The Longines brand has a mixed history that tends to polarise its fans into two categories. The first of which, for its modern persona, as an exceptionally successful, manufacturer of wristwatches at a multitude of price points. The second being the appreciator of their iconic chronograph, aviator and military watches, that the firm, arguably, defined its legacy upon.

Being die-hard fans of the brand, we decided to get on a plane to St Imier, home of Longines, to raid their drawers and ask the heritage department as many questions as they would answer. Longines have one of the most extraordinarily complete archive departments of any major watch brand - all impressively digitised. We brought Matt Hanson with us (also known as @vintagelongines on instagram) which should be self-explanatory. We asked Mr. Hanson to select a handful of rare and unusual pieces from their public museum to give an insight into the brand’s history.