With the growing interest in diving watches in the middle of the last century, IWC developed the Aquatimer, a visually appealing and functional diver's watch. The first editions of the IWC Aquatimer were water-resistant to 200 metres and already featured the significant rotating bezel, which was concealed under the glass to prevent unintentional adjustment of the dive time. The maritime aesthetics and fine details of the watch have made the Aquatimer one of the most popular diving watches on the market..
Aquatimer - a diver's watch with history
In 1967, IWC emphasised its proximity to the maritime world with the Aquatimer, a new diver's watch (reference 812) that was water-resistant up to 200 and concealed a rotating bezel for measuring diving time under the glass to prevent the time from being accidentally adjusted. Just one year later, the Aquatimer range was extended. Innovations included coloured dials, which were available in red, blue and the classic black.
In 1978, the Swiss watch manufacturer entered into a special relationship. With the Porsche Design Ocean 2000, titanium was used in a diver's watch and a special look was created. New records were also set in terms of water depth, as the watches were water-resistant to 2,000 metres.
With the GST Aquatimer (reference 3536) in 1998, GST Deep One (reference 3527) in 1999, the Aquatimer Minute Memory (reference 3723) in 2004 and the Aquatimer Chronograph Edition "Expedition Charles Darwin", special editions of the impressive IWC watch were launched, which were characterised by special technical and visual features.
In 2017, to mark the 50th anniversary of the IWC Aquatimer, the Swiss company released the Aquatimer Perpetual Calendar Digital Date-Month Edition "50 Years Aquatimer" with a case made of Ceratanium®, which was specially developed for the luxury watches. The downside for collectors and enthusiasts - only 50 of these watches were produced, which means that the price for one of these watches can reach very high prices.
Design of the IWC Aquatimer
With more than 50 years on the market, it is clear that the appearance of the Aquatimer has changed regularly. The SafeDive system with an external-internal rotating bezel that prevents accidental adjustment is still a striking feature. Varying in size, the largest edition is the 49 mm IWC Aquatimer Perpetual Calendar Digital Date-Month Edition "50 Years Aquatimer".
In terms of colour, there are some very interesting models. Classic colours such as black, blue and white are predominant for the dials, but these are always enhanced with small nuances of yellow or orange.
The basic components of the design have only been minimally adapted. This is why the IWC Aquatimer has a high recognition value.
More recent editions of the IWC Aquatimer are available for less than 3,000 euros. The range between €5,000 and €7,000 applies to most models in the series. Only the Aquatimer Deep Three (Ref. IW355701) stands out at more than €12,000, the Aquatimer Chronograph Edition "Expedition Charles Darwin" at more than €9,000 and, of course, the Aquatimer Perpetual Calendar Digital Date-Month, which can cost up to €31,000.
