High Frequency

Swiss watchmaker LONGINES revisits one of its most legendary dive watches for a new generation of collectors as MAXIM tries on the all-new Ultra-Chron Diver...

- REILLY SULLIVAN

With a history dating back to 1832, the heritage of Swiss watchmaker Longines is rich and multilayered. Although the company is perhaps most famed as the watchmaker of choice for aviators like Charles Lindbergh, its forays into dive watches have also produced some stunning timepieces. Case in point: the Ultra-Chron Diver watch, originally released in 1968. At that time, Longines set a new standard with the UltraChron, the first dive watch to be equipped with a high-frequency movement.

In technical terms, a watch is referred to as “high-frequency” when it is fitted with a movement whose balance spring oscillates at 36,000 beats per hour (or 10 beats every second). Longines pioneered high frequency movements, first in 1914 (to time 1/10th of a second) and then 1916 (to time 1/100th of a second) and these achievements changed timekeeping in sport forever. In fact, Longines continues to serve as the official timekeeper of a variety of elite horse racing and winter sports worldwide, as well as the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham.