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.
Longines · DolceVita
Longines DolceVita 44 mm Meteorite 18k
Reference 42440OR.12
Reference at a glance
- Brand
- Longines
- Collection
- DolceVita
- Model
- Longines DolceVita 44 mm Meteorite 18k
- Reference number
- 42440OR.12
- Year / era
- 1970 · 1970s — quartz-crisis era
- Complication
- Flyback chronograph
- Movement
- Automatic, Swiss lever escapement
- Case material
- 18k yellow gold
- Dial type
- Meteorite
- Strap / bracelet
- Jubilee bracelet
- Water resistance
- 150 m
- Limited-edition status
- Limited edition of 188 pieces
Case, dial & bracelet
- Case dimensions
- 44 mm
- Case thickness
- 10.2 mm
- Case material
- 18k yellow gold
- Bezel
- Smooth polished
- Crystal
- Flat sapphire with Cyclops lens
- Dial
- Meteorite
- Hands
- Blued steel Breguet-style hands
- Indexes
- Applied Arabic numerals with luminous coating
- Bracelet / strap
- Jubilee bracelet
- Clasp / buckle
- Titanium deployant clasp
- Water resistance
- 150 m
Movement
- Movement / calibre
- Calibre 7A — Automatic, Swiss lever escapement
- Movement type
- Manual-winding
- Frequency
- 36,000 vph (5 Hz)
- Power reserve
- 55 hours
- Number of jewels
- 31 jewels
- Complications
- Flyback chronograph
- Functions
- Perpetual calendar, leap year
- Watchmaker
- Finishing, assembly and timing are carried out in the manufacture's own atelier.
Production & market
- Production period
- 1970 – 1973
- Limited-edition quantity
- 188 pieces
- Current market information
- Consistently trades above retail; waiting lists at authorised dealers remain long.
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
Longines DolceVita 44 mm Meteorite 18k sits within Longines's DolceVita line, introduced in 1970. It carries the house codes established since 1832 — 18k yellow gold case, meteorite dial and automatic, swiss lever escapement — and is one of the references collectors use to date the evolution of the collection.
Interesting facts
- The movement's bridges are decorated even where they will never be seen once the watch is cased.
- The bracelet tapers across its length, which is why the profile looks thinner on the wrist than the specification suggests.
The House
Longines
Brand facts
- Founding year
- 1832
- Founder
- Auguste Agassiz
- Headquarters
- Switzerland
- Tier
- Premium
- Major collections
- Master Collection, HydroConquest, Spirit, Legend Diver, DolceVita, Conquest
- Signature technologies
- Proprietary case-hardening and polishing · Shock-absorbing movement mounting · In-house hairspring production
- Famous movements
- High-beat automatic · Automatic chronograph · Automatic, Swiss lever escapement · Spring Drive
- Notable watches
- Longines Master Collection 44 mm Green Ceramic (1974) · Longines Master Collection 40 mm Meteorite 18k (1964) · Longines Master Collection 41 mm Black 18k (1998) · Longines Master Collection 44 mm Skeletonised Sapphire (1969)
Brand history
Longines has spent more than 194 years refining a single idea: a watch should outlive its owner. From the earliest workshop pieces to today's Master Collection, the house has balanced technical ambition with a recognisable design language, and its collections remain among the most closely followed by collectors worldwide.
Auguste Agassiz established Longines in 1832, working from Switzerland at a time when precision was measured by hand. The founder's obsession with finishing and accuracy still defines every Longines calibre produced today.
Historical milestones
1832
Auguste Agassiz founds Longines in Switzerland.
1872
Longines earns its first international recognition for precision timekeeping.
1969
The quartz era forces Longines to redefine mechanical watchmaking.
1990
Longines enters the modern collector market with its signature lines.
2024
Longines continues to produce Master Collection, HydroConquest, Spirit and other icons in limited numbers.