Cyma was founded in 1862 in the town of Tavannes, near Bern, Switzerland. It has always been a luxury brand that produced almost every component in house.  In 1945 they started to produce an amazingly good alarm clock, the R10 which became recognised as the best alarm clock available and stayed in production until the late 60s. During the 50s to the mid-60s, Cyma wristwatches were among the most popular prestige brand in my part of the world, they were no nonsense, quality and beautiful.

Cyma’s styles have always been conservative and the technology seemed to never been at the cutting edge. But they were well constructed and no nonsense beautiful.  This Navystar from the early 50s is no exception. The case is solid 9ct gold with the diamonds bead set in each lug. I have never seen this before in any watch and I tend to think that this is a modification. There are also two diamonds set the 9ct gold buckle, also new to me.  The dial features superbly polished index markers and raised “C” logo. The hands are lancette style with a very fine strip of luminescence while the sweep hand is blue oxidised steel making for a pleasant contrast.

Technically, the in house R459 manual wind movement is well finished in the Swiss tradition of the time. It features Cyma’s own Cymaflex shock proof system. The sweep second hand is indirectly driven by an extra wheel as can be seen in the picture.

This watch came to me in a bundle of classics from a deceased watchmaker. I probably would not have bought it if it was presented to me individualy. But when I inspected it closely, I soon fell in love. It is in near mint condition and all the preportions are beautifull. It had to take its place in my collection.