HARLEM (HEUER-LEONIDAS) Vintage Chronograph cal. Valjoux 7733 / Navy Dial

A two-register chronograph made by Heuer-Leonidas.

In condition that makes it hard to believe it is more than fifty years old.

An orange chronograph hand accents a navy dial, raising both the antique quality and a refined atmosphere.

An excellent watch as a collection piece, and equally so for showing a character in daily wear that nobody else will have.

From the 1930s to the 1960s it was not unusual for Swiss watch makers to hold several brands, according to the market and the intended customer.

The brand name Harlem was presumably one of the brands Heuer-Leonidas held for selling abroad.

Brands for the American market are the best known: Longines had Wittnauer, Breitling had Wakmann, and Jaeger-LeCoultre had LeCoultre, each expanding its channels in America.

Heuer and Leonidas had close ties even before they merged, and double-named Heuer-Leonidas watches were being made from the end of the 1940s.

In fact, Heuer's chronographs at the time were made by Leonidas.

Leonidas was a distinguished chronograph house, using Valjoux for its fine and mid-range chronographs and cam-actuated Landeron movements for its more affordable ones.

Look at antique Leonidas watches and you find mainly chronographs, triple-calendar chronographs and triple-calendar moonphases, concentrated between the 1930s and the 1960s.

Leonidas was founded in 1841 and merged with Heuer (later TAG Heuer) in 1964, changing its company name to Heuer-Leonidas SA.

The HEUER-LEONIDAS S.A. marking on the caseback lets you feel that history.

Most watches of this period carry imported movements from Valjoux, Venus or Landeron, and with their exquisite size they make precious collector's items.

The movement is the Cal.7733, Valjoux's first cam-actuated chronograph.

The Valjoux 7733 is a manual-wind two-register chronograph movement produced from 1966 to 1973.

Born in the mid-20th century as a substitute for the expensive column-wheel chronograph, it became the opening through which the chronograph reached ordinary hands.

The Valjoux 7730 also became the basis of movements that Breitling, IWC, Panerai and other makers later customised and rebranded for sale.

Even today not every company builds its watches from scratch: major luxury brands such as TAG Heuer and Hublot use ETA movements and various outsourced components.