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WATCHMAKING 2014 / BASELWORLD - THE BASEL MARATHON

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June 2014



DISCOVERING THE SOUL OF BASELWORLD REQUIRES MORE THAN TWO STURDY SOLES

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 OMEGA

This year I was treated to a presentation of the latest Men’s collections of Omega watches by Jean-Claude Monochon, the Brand’s Vice President Product & Customer Service.

Seamaster Aqua Terra by Omega
Seamaster Aqua Terra by Omega

Perhaps the most aesthetically pleasing was the Seamaster Aqua Terra in stainless steel which is equipped with the Master Co-Axial chronometer movement and has a powerful blue dial decorated with ‘Teak Concept’ vertical lines. The facetted hands have diamond polished sides that contrast pleasantly with the combination of a brushed and polished case and the domed sapphire crystal with an anti-reflective treatment on both sides for a better readability. The watch is water-resistant to 150 metres and comes in two sizes: 38.5 and 41.5 mm.

Speedmaster Mark II by Omega
Speedmaster Mark II by Omega

Another gem in the 2014 collection is the re-appearance of the Speedmaster Mark II, originally introduced way back in 1969. It is now equipped with the Co-Axial Calibre 3330 self-winding movement that has a silicone balance spring and a column-wheel chronograph mechanism.
There are the classic three sub-dials: 30-minutes at 3 o’clock, 12-hours at 6 o’clock and small seconds at 9 o’clock and it still has that flat scratch-resistant sapphire crystal with a transparent tachymetric scale illuminated by an aluminium ring coated with SuperLuminova. The dial is grey and has a fluorescent orange central chronograph seconds hand with matching minute track on the dial. The watch is water-resistant to 100 metres.

Speedmaster Professional Apollo 11 by Omega
Speedmaster Professional Apollo 11 by Omega

And if you’re planning a trip to the moon in the near future, you could do a lot worse than kitting yourself out with the Limited Edition of the Speedmaster Professional Apollo 11 45th Anniversary model, a 42 mm brushed titanium watch with a ‘touch of gold’ around the bezel and on the hands and hour markers. The unusual feature of this classic is the 30-minute, 12-hour and small seconds sub-dials have been produced by laser thus eliminating the material surrounding the name, sub-dials and hour markers.
Equipped with a Calibre 1861 manual-winding movement, the watch is water-resistant to 50 metres – although I doubt you’ll find much water on this or the far side of the moon.