Most ladies watches of the 1950’s are pretty conservative, but this Breitling is quite striking! Model reference 5518.
HOW DO WE DATE THIS WATCH?
The serial number on the inside of the case corresponds with a production date of 1956. Looking through our reference books, we have found this model (albeit with a black dial) in the 1956 catalogue. The next catalogue we could find was 1959, which did have ladies models with 55** reference numbers but not the 5518.
CONDITION
This Breitling is quite unlike any other ladies watch we have offered. The square case rises up dramatically, and as the sides are fluted this is a very impressive look. Plus is it square when the vast majority of ladies watches were round. Of course it looks nothing like any Breitling on the market since the 1970’s too. The dial is good, with strong dagger style hands being quite easy to read. The case is 20 micron gold plated and this all looks very good. The watch has a screw down case back (again, rare for a ladies watch of this period) and the hand winding movement is signed Breitling. This also has a dust cover – which we have never seen on a ladies dress watch before. The crown looks to a be a later replacement. The leather strap is new, and could be swapped for a different colour if preferred. It is well worth looking at the video on this to show has the case bounces the light around.
This watch has been checked against the Watch Register and has not been reported as lost, stolen or implicated in fraud, and a copy of that certificate will also be included.
Please see the HD video for more detail. All photos and videos are part of the description and are of the actual watch unless mentioned. We do not photoshop any pictures, and the images are copyright of birthyearwatches.com and should not be used without permission.
SIZE
Width with crown 22.1 mm
Width without crown 21.0 mm
Between lugs 10 mm
Lug to lug length 21.0 mm
Case Thickness 8.1 mm
All sizes are approximate. The watch is photographed on a wrist of 150mm/6 inches.
Included with this watch is a 3 month guarantee and free delivery to UK addresses. If you live outside the UK we can still deliver to most countries. Please see our Worldwide Shipping information, or Contact Us. Payment can be made by most credit or debit cards, bank transfer or PayPal.
From 1st September 2021 we will be planting a tree for every watch we sell, working with the International Tree Foundation (Est 1922) to make this business positive on carbon. By buying anything pre owned you are effectively reusing what already exists, but this takes it further and makes us feel good.
5518