Manufacturer: Omega Year: 1960 Reference No: 2998-5 Movement No: 17'301'309 Model Name: Speedmaster Material: Stainless steel Calibre: Manual, 321 Bracelet/Strap: Omega stainless steel, reference 7912, end links stamped 9 Clasp/Buckle: Folding clasp, stamped 3.63 Dimensions: 40mm. Diameter Signed:Movement, dial, case and bracelet signed Accessories: Accompanied by Omega Extract from the Archives
Catalogue Essay
The celebrated Omega Speedmaster was launched in 1957 and aimed at an “active clientele”. The tachometer scale on the bezel should help scientists and sportsmen with the calculation of speed. The original Speedmaster reference 2915 was in production for only two years until it was replaced in 1959 by the present model, reference 2998. The example offered here dates from 1960, featuring the legendary calibre 321 and has the correct black tachometer bezel graduated to 500 units. The original chronograph hands as well as all the luminous on the dial are amazingly well preserved. Lastly, the watch is completed by the correct Omega steel bracelet reference 7912.
Omega's rich history begins with its founder, Louis Brandt, who established the firm in 1848 in La Chaux de Fonds. In 1903, the company changed its name to Omega, becoming the only watch brand in history to have been named after one its own movements. A full-fledged manufacturer of highly accurate, affordable and reliable watches, its sterling reputation enabled them to be chosen as the first watch company to time the Olympic Games beginning in 1932. Its continued focus on precision and reliability ultimately led their Speedmaster chronograph wristwatch to be chosen by NASA in 1965 — the first watch worn on the moon.
Key models sought-after by collectors include their first, oversized water-resistant chronograph — the reference 2077, early Speedmaster models such as the CK 2915 and 2998, military-issued versions of the Seamaster and oversized chronometer models such as those fitted with their prestigious caliber 30T2Rg.