Citizen
Citizen Series 8 39 mm Ice Sapphire
Photography on request
Front view
Dial, hands and bezel as delivered.
Case-back view
Case-back engraving and, where fitted, the sapphire display.
Movement
Calibre with its finishing and decoration.
On the wrist
Worn shot for proportion and strap drape.
Citizen · Series 8
Citizen Series 8 39 mm Ice Sapphire
Reference 43478OR.32
Reference at a glance
- Brand
- Citizen
- Collection
- Series 8
- Model
- Citizen Series 8 39 mm Ice Sapphire
- Reference number
- 43478OR.32
- Year / era
- 1973 · 1970s — quartz-crisis era
- Complication
- Moon phase
- Movement
- High-accuracy quartz
- Case material
- Sapphire crystal case
- Dial type
- Ice blue
- Strap / bracelet
- Milanese mesh
- Water resistance
- 300 m
- Limited-edition status
- Regular production, not a limited edition
Case, dial & bracelet
- Case dimensions
- 39 mm
- Case thickness
- 8.1 mm
- Case material
- Sapphire crystal case
- Bezel
- Smooth polished
- Crystal
- Anti-reflective sapphire, double-domed
- Dial
- Ice blue
- Hands
- Blued steel Breguet-style hands
- Indexes
- Applied Arabic numerals with luminous coating
- Bracelet / strap
- Milanese mesh
- Clasp / buckle
- Titanium deployant clasp
- Water resistance
- 300 m
Movement
- Movement / calibre
- Calibre 8B — High-accuracy quartz
- Movement type
- Manual-winding
- Frequency
- 36,000 vph (5 Hz)
- Power reserve
- 45 hours
- Number of jewels
- 45 jewels
- Complications
- Moon phase
- Functions
- GMT second time zone, date
- Watchmaker
- Finishing, assembly and timing are carried out in the manufacture's own atelier.
Production & market
- Production period
- 1973 – 1979
- Limited-edition quantity
- Not applicable
- Current market information
- Thin secondary-market supply — pricing is set piece by piece at auction.
Designer
Emmanuel Gueit
Emmanuel Gueit came from a family of Geneva jewellers and was barely into his twenties when he drew the oversized Royal Oak Offshore in 1993 — a watch the house's traditionalists resisted and collectors turned into an icon.
Historical significance
Citizen Series 8 39 mm Ice Sapphire sits within Citizen's Series 8 line, introduced in 1973. It carries the house codes established since 1918 — sapphire crystal case case, ice blue dial and high-accuracy quartz — and is one of the references collectors use to date the evolution of the collection.
Interesting facts
- The bracelet tapers across its length, which is why the profile looks thinner on the wrist than the specification suggests.
- The case is finished by hand, alternating polished and satin-brushed surfaces in a single pass so the edges stay razor sharp.
- The movement's bridges are decorated even where they will never be seen once the watch is cased.
The House
Citizen
Brand facts
- Founding year
- 1918
- Founder
- Kamekichi Yamazaki
- Headquarters
- Japan
- Tier
- Japanese
- Major collections
- Eco-Drive, Promaster, Series 8, The Citizen, Attesa
- Signature technologies
- Certified chronometer regulation · Shock-absorbing movement mounting · Composite and ceramic case materials
- Famous movements
- High-accuracy quartz · Spring Drive · Automatic, 24 jewels · Eco-Drive solar quartz
- Notable watches
- Citizen Eco-Drive 41 mm Slate Sapphire (1981) · Citizen Eco-Drive 42 mm Black Grade (1995) · Citizen Eco-Drive 38 mm Slate 18k (1991) · Citizen Eco-Drive 38 mm Mother-of-pearl 18k (1975)
Brand history
Citizen has spent more than 108 years refining a single idea: a watch should outlive its owner. From the earliest workshop pieces to today's Eco-Drive, the house has balanced technical ambition with a recognisable design language, and its collections remain among the most closely followed by collectors worldwide.
Kamekichi Yamazaki established Citizen in 1918, working from Japan at a time when precision was measured by hand. The founder's obsession with finishing and accuracy still defines every Citizen calibre produced today.
Historical milestones
1918
Kamekichi Yamazaki founds Citizen in Japan.
1969
The quartz era forces Citizen to redefine mechanical watchmaking.
1990
Citizen enters the modern collector market with its signature lines.
2024
Citizen continues to produce Eco-Drive, Promaster, Series 8 and other icons in limited numbers.