Many Seiko watches from the 1960’s and 70’s have rightly gone down as design classics, building a considerable following amongst watch collectors.
Conversely, some truly gorgeous watches from the same era were produced by the same company have quietly slipped below the radar for the simple reason they were designed for the typically slighter of wrist, ie: women - like this full-serviced petite purple 1971 Seiko Lady Sports 2205-0440 automatic women’s sport diver here, on a vintage Japanese Maruman stainless-steel bracelet.
And it’s a shame, because many of these smaller watches feature exquisite details – Seiko's Lady Sports line of womens watches was specifically aimed at active young women with the tagline, "Oh! Adventure," and Seiko explained its rationale behind this in their May 1971 literature to authorized Seiko dealers as, "Under the bright sun. When women enjoy a sense of freedom and active fashion, women's sports are always there, Lady Sports [watches] are becomming increasingly available in a variety of designs, and are sure to play a role in ushering in the new summer."
The Seiko 2205 was made by the Japanese company from at least 1970 through the late 1970s. The most popular were the 2205 divers – the earliest counterparts of the 150M full-size divers (such as the Seiko 6105 and 6309) - which featured a variety of dial colors, to even include the purple variant here.
There are many vintage Seiko watches popular with Seiko enthusiasts, and for good reason - Seiko discovered the secret to manufacturing mass-produced stylish and affordable watches.
This Seiko 2205 automatic comes on a stainless-steel Maruman bracelet, and with nylon strap, springbar tool and rugged travel case.
1971 Seiko Lady Sports 2205-0440 Women's Automatic Sport Diver
DIAL: Crisp purple Seiko-signed dial, no imperfections; date function at the 3 o'clock position work correctly as designed.
CASE: Stainless-steel case measures 24.5mm (26mm including crown) x 29mm, with matching caseback; 10mm lug width.
CRYSTAL: Domed Hardlex crystal, no blemishes, scratches, or cracks.
BAND: This 2205 automatic comes on a vintage stainless-steel Japanese Maruman bracelet, which will fit up to an approx. 6.25 inch wrist. It also comes with a black nylon strap.
MOVEMENT: Seiko 2205 calibre Hi-Beat automatic movement, which can also be manually wound and beats at 28,800 BPH, was manufactured in December 1971. We have performed a full service on this womens automatic.
CROWN: Screw-down unsigned stainless-steel crown.