LECOULTRE 14K White Gold "Mystery Dial" 1960s

A dress watch from LeCoultre's American line, built around the "Mystery Dial" that gives it its name. There are no hands. Two discs turn beneath the dial, each set with a small diamond: the one nearer the centre marks the hour, the outer one the minute, so the stones seem to drift across the dial on their own. Inside is the hand-wound Calibre 480/CW with 17 jewels, wound by the crown each morning. We paired it with a greige leather strap, and the buckle is LeCoultre's own, which makes it a natural choice for evenings and dressed-up days.

The case is 14K white gold, 32mm across without the crown and 38.5mm lug to lug, with a 17.5mm lug width. Faceted, flared lugs catch the light at each corner and keep the round case from looking plain. There are fine scratches on the caseback and the usual marks of use, but no major damage. On the wrist it is a modest size that slips neatly under a shirt cuff.

The dial is original. A sunburst guilloché centre is ringed by a track of small dots, and faceted dagger indices, doubled at twelve, sit on the silver outer zone. Age has left light spotting across the surface. With no hands crossing it, the whole dial stays open, and the two diamonds become the only moving points on the watch.

- wrist size in our picture is 17cm circumference -