Omega Speedmaster Watch to Go up for July 19 Auction for Apollo 11 Anniversary
In celebration of the 50th anniversary of the historic Apollo 11 Lunar landings, Sotheby’s in New York will be placing a collection of Omega Speedmaster watches on auction. The date of the auction is set to July 19, synchronizing with the date of the landings.
During NASA’s search for candidate astronauts for the spaceflight, three watches were placed under testing for spaceflight. According to Sotheby’s, Omega was the only brand that received a passing score on all ten assessments, solidifying the choice of the Speedmaster as the official watch of NASA for several decades.
Omega Speedmaster History with NASA
NASA astronauts, Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin, finally touched the moon on July 20, 1969. The Omega Speedmaster has since been equipped on astronauts during all six lunar landing missions, earning it the title “Moonwatch”.
The upcoming auction will be announced as the Omega Speedmaster: To the Moon and Back, and will feature two Reference 2915-1s, the first Speedmaster model created in 1959. The model will feature a unique dial configuration and hour hands from its successors. One model coming in with a stainless steel strap is expected to go for as high as $250,000, a black leather strap is estimated with a presale price of $200,00. Another model expected to feature in the sale is the Alaska II Speedmaster, designed for the Space Shuttle program, it is expected to go for as high as $90,000.
On July 20, the date of the exact lunar landing in 1969, Sotheby’s will present the third annual Space Exploration-themed auction, which will feature many materials from the Mercury, Gemini, and Apollo missions. Buyers can expect to see many of the collections from the original Apollo Firing Room control panels, which launched several Apollo missions by Saturn V rocket. The control panels will be expected to fetch an auction bid as high as $300,000.
For attendees and buyers who want to look ahead, Sotheby’s New York galleries will have the upcoming sale watches up for public exhibition on July 15 until the sale date.
For information about other Omega watches on sale, see the link below:
Deewatch Bracelets and Jewelry
Anjays Designs