Festina

Festina

Regular price £275.00 Sale

Watch Snap Shot:

Make: Festina
Size: (incl crown): 35mm
Movement: Unitas 6310N
Material: Nickel Plated Steel
Mechanical Condition: Working perfectly and keeping very accurate time over our 48 hour test
Physical Condition: Very Good

History of Festina Watches:

Festina was an historic watch manufacturer, which began as a small family run watch factory in 1902, created by the Stüdi family in the city of La Chaux-de-Fonds, France. The name Festina deriving from the Latin motto "festina lente", which means that activities should be performed with a proper balance of urgency and diligence. If tasks are overly rushed, mistakes are made and good long-term results are not achieved.

In 1935 the founding family transmitted the brand to businessman Willy Burkhard von Wilhelm. Then again in 1975 to Georges Uhlmann, an entrepreneur who had a significant presence in the Spanish and Italian markets, acquired the firm.

It is now is today an international company called the Festina Group, specialised in the production and commercialization of commercial price range watches and precision parts and headquartered in located in Barcelona

In 1992 Festina became the official Timekeeper of the Tour de France until 2016. Since 2016, Festina has also taken on Gerard Butler as ambassador of brand and image of its campaigns.

Movement:

Unitas 6310N 17 Jewel Manual Wind Movement with Sub Seconds and Incabloc Shock Resistant Technology, this has been rigorously tested over 48 hours and it is keeping accurate time and the subdial and all other parts are working perfectly.

Watch Overview

This rare 1960's Festina watch is a perfect example of an historic small-time watch brand that later fell prey to a large conglomerate group. Most watch geeks will turn their nose up at a modern Festina watch, as it is mass produced and rather generic. However this brand at it roots was a charming French brand, family run and really rather quaint that sadly got distorted over time. This is a great chance for you to get a dollop of the "real" and rare old Festina brand that will stun fellow watch geeks.

The watch has a striking greyish blue/light purple dial with sunburst effect patina dial, combined with a textured white second subdial and the copper plated Unitas 6310N movement. It is a fantastic vintage watch that offers a exciting avant garde value proposition.

Vintage Festina watches of the age are surprisingly rare. An example like this, with a combination of perfect patina, a striking contrast subdial and a reliable Swiss Made movement, is a perfect proposition for someone after an interesting left-field vintage watch. I guarantee you wont find an example like this out in the wild, let alone a fellow Festina brother or sister from this era. Now, that's not a comment a Vintage Datejust Rolex owner would be able to utter!

It has a blue snake skin leather strap, it is specifically tailored to this watch and matches the dial tone.

CASE: Watch case is in great condition.
DIAL: Great condition with a stunning patina
BACK CASE: Great condition (original, you can make out Festina very faintly with the mark 26-69, this may well refer to when is was made but we cannot be certain)
CROWN: Good condition, appears to be original.
CRYSTAL: Great condition.
OVERALL CONDITION: Has been tested, cleaned and checked over and is in excellent working order.
PRESENTATION: Presented in the a small trinket box, perfect if this is a gift.
AUTHENTICITY: Certification provided upon request.

Technical Specs:

CASE SIZE: 35mm including crown (33mm without crown)
STRAP SIZE: 18mm at lugs
CASE MATERIAL: Nickel Platd Steel
BRACELET: Snake Skin Blue Leather Strap

Shipping:

Worldwide shipping available, all items are shipped fully insured and sent as priority mail.
For outside of the EU customs or import charges will be paid by the customer (if applied).

T&C's

The watch is guaranteed to be in full functioning good working condition when it is posted from our store.
For your peace of mind Wilberforce Watches offers a 30 day mechanical limited warranty for all watches, please see full terms and conditions for full details, available at email request.

Whether it be two days after the sale or two years, please let us know the issue as we have got your back. However please bear in mind that due to the nature of vintage watches, we do expect reasonable treatment of all watches by their new owners. So, no cave diving or base jumping please.