It was founded in 1881 when a 21-year-old named Kintaro Hattori opened a watch shop in Tokyo’s Ginza district. One hundred and forty-five years later, in 2026, that same company has unveiled four anniversary watches that manage to honour 145 years of history while remaining entirely desirable to wear on a modern wrist. As Seiko 2026 releases go, this is a strong opening statement.
The Seiko 145th anniversary collection consists of four individually numbered limited editions spanning the brand’s four signature lines — King Seiko, Presage, Prospex, and Astron — each sharing gilded accents that trace back to Hattori’s earliest practice of engraving his timepieces with intricate decorative patterns. All four went on sale in February 2026. Here is everything that has been released so far.
The Seiko 145th Anniversary Collection: All Four Watches
The most historically resonant piece — and the one that has attracted the most attention among these anniversary watches — is the Seiko Presage Classic Series SPB538.
The Seiko Presage SPB538 draws direct inspiration from the Timekeeper, Seikosha’s first pocket watch produced in 1895. It is a 35mm gold-plated stainless steel case — intentionally compact, evoking the proportions of an early 20th-century pocket watch conversion rather than a contemporary sports watch. The case features a knurled coin-edge bezel, an onion-shaped crown, and moveable wire-style lugs with a pull-through brown leather strap sourced from LWG-certified tanneries. The box-shaped sapphire crystal with inner anti-reflective coating adds another layer of vintage authenticity. Inside beats the in-house Cal. 6R51 — automatic, 24 jewels, 21,600vph, 72-hour power reserve — with no date to disturb the purity of the dial. That dial is fired white enamel, handcrafted by master artisan Mitsuru Yokosawa, bearing slender black Roman numerals and gold-colored leaf-shaped hands. At $1,900 and limited to 1,450 pieces, the S Presage SPB538 is the most accessible watch in the quartet and, for many, the most compelling.
The King Seiko SJE121 draws on the brand’s KS1969 design language — a 39.4mm steel case, 9.9mm thick, with a box sapphire crystal and a grey gradient dial decorated with a motif inspired by Hattori’s original Ginza shop engravings. Gold-toned indices and hands complete the anniversary treatment. Inside beats the Cal. 6L35 — automatic, 26 jewels, 28,800vph, 45-hour power reserve. Limited to 800 pieces at $3,100, it is the most exclusive watch in the collection.
The Prospex Speedtimer SRQ059 represents the sporting pillar of the Seiko 145th anniversary collection. The 42mm case wears Seiko’s Diashield super-hard coating for durability, and the white dial carries the same engraved motif as the King Seiko, with gold-toned hands and indices. The Cal. 8R48 chronograph movement — 34 jewels, 28,800vph, vertical clutch, column wheel, MEMS-manufactured escapement — delivers a 45-hour power reserve and 100m water resistance. At $2,500 and limited to just 700 pieces, it is the rarest of the four.
Finally, the Astron GPS Solar SSH186 rounds out the 2026 releases with a 44.1mm titanium case in black hard coating. Powered by Cal. 5X83, it carries GPS solar technology with support for 38 time zones and automatic DST adjustment, a perpetual calendar correct until 2100, and a chronograph with 1/20th-second precision. Power reserve is approximately six months fully charged, extending to two years in saving mode. Priced at $3,300 and limited to 1,450 pieces.
Why This Seiko Limited Edition Quartet Matters
It’s milestone anniversary collections can sometimes feel formulaic — a new dial here, a gold accent there. This limited edition quartet feels different because the SPB538 in particular represents a genuine design exercise rather than a cosmetic update. The decision to shrink the case to 35mm, to fit moveable lugs, to use a fired enamel dial and a no-date movement — these are considered choices that add up to something more personal than a typical commemorative release. Each of the four watches earns its place independently.
It was established the Seikosha factory in 1892. It produced Japan’s first wristwatch — the Laurel — in 1913. It introduced the world’s first commercial quartz wristwatch in 1969. A brand with that kind of history earns the right to look backwards occasionally, and with the SPB538, they have done it beautifully.
I put my name on a waitlist for the SPB538 five minutes after seeing the announcement. Très bien.
— Theo
Still curious? There’s more where that came from — Watchesfanboy.
