Tissot Watch Cream Patinated Dial Steel 34mm — Sub-seconds (1956)

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A Tissot from 1956, cream crosshair dial and sub-seconds

This Tissot watch dates from 1956. The house was founded in 1853 in Le Locle by Charles-Félicien and Charles-Émile Tissot-Daguette, father and son, who opened a watchmaking counter there; the company became a fully integrated manufacture in 1917, then joined forces with Omega in 1930 to form SSIH. It remained in the hands of the family until 1971. This piece belongs to the period when Tissot was making its own calibres in Le Locle.

The original dial is its subject. Its cream tone is what seventy years have laid over a light background: a speckled patina, spread across the entire surface, whose depth changes depending on the light. A crosshair runs across it — two fine lines intersecting at the center, a characteristic design of Swiss dials from the 1950s. The even hours are marked by large applied Arabic numerals — 12, 2, 4, 8, 10 — and the intermediate hours by faceted dart indexes, also set in relief. The minute track runs in fine batons around the edge.

At six o'clock, a sub-seconds register hollows the dial, with its own hand and its own crosshair — the configuration inherited from pocket watches, which central seconds would replace in the following decade. The steel dauphine hands, faceted along their entire length, catch the light along successive edges.

The steel case measures 34mm with 10mm thickness and 42mm of Lug-to-lug, with faceted, downturned lugs that follow the wrist. The Crystal is plexiglass, a period material whose domed profile softens the light. The movement is a hand-wound mechanical movement, Tissot 27 calibre, from the 27 family that the manufacture produced from 1936 to the early 1960s. It has been checked by our partner watchmakers and is guaranteed for one year.

Three points to note

Why choose a vintage Tissot?

This pre-owned Tissot watch holds a distinct place among our vintage watches for men and women: 34mm in diameter, 42mm Lug-to-lug and 10mm thick make up a format that wears equally well on either wrist. It is also one of the most direct entry points into post-war Swiss mechanics: an in-house calibre from 1956, a dial that has never been retouched, and a steel case, at a budget that remains that of accessible vintage.

Like all our vintage mechanical watches, this one has been opened and checked by our partner watchmakers: movement verification, examination of the dial, hands and case. Each vintage watch we offer comes with an Atelier Victor invoice serving as a certificate, a one-year guarantee and lifetime guaranteed authenticity.

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Technical characteristics

• Brand: Tissot
• Model: Dress watch with sub-seconds
• Serial number: 37020••
• Estimated year: 1956
• Origin: Switzerland
• Gender: Men's and women's watch (Unisex)
• Movement: Hand-wound mechanical, Tissot 27 calibre
• Functions: Hours, minutes, sub-seconds at 6 o'clock
• Case: Steel, round shape with faceted lugs, steel caseback
• Diameter: 34mm (35mm with the crown)
• Lug to lug: 42mm
• Thickness: 10mm
• Lug width: 18mm
• Crown: Fluted steel, not original
• Dial: Patinated cream crosshair, applied Arabic numerals and dart indexes, original
• Hands: Faceted steel dauphine, original
• Crystal: Plexiglass (condition 8/10)
• Strap: Black crocodile-grain calfskin leather, not original
• Buckle: Steel pin buckle, not original

Condition and guarantee

• Overall condition: Good state of preservation. The original dial has developed a speckled cream patina, even across the entire surface and born of time: it has never been restored. The crosshair, numerals and applied indexes remain crisp, the sub-seconds legible. The polished steel case shows signs of wear on the bezel and lugs, visible in our photographs. Crystal plexiglass rated 8/10.
• Water resistance: Not guaranteed (vintage watch)
• Authenticity: Lifetime guarantee
• Mechanics: Mechanical movement checked, guaranteed for 1 year
• Included: Atelier Victor invoice, protective case
• Not included: Original box and papers

Frequently Asked Questions

What is a crosshair dial?
Two fine lines that intersect at the center of the dial and meet the minute track at twelve, three, six and nine o'clock. The motif comes from instrument dials and became established on Swiss watches of the 1940s and 1950s: it structures an otherwise empty surface and guides the eye toward the hour markers. Here, the sub-seconds register reprises the same design on its own scale.

Why is the dial cream and speckled?
It is the patina of an original 1956 dial. The light lacquer evolves slowly in contact with light and air, taking on this speckled cream hue that cannot be reproduced: each dial develops patina in its own way, which makes this one unique. The only alternative would have been to refinish it — an operation that erases the trace of time and causes the watch to lose its original dial. We do not do this.

What is the Tissot 27 calibre?
A hand-wound mechanical movement from the 27 family, which Tissot produced in Le Locle from 1936 to the early 1960s in numerous variants. It is a calibre from the period when the maison was making its own movements, before the standardization of the group's calibres — a point that matters to those buying a 1950s Tissot rather than a recent Tissot.

Who is Tissot?
A maison founded in 1853 in Le Locle by Charles-Félicien and Charles-Émile Tissot-Daguette, father and son, as a watchmaking counter. It became a full manufacture in 1917, then joined with Omega in 1930 to form SSIH — from that point, the two brands shared an industrial structure. The family retained control until 1971.

Is this piece suitable for a slim or larger wrist?
With a 34mm diameter, 42mm Lug-to-lug and 10mm thickness, it suits wrists of approximately 15 to 18.5cm — a guide, never a rule: everyone wears what they like. Its downturned lugs offset the width of the case and allow it to sit flat. The 18mm Lug width is one of the most common, which leaves the full choice of replacement straps.

A piece selected by Atelier Victor

Authenticated, checked, and photographed by us. As all sales are final, our team remains available 7 days a week on WhatsApp to answer your questions, share additional photos or a video of the piece in hand — so that your choice can be made with complete peace of mind.

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