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Longines Longnes Dolcevita 20.8mm Stainless Steel and Rose Gold
Ref. 04900036331
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Stepping up in the same colour and case shape
The DolceVita line draws its name and its proportions from a specific idea: the wristwatch as an accessory first, shaped to the wrist rather than the dial. The rectangular case, at 20.8 by 32mm, sits closer to a bracelet link in scale than to most dress watches, and that is the point of the format — it is meant to disappear into a cuff or read as part of the bracelet itself. The two-tone finish, stainless steel set against 18ct rose gold elements on both case and bracelet, gives the watch its most immediate character. Against a silver flinqué dial — a fine guilloche-like engine-turned texture — with blue steel hands and Roman numerals, the combination is deliberately considered rather than mixed at random. The folding clasp keeps the bracelet flush at the wrist, which matters on a piece this narrow.
- Reference
- 04900036331
- Brand
- Longines
- Collection
- DolceVita
- Case size
- 32mm
- Case material
- Two-tone
- Case shape
- Rectangular
- Dial
- Silver
- Crystal
- Sapphire
- Movement
- Quartz
- Water resistance
- 30m
- Bracelet / strap
- Stainless steel bracelet
- Strap colour
- Two-tone
- Clasp
- Folding clasp
- Lume
- Luminous
- Condition
- Pre-owned
- Retailer
- Mappin & Webb
Additional specifications
- Lug-to-lug
- 32mm
- Gem set
- Yes
Learn more about Longines
Auguste Agassiz began trading watches in Saint-Imier in 1832, but the modern company dates from 1860, when his nephew Ernest Francillon built a factory in the meadows beside the Suze — the longines of the local dialect — and consolidated the scattered outworkers of the region under one roof.
Longines registered its winged hourglass in 1889. It is the oldest watch trademark still in continuous use.
The company's identity was built on precision and on timing things in public. It supplied chronographs for the first modern Olympic events it timed in 1896, timed the 1912 Federal Gymnastics Festival with a broken-wire mechanism accurate to a hundredth of a second, and developed the photo-finish camera and the quartz timing devices used across twentieth-century athletics.
Its aviation associations are equally deep. Longines instruments were carried by Charles Lindbergh across the Atlantic in 1927, and the Hour Angle watch, designed to Lindbergh's own specification to simplify longitude calculation, remains in the catalogue. Amelia Earhart and Howard Hughes both navigated by Longines.
The house was among the most decorated at nineteenth-century observatory trials, holding numerous precision records. Since joining the Swatch Group in 1983 it has occupied the accessible-heritage position: exclusive ETA-based movements, archive-driven designs through the Heritage line, and volume that makes it one of the group's most important brands.
- 1860
- Ernest Francillon builds the factory at Les Longines.
- 1889
- The winged hourglass is registered — the oldest watch trademark in use.
- 1912
- Broken-wire timing achieves hundredth-second accuracy.
- 1927
- Lindbergh crosses the Atlantic with Longines instruments.
- 1983
- Becomes part of the Swatch Group.
Also in 6 collections
This watch appears in Stainless Steel Watches (2,616), Watches Under 37mm (1,375), Women's Watches (1,305), Silver Dial Watches (587), Two-Tone Watches (372) and Rectangular & Square Watches (322).
What the specifications mean
Strengths
- 32mm wears small and slips under any cuff
- 32mm lug-to-lug keeps the 32mm case wearable
- Sapphire crystal, which resists scratching
- Luminous hands and markers for low light
- Sits in the lower half of Longines's range as we list it
Worth knowing
- 30m means keeping it away from water
Your new watch
Frequently asked questions, and things you should know about this watch
Can I swim with it?
No. At 30m it will survive rain and handwashing, but not submersion of any kind.
Will the glass scratch?
Unlikely. Sapphire is second only to diamond in hardness and shrugs off everyday marking.
Does it need a battery?
Yes. It is quartz, so expect a battery change every two to three years at a jeweller.
Will it fit my wrist?
Lug-to-lug is 32mm, which suits wrists from roughly 15cm (6 inches) upward.
Lug-to-lug decides fit more than case diameter does.
Is it a men's or women's watch?
Listed as women's.
Cheapest place to buy
Mappin & Webb at £1,250, pre-owned. No UK retailer we track lists this reference new.
Is this available new?
Not from the UK retailers we track. This reference is listed as pre-owned only, at £1,250 from Mappin & Webb. A pre-owned watch has been worn, and is normally sold under the retailer’s own warranty rather than the manufacturer’s.
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