The Presage Craftsmanship collection celebrates the 110th anniversary of Seiko watchmaking with 4 new timepieces featuring classic Japanese craftsmanship.

Prospex brings together all of Seiko’s sports and professional watches, while Presage can be regarded as the brand’s formal dress classic series. Divided into 4 sub-collections – Sharp Edged, Cocktail, Style 60s and the Craftsmanship collection – the latter will be the focus of attention today. To celebrate the 110th anniversary of watchmaking, the brand launched a series of 4 Presage Craftsmanship collections, each paying homage to traditional Japanese craftsmanship, in reference to the launch of Seiko’s first watch, the 1913 Laurel. Enamel, lacquer, Arita porcelain or Shippo enamel, here are the new Presage SPB393, SPB395, SPB397 and SPB399.

Before we move on to a detailed look at these watches, some initial notes. First, the 4 Seiko Presage limited edition watches all feature traditional Japanese decoration techniques that we have seen in previous collections; enamel, lacquer, Arita porcelain and Shippo enamel. All of this is a strong homage to Seiko’s country of origin, which has always been the goal of this Presage sub-collection. Elegant, sophisticated, and relatively accessible, this new 2023 Seiko Presage Craftsmanship collection showcases fine craftsmanship and introduces new case shapes. More angular than before, with straighter lugs and redefined proportions, with a double-curved sapphire crystal closer to the dial to draw attention to the craftsmanship on display. Provides a slimmer look on the wrist” (confirmed once we see the watches, as the specs show heights of 12.8mm and 14.1mm – not the thinnest).

This new collection can be divided into two groups, defined by the movements inside these new cases. The enamel SPB393 and Urushi SPB395 use a triple retrograde display, while the Arita ceramic SPB397 and Shippo enamel SPB399 rely on a date and power reserve display. All watches feature a newly designed dial with alternating Roman numerals and baton markings.

Enamel SPB393 & Lacquer SPB395
The first two models in the series were built around the same technological foundation. The first of the two models adopts the classic style of the series, a pure white glass enamel base created by master craftsman Yokozawa Mitsuru and his team. The 12 o’clock marker is in red and all the hands are blue – a style reminiscent of the original Laurel watch and familiar to previous enamel models from the Presage collection. The SPB393 comes with a black strap and is the most classic of all 4 watches.

The next collection in this 2023 craft collection is the reference model SPB395, which has a dial made with the Urushi lacquer technique. Crafted by Urushi master Isshu Tamura and his team, it’s presented here in a bold and never-before-seen shade of copper brown, which also includes an innovative new approach to achieving flat surfaces. This brown tone is complemented by white hour markers and hands, as well as gold accents on the XII and sub-hands. It comes with a matching brown leather strap.

Models SPB393 and SPB395 both feature a 40.2mm x 12.8mm steel case with brushed and polished surfaces with an ultra-hard coating, topped with sapphire crystal and a see-through case back. Water-resistant to 100 meters, they are secured to the wrist with a three-fold clasp with push-button release. Display includes retrograde indication of date and day of the week, and power reserve indicator. Power comes from the automatic caliber 6R24, a 4Hz movement set with 31 jewels and has a 45-hour power reserve.

Seiko Presage Craftmanship Series Enamel Dial SPB393 and Urushi Lacquer Dial SPB395. 40.2mm x 12.8mm Steel Case with Super Hard Coating – Sapphire Crystal Front and Case Back – 100m Water Resistance – Inner Caliber 6R24, Automatic, 4Hz, 45 hours power reserve – leather strap with three-fold clasp. buy replica watches online

Arita SPB397 and Shippo SPB399
The other 2 models in the 2023 Seiko Presage Craftsmanship line use a slightly different technical basis. The first model features an elegant ivory-coloured porcelain dial reminiscent of the Izumiyama Ceramic Stone Field in the small town of Arita in Saga Prefecture, where Arita porcelain has been made for more than 400 years. Created by master craftsman Hiroyuki Hashiguchi and his team, the dials are a multi-stage process that requires multiple firings in char kilns to retain their rich colour, texture and depth for years to come. The beige color is complemented by black hands and indexes, as well as gold accents on the XII and auxiliary hands. This model is paired with a brown leather strap. While Arita porcelain techniques are familiar in Seiko Presage’s collections, the style used in this reference SPB397 is unprecedented.

Last but not least, model SPB399 brings a relatively rare style to the Presage collection, but should also be considered the most sophisticated of them all. Featuring the Shippo enamel technique, it consists of a textured base plate with guilloché in a wave pattern and a polished translucent blue enamel surface on top. Created by craftsman Totani Watari and his team, it relies on multiple processes such as glazing the dial surface, firing the dial and polishing the surface by hand to bring out the unique wave pattern below. The dark blue dial of this Presage model is complemented by white hour-markers and hands, as well as gold accents on the XII and sub-hands. It’s worn on a matching blue leather strap. discount replica watches

Models SPB397 and SPB399 both feature a 40.6mm x 14.1mm stainless steel case with brushed and polished surfaces, super-hard coating and double-sided sapphire crystal. The cases are water resistant to 100 meters and secure to the wrist with a three-fold clasp with push button release. The display here consists of a sub-dial with an analog date at 6 o’clock and a power reserve indicator at 9 o’clock. These are powered by the in-house automatic movement 6R27, also a 4Hz movement with a 45-hour power reserve.

40.6mm x 14.1mm steel case with superhard coating – sapphire crystal front and case back – 100m water resistance – internal caliber 6R27, automatic winding, 4Hz, 45 hours power reserve – with triple folding clasp Leather strap.