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Longines Master Collection Moonphase 40MM Stainless Steel
Ref. L29094786
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Stepping up in the same colour and case shape
The Master Collection is where Longines makes its case for traditional haute horlogerie at a scale that stops short of the grandes maisons. The moonphase complication here is not ornamental padding: it sits within a dial that earns its complexity, the barleycorn-textured silver ground giving the Arabic numerals and heat-blued hands something to contrast against, so the face reads with genuine depth rather than flattening into decoration. At 11.1mm thick with a 40mm footprint, this sits in a useful middle ground — present enough to register under a French cuff, slim enough not to disrupt the line of a jacket sleeve. The L899 behind the dial runs for 72 hours on a full wind, which means a watch worn Monday to Friday survives the weekend unworn and picks up without resetting. The triple-safety folding clasp on the bracelet is secured by a push-piece mechanism rather than a pinch release, and at 160.1 grams the bracelet has the kind of weight that keeps the watch from riding around the wrist.
- Reference
- L29094786
- Brand
- Longines
- Collection
- Master Collection
- Case size
- 40mm
- Case thickness
- 11.1mm
- Lug width
- 21mm
- Case material
- Stainless steel
- Case shape
- Round
- Dial
- Silver
- Crystal
- Sapphire
- Movement
- Automatic
- Calibre
- L899
- Functions
- Date, Moonphase
- Water resistance
- 30m
- Bracelet / strap
- Stainless steel bracelet
- Strap colour
- Silver
- Clasp
- Folding clasp
- Lume
- Luminous
- Condition
- Pre-owned
- 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 4 collections
This watch appears in Stainless Steel Watches (2,616), Automatic Watches (1,362), Silver Dial Watches (587) and Pre-Owned, Ex-Display & Vintage Watches (235).
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
- 30m means keeping it away from water
Compare alternatives
Watches from other brands at a similar price, style and size, so you can see what else your budget can buy.
| Specification | L29094786 | R30036752 | 00620025722 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | £1,950 | £1,850 | £2,050 |
| Case size | 40mm | 38mm | 38mm |
| Water resistance | 30m | 30m | 50m |
| Movement | Automatic | Automatic | Automatic |
| Strap | Stainless steel bracelet | Ceramic bracelet | Leather strap |
| Power reserve | 72 hours | 80 hours | 120 hours |
| This watch |
|
|
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?
No. It is automatic — the motion of your wrist winds it, and there is no cell to replace.
How 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?
21mm. 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 unisex, and at this size it suits any wrist that takes the dimensions.
Cheapest place to buy
Mappin & Webb at £1,950, 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 £1,950 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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