Seiko Merit women's wristwatch (Ref. 5208, February 1958)

A rare Seiko Merit from the 1950s – one of the smallest ladies' watches ever made by Seiko. The model impressively showcases the fine Japanese watchmaking of the post-war period with a subtly patinated silver dial, gold-tone hands, and applied indices.

Historical background

After World War II, Seiko (or rather the Seikosha factories) pursued a strategy of diversifying its portfolio – moving away from purely men's watches towards a full product range that also included delicate ladies' watches.
The Seiko Merit was one of the first models of this new line and is considered a symbol of this transitional phase.

In 1957, Seiko introduced the Merit series as one of the first post-war ladies' watches with a specially developed miniature hand-wound movement. The name "Merit" was part of Seiko's internal classification system at the time, similar to "Super," "Solar," or "Purple." Unlike later series, "Merit" was not a standalone model line in today's marketing sense, but rather denoted a stage in the technical development of the movements.

In parallel, models such as the Seiko Solar (Type 5) and Seiko Purple (Type 6) were created, enabling Seiko to offer a complete ladies' collection with in-house developed movements for the first time – a significant step on the road to independence and technical maturity that made Seiko internationally famous in the 1960s.

Technical features

• Weight: 10 g
• Height: 8 mm
• Diameter (excluding crown): 20.3 mm
• Lug-to-lug: 27.5 mm
• Lug width: 9 mm
• Movement: mechanical, hand-wound
• Housing: Stainless steel
• Bracelet: brown leather strap (used)
• Condition: functional, noticeable signs of wear on the dial and case
• Origin: Japan
• Serial number: 822405
• Reference: 5208

Description

The Seiko Merit was designed for elegance and technical precision: a finely crafted stainless steel case, understated hands, and raised hour markers. Despite its very small dimensions, it houses a complete mechanical movement manufactured in-house by Seiko – a technical achievement that only a few manufacturers of this size could accomplish at the time.

The example shown here comes from the early production years and is fully functional , but shows clear signs of aging on the dial and case, which emphasize its authentic vintage charm.

Collector's value and significance

The Seiko Merit is considered today to be one of the rare early ladies' models from Seiko and documents the development phase in which Seiko began to manufacture its own movements completely, even for small watches.
It is therefore not only a collector's item, but also a cultural and historical testament to the Japanese post-war watch industry – an era in which Seiko laid the foundation for its later worldwide success.

Warranty (used)
This is a used item. The limitation period for claims based on defects (statutory warranty) is 12 months from delivery.

Notice
As this is a pre-owned watch, water resistance cannot be guaranteed. To protect the movement, the watch should not come into contact with water or moisture.