SEIKO Dolce Quartz Black dial 1983

A slim square dress watch from Seiko's Dolce line, made in January 1983. The black dial carries slim gold baton markers, with a doubled marker at 12, and the gold hands and a small "Dolce" script are the only other details, so it reads cleanly at a glance. Inside is the quartz Cal.5931, so there is nothing to wind. It comes on its original Seiko metal bracelet, which matches the case in tone and makes this an easy watch to wear every day, from the office to dinner.

The case is made of NSAG, Seiko's gold-toned super hard alloy, with a stainless steel back. The alloy was used because it resists fine scratches, and the case shows only light marks from use with no major damage. It measures 29mm across (excluding crown) and 34.4mm lug to lug, with a 19mm lug width. The corners are cut away and the bezel steps down to the case in polished lines, finished with a black cabochon crown. The case is thin and short from lug to lug, so it sits low on the wrist and slips under a shirt cuff.

The dial is the original black, with applied gold batons that catch even dim light, so the time is easy to read indoors. In bright light the black stays deep rather than turning grey, and the gold details look sharper for it.

- wrist size in our picture is 17cm circumference -