Seiko - 1974 King Seiko Hi-Beat '56KS' 5626-7113

WHAT WE LOVE:

The King Seiko story deserves to be told more often than it is. While Grand Seiko commands most of the attention in vintage Japanese watchmaking, King Seiko — Seiko's second-tier luxury line, developed at the Daini Seikosha division from 1961 as a rival to Suwa's Grand Seiko — produced watches of exceptional quality at the same period, sharing case design philosophy, hands, dial construction standards, and in many instances movement architecture directly with their Grand Seiko counterparts. The 56KS was the pinnacle of that programme: a King Seiko built around the Calibre 5626, which was simply a non-adjusted version of the 5646 movement used in the Grand Seikos of the same era.

The 5626-7113 in white sunburst dial configuration is the most direct visual interpretation of the Taro Tanaka Grammar of Design principles applied to King Seiko: the broad, flat case with its precisely defined faceted lugs; the white sunburst dial radiating outward from the centre under direct light; the simple baton stick indices and dauphine hands that place legibility above any decorative consideration. The day and date display sits at 3 o'clock in a format that reads clearly without dominating the dial.

WHAT'S INSIDE:

The 5626-7113 is powered by the Seiko Calibre 5626B — a high-grade automatic movement beating at 28,800 vibrations per hour (Hi-Beat), with quickset day-date function and hacking seconds. The 5626 is the last and finest of the 56-series calibres, and its relationship to the Grand Seiko 5646 reflects the shared manufacture pedigree of the two lines.

FIVEFORTYFIVE SIX MONTHS WARRANTY