LIP Automatic Calendrier – Vintage Swiss Automatic Watch – Gold Plated – Date – circa 1960–1970 An elegant vintage LIP Automatic Calendrier men’s watch, dating approximately from 1960–1970, combining classic mid-century styling with a practical automatic movement and date complication. The watch features a 35 mm gold-plated case, an attractive silver sunburst dial and applied gold-tone hour markers. A framed date window at 3 o’clock complements the clean dial architecture, while the inscription “AUTOMATIC CALENDRIER” identifies its automatic calendar configuration. With its restrained proportions and warm gold-and-silver combination, this LIP is representative of the refined European wristwatches produced during the 1960s and early 1970s. Case • Material: Gold plated • Diameter: 35 mm, excluding crown • Case Back: Stainless steel • Crystal: Acrylic • Design: Classic round case with straight, tapered lugs At 35 mm, the case has authentic masculine proportions for its period while remaining very wearable today. Dial • Color: Silver • Sunburst finish • Applied gold-tone baton hour markers • Gold-tone hour and minute hands • Central seconds hand • Date aperture at 3 o’clock • Signed with the distinctive LIP logo • AUTOMATIC CALENDRIER inscription above 6 o’clock • Fine peripheral minute track The dial is particularly attractive for its simplicity, with the sunburst finish changing subtly according to the light. Movement • Type: Automatic mechanical movement • Winding: Automatic / self-winding • Functions: Hours, minutes, central seconds and date • Calendar: Date indication The automatic mechanism gives the watch the traditional mechanical character expected from a vintage LIP, while the calendar function adds everyday practicality. Strap • Material: Leather • Color: Brown • Width: approx. 19–20 mm • Strap: Generic The brown leather strap complements the warm tone of the gold-plated case and shows signs of previous use. Case Back The stainless-steel case back is marked: STAINLESS STEEL BACK – ANTIMAGNETIC – WATERPROOF and carries the number: 277365 These inscriptions are characteristic of the technical terminology commonly found on watches of this period. Water Resistance: Not tested for water. Condition Grade: B+ The watch is in good vintage condition, showing normal signs of age and previous use. The gold-plated case presents surface wear and small marks consistent with its age. The stainless-steel case back shows scratches and handling marks. The silver dial remains attractive and highly legible, retaining its elegant sunburst appearance and original vintage character. Please examine the photographs carefully, as they form an important part of the condition description. Accessories: Delivered with generic presentation box. The Story This LIP Automatic Calendrier comes from approximately 1960–1970, a period particularly interesting in the history of European mechanical watchmaking. LIP is one of the historic names of French watchmaking, with roots dating back to the 19th century in Besançon, the traditional centre of the French watch industry. Over the decades, the company became closely associated with French industrial watchmaking and produced watches ranging from straightforward everyday models to technically innovative pieces. This Automatic Calendrier reflects a period when a mechanical watch was expected to be both elegant and genuinely practical. The automatic winding system removed the need for daily manual winding, while the calendar window at 3 o’clock added a useful everyday complication without disturbing the clean architecture of the dial. Its 35 mm proportions are equally representative of the era. Rather than relying on size for visual impact, watches of this generation achieved presence through proportion, dial design and subtle finishing. The combination of the gold-plated case, silver sunburst dial, applied indexes and automatic calendar movement gives this example the understated character associated with European watches of the 1960s and early 1970s. Today, it represents more than simply a vintage automatic watch: it is a surviving piece from the history of LIP and the French watchmaking tradition, retaining the compact proportions, mechanical simplicity and restrained design that defined its era. Internal Reference Number: ABA 70