Omega - STYLED. Timeless Watches & How to Wear Them New York Wednesday, December 5, 2018 | Phillips
  • Manufacturer: Omega
    Year: 1967
    Reference No: ST 165.024
    Movement No: 24’719’484
    Case No: A204/67
    Model Name: Seamaster 300, "Military"
    Material: Stainless steel
    Calibre: Automatic, cal. 552, 24 jewels
    Bracelet/Strap: Nylon
    Dimensions: 40mm Diameter
    Signed: Case, dial, and movement signed.
    Accessories: Accompanied by Omega Certificate of Origin dated January 19th, 2006, noting the military markings on the caseback and stating the present watch was delivered to Omega’s UK agents on April 27th, 1967. Additionally accompanied by updated Omega Certificate of Origin dated June 18, 2018, stating the watch was delivered to the British Army.
    Literature: This exact example, bearing the serial number 24’719’484, is illustrated in John Goldberger’s Omega Sportswatches, pp. 56-57.

  • Catalogue Essay

    Omega introduced the Seamaster 300 in 1957 as part of its “Professional” line of watches. Whilst the vast majority was produced for professional and recreational divers alike. A very small batch was made for military use from 1967 until approximately 1970, and custom designed by Omega to meet the needs of members of the British Royal Army and Navy.

    A number of special features set these military-issued watches apart from Omega’s regular production units. Their cases, with distinctive curved and beveled lugs, were delivered with fixed spring bars. Dials featured an encircled “T” designation, signifying the use of tritium for the luminous hour markers and hands. The broad, sword-shaped hour and minute hands, as well as the angular sweep seconds hand, were also specially designed. The crown was screw down as opposed to the snap down design as found on production versions. Their case backs were engraved by the British Ministry of Defense with the military branch code, issue number, and year of issue.

    As many were used in combat and on military deployments, very few have survived with all factory military features intact. We are therefore thrilled to offer this piece in its full “mil-spec” configuration. The "W10" designation indicates that this Seamaster 300 was issued especially to the British Royal Army, whereas the majority of mil-spec watches that have appeared publicly were issued to the Royal Navy. A handful of units in the Royal Army were using dive watches in the late 1960s and early 1970s, most significantly the Special Air Service. The Special Air Service, or SAS, was and is an elite military unit that served as the model for the United States Delta Force. During the period between 1967 and 1971, at the height of the Cold War, the SAS were known to be active in various operations located in Aden (now the capital of Yemen, but in the mid-1960s a part of the British Protectorate of South Arabia), Oman, and Northern Ireland. John Goldberger’s Omega Sportswatches, prominently features this exact watch as being issued to the British SAS, a further testament to its rarity and importance.

    Military watches have remained collectible for their tangible ties to historic moments and rugged good looks, and this Seamaster 300 is a wonderfully preserved, premium example for the elite collector.

  • Artist Biography

    Omega

    Swiss • 1848

    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.

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Ref. ST 165.024
An extremely rare and historically important stainless steel divers wristwatch with center seconds, fixed spring bars and special military markings, made for the British Royal Army

1967
40mm Diameter
Case, dial, and movement signed.

Estimate
$50,000 - 100,000 
CHF45,200-90,500
€42,000-83,900
HK$388,000-775,000

Sold for $68,750

Contact Specialist
Paul Boutros
Head of Watches, Americas
+1 212 940 1293
pboutros@phillips.com

STYLED. Timeless Watches & How to Wear Them

New York Auction 5 December 2018