipment during the Second World War and, after moving its base to Switzerland, went on producing elegant and formal watches.

The Esquire comes out of that history, carrying the free, forceful design thinking of the 1970s. The square case, almost a piece of modernist architecture, is finely satin finished and reflects light dully but definitely.

— Depth in a quiet silver dial —

Case, dial and markers are unified in silver for a solid, single-material look. The hairline-finished silver dial has the quiet beauty of the metal itself.

Raised markers hollowed out at the centre, like small chairs, are filled with black to improve legibility and to tighten the whole face.

The crystal is cut at the edge — a fine touch that defines the boundary between dial and case.

The Waltham logo at twelve has burned through to a blued-steel brightness.

— Vintage dignity —

Supplied with the warranty from Heiwado Boeki, the authorised Japanese distributor at the time, along with the original tag and box — quietly stating its value as a collector's item.

The case measures 37.5 × 35mm. A simple square works with a suit or a jacket and equally with a denim jacket or a shirt.

Close to dead stock, and still holding a brightness that fifty years have not touched.