Vintage Favre-leuba watches.
Favre-Leuba is one of the oldest names in Swiss watchmaking, with roots stretching back to the eighteenth century. Known for adventurous instrument watches, its vintage pieces carry genuine history and a spirit of exploration.
Frequently asked questions
Is Favre-Leuba an old watch brand?
Yes. Favre-Leuba is one of the oldest names in Swiss watchmaking, with roots reaching back into the eighteenth century, which gives its vintage pieces genuine historical interest.
What is Favre-Leuba known for?
The brand is particularly known for adventurous instrument watches able to measure altitude and depth, alongside well-made mid-century dress and sports pieces.
Do your Favre-Leuba watches come with a warranty?
Every watch is inspected before listing and covered by our 14-day returns.
Do you sell second hand Favre-leuba watches?
Yes. Every Favre-leuba watch we sell is second hand, and we use "pre-owned" and "vintage" to mean the same thing: someone owned the watch before you. The words differ only in age. Pre-owned and second hand say nothing about when a watch was made, while vintage conventionally means roughly thirty years or older. Our Favre-leuba stock spans both, and every listing states the year where we can confirm it from the caseback, papers or movement, and says so plainly where we cannot.
Are old Favre-leuba watches worth buying?
An old Favre-leuba in honest condition is usually better value than a new fashion watch at the same money, because the depreciation has already happened and you are buying a watch that has proved it lasts. What matters is the individual piece rather than the age: an original dial, a case that has not been over-polished, and a movement that has been serviced or is priced to allow for it. We inspect and test every Favre-leuba watch in London and describe wear in plain English rather than cropping it out of the photographs.
What makes a Favre-leuba watch a classic?
A classic watch is one whose design has stopped dating, and the test is simply time: a shape that looked right thirty years ago and still looks right now. In practice that means restraint, a legible dial, proportions that suit a wrist rather than a trend, and a case shape that was not chasing the fashion of its decade. The classic Favre-leuba designs are the ones that keep reappearing in our stock precisely because people kept them and wore them, which is the most honest evidence a design has lasted.
What is the difference between a vintage and an antique Favre-leuba watch?
Antique conventionally means a hundred years or older, and vintage roughly thirty years or older, so almost everything described as an antique wristwatch is really a vintage one. Wristwatches only became common after the First World War, which is why genuine antique examples are mostly pocket watches. Our Favre-leuba collection is vintage and pre-owned rather than antique, and each listing gives the year or era we have been able to confirm.
