One of the oldest Citizen watches is the triple calendar, launched in 1952. It is also one of the most complicated watches they made (except for chronographs).
Apart from telling the correct time it also has a complete calendar powered by the movement. That makes it unique among vintage Citizen watches. The running seconds are off centered, at 6. The date is shown by a pointer while the month and the date are displayed in a twin window on the upper part of the dial. The entire face of the watch is very well designed and balanced. On this particular watch the date hand is a replacement because it is too long, covering the date. On another dial design (for 17 jewels movements) the dates are positioned towards the edge of the dial and a longer date pointer is used. In this case the dates are closer to the center so a shorter hand should have been there in the first place. Because it is such an old watch I think at a certain time that one was replaced. The dial aged beautifully and it is still classy and elegant. The “C” logo, and hour markers are golden and applied, the dates are printed in blue, the month and date are black on yellow disks.
The manual “C” winding movement has 16 jewels and was inspired by the Swiss calibers at the time. The winding crown is at 3 and setting the time is done in the second position. The seconds do not hack. The date corrector is located at 4 while the month and day pushers are at 10 and 2. Very intuitive layout.
As more information will become available on this model I will update the page. So far… I can tell you I love the vintage elegant look of this awesome watch. The only thing I wish is that Citizen would have placed a moon phase in one of their watches. And this particular one would have been perfect for that. 🙂
Update 2016 July – Here is the booklet:
Update 2018 April:
Here is my NOS one, I have it for one year already but somehow only today felt like the right day for a photo shoot:
Read more about another (Citizen Monthly) full calendar watch HERE
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Hi! I recently bought a watch like this here in Japan. My question is, until when did Citizen produce these as I’m wondering about the possible date of manufacture of mine. Thanks!
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Hello! As stated in the article Citizen started production of this model in 1952, for a few years, with a few variations. Can you upload some pics? Thanks!
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Hello, I came across your article researching the same model.
Could you tell anything about this one.
Following the 7 digit code with the 1st for year, this could be a 1961 but the next 2 digits which most places advised as the month have me confused as they are 30!
How could I send you photos? Thank you
Ned
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This model is older so the rule does not apply to this model.
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Hi there!
Great website you have here, I was just wondering, is this model still for sale by any chance?
Thanks!
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Hello! Yes it is, a NOS piece, with NOS original strap and buckle. Let me know if interested in the comments and I will contact you on the e-mail provided.
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Thank you for your quick response, much appreciated!
Yes please I would appreciate it, as I would like to discuss another watch you have for sale as well if you don’t mind.
Thank you!
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Mail sent. Contact me there for any info you need. citizen.guy@mail.com
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Hi Citizen Guy! First of all, thank’s so much for an outstanding VCW website! I own a Citizen Monthly 19j triple calendar Jet from 1965. It is currently undergoing restoration and the dial is really bad. Can you help me source a nice dial? All the best, Bert
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Thank you and enjoy your Citizen! Read this: https://vintagecitizenwatches.com/2016/04/10/citizen-parts-for-repair-and-restoration/
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