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Longines Conquest 40mm Mens Watch Silver
Ref. L16504726
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Stepping up in the same colour and case shape
The Conquest Heritage reaches back to the watch Longines built in the 1950s when the case shape it now revives was considered simply correct — neither modish nor conservative, just well-proportioned for a 40mm steel sports watch. The reference has been brought back with its original proportions largely intact, and the result is a watch that looks neither like a deliberate revival nor a contemporary redesign. What distinguishes it mechanically is the L888, a movement Longines developed with a silicon balance-spring, which means it resists the magnetic fields that disrupt conventional hairsprings — laptops, bag clasps, audio equipment — without any special handling from the owner. The 72-hour power reserve means a weekend off the wrist requires no resetting on Monday. At 10.8mm the case is slim enough to sit under a shirt cuff without protest, which is a genuine achievement for an automatic of this rating. The screw-down caseback carries an 18-karat gold medallion of a fish — the kind of detail that reads as pure house tradition and rewards the owner who thinks to look.
- Reference
- L16504726
- Brand
- Longines
- Collection
- Conquest
- Case size
- 40mm
- Case thickness
- 10.8mm
- Lug width
- 20mm
- Case material
- Gold
- Case shape
- Round
- Dial
- Silver
- Crystal
- Sapphire
- Movement
- Automatic
- Calibre
- L888
- Functions
- Power reserve indicator
- Water resistance
- 50m
- Bracelet / strap
- Stainless steel bracelet
- Strap colour
- Silver
- Clasp
- Folding clasp
- Lume
- Super-LumiNova
- Retailer
- Mappin & Webb
Additional specifications
- Power reserve
- 72 hours
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 5 collections
This watch appears in the Longines Conquest range (60), Back in Stock (4,908), Automatic Watches (1,645), Silver Dial Watches (730) and Solid Gold Watches (146).
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What the specifications mean
A mechanical watch for everyday wear.
Strengths
- 40mm suits most wrists
- Sapphire crystal, which resists scratching
- 72-hour reserve survives a weekend off the wrist
- Luminous hands and markers for low light
Worth knowing
- 50m suits rain and handwashing, not swimming
Longines Conquest alternatives
Watches from other brands at a similar price, style and size, so you can see what else your budget can buy.
| Specification | L16504726 | 01 403 7799 4068-07 8 | 34238AA39.BVA136 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | £2,800 | £2,680 | £2,750 |
| Case size | 40mm | 40mm | 39mm |
| Water resistance | 50m | 50m | 50m |
| Movement | Automatic | Automatic | Automatic |
| Strap | Stainless steel bracelet | Stainless steel bracelet | Leather strap |
| Power reserve | 72 hours | — | 38 hours |
| This watch | Closely matched | Closely matched |
Your new watch
Frequently asked questions, and things you should know about this watch
Can I swim with it?
Showering yes, swimming no. 50m covers splashes and brief immersion, but a swimming stroke generates well above the pressure that figure describes.
Water resistance explainedWill the glass scratch?
Unlikely. Sapphire is second only to diamond in hardness and shrugs off everyday marking.
Sapphire, mineral and acrylic comparedDoes it need a battery?
No. It is automatic — the motion of your wrist winds it, and there is no cell to replace.
Quartz, automatic and solar comparedHow long does it run for when it's not worn?
About 72 hours fully wound — enough to sit off the wrist over a weekend and still be running.
What size strap does it take?
20mm. Any strap of that width will fit, and on most modern watches quick-release bars make the swap a two-minute job with no tools.
Is it a men's or women's watch?
Listed as men's, though at 40mm it sits in the range that suits anyone.
Cheapest place to buy
Both Mappin & Webb and Goldsmiths list it at £2,800, so choose on delivery and warranty rather than price.
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