Long's 2020-2021 Digital Magazine

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HEIRLOOM WATCHES Celebrating thepassageof time

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o gift is more symbolic of the passage of time than a fine timepiece, and there

Watches not only have the power to pass on family stories but often tell stories of their own. The following watches have unique histories and some great commonalities: First, they are all 20th century icons, easily recognizable and widely collected. Second, although even older renditions of these models are in high demand and still in good shape, the newest models are state-of-the-art and made to the highest current

standards of watchmaking – the new classics to pass onto generations to come. Here are the stories behind a few notable timepieces worthy of becoming part of your family’s history.

has never been a better time to start the journey of a family heirloom. Advances in watchmaking over the past decade mean that today’s luxury timepieces are made to last more than one lifetime, and with proper servicing, they can actually be worn by each successive generation rather than being hidden away in a safe.

PANTHÉRE DE CARTIER The Panthére de Cartier was originally introduced in 1984 and has since become an icon, not just a signature model for Cartier, but one of the most recognizable watches in the world. It came to represent the concept of mass luxury, and became a favorite on the secondary market after Cartier discontinued it in 2000. It was relaunched in 2017 with all the same features of original: square case with screws on the bezel, Roman numerals, railway track index, and a tiny Cartier logo embossed in the numeral X. There are three sizes – the one shown here is the medium (37 x 27 mm), in 18k yellow gold with a diamond bezel. The movement is quartz.

OMEGA SPEEDMASTER MOON The Omega Speedmaster was the first watch on the moon! Created in 1957, it was worn by astronaut Ed White during the first American spacewalk in 1965.The movement in that original Moon Watch, caliber 321, has been re-engineered to modern standards and is being used in the new Speedmaster 321. The design is faithful to the original with its polished black ceramic bezel with white tachometer scale, straight lugs, and the “dot-over-90” bezel — a detail on the tachometer scale that is a hallmark of pre-1970 Speedmasters. On subsequent models, the dot was positioned next to the 90, rather than above it on the scale.

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