Sicura Navy 400 Diver - Circa 1970 - The House That Bought Breitling

On April 5, 1979, Ernest Schneider took control of Breitling. Breitling’s own history identifies him as a pilot and former head of Sicura and credits him with securing the brand’s future. The 1984 Chronomat would become one of the defining watches of his tenure, but Schneider had already spent years running Sicura, a successful Swiss watch company in Grenchen. By 1975, Sicura employed about 450 people across four assembly plants, a case factory and a jewel factory. The company produced more than a million watches a year. This Navy dates from that period, when the company he ran was still signing its watches Sicura.

Sicura printed the watch’s purpose straight across the dial. Beneath the script signature are 23 JEWELS and NAVY; below the hands, SUPERWATERPROOF, 400, VACUUM TESTED and TRITIUM. Thin white lines cross the black like a plotting grid, two vertically and two horizontally, closing a square around the center. Large luminous numerals stand at twelve, nine and six, with long rectangular plots around the remaining hours and a date window at three on a disc that has aged to cream.

The dial names its own luminous material, and the tritium has aged unevenly through warm yellow-green tones, deeper toward olive in portions of the hands. Along the outer chapter between roughly seven and nine is a narrow mustard-colored area of discoloration. Against that aging, the black ground and fine white grid remain remarkably clear.

The black elapsed-time bezel is marked at ten-minute intervals with a luminous-style marker at twelve. The insert remains complete, with scratches, edge wear and small marks from use. Much of the dark finish has worn from the high points of the coin edge, leaving bright metal around the circumference while darker oxidation remains in the grooves. The domed acrylic crystal is marked across its surface. The plated case shows scratches and rubbing, with localized wear through revealing warmer metal around portions of the rim and edges. The crown is pitted and has lost much of its finish.

On the back, the claims on the dial turn into a picture. A diver in mask and fins swims beside a fish and three stars, surrounded by 400 VACUUM TESTED, WATERPROOF, ALL SWISS MADE and STAINLESS STEEL BACK. The caseback itself carries fine scratches from use. Inside is a 23-jewel hand-wound Swiss movement marked SIC 47, SWISS and 23 JEWELS. The watch runs, and its service history is unknown.

The black perforated rally strap is stamped 20 and shows age from use, with creasing and stretching around several of the holes. I cannot establish it as original to the watch.

Four years after this watch’s approximate date, Schneider would take over Breitling. Here the earlier chapter is still intact: Sicura in script at twelve, Navy beneath it, and the diver still swimming across the back.

Terms: Please review all photos carefully as they are a part of the listing. This is a vintage timepiece. Accuracy, power reserve, and water resistance are not guaranteed. Vintage watches may require periodic service. Performance can vary with wear, temperature, and position.

All sales final.