The Aquanaut in its original size, the anti-Patek of its time, the 5066 is packed with conundrums and contradictions, all of which make it that much more enjoyable to wear. I absolutely love getting watches like this, charming, unpolished, but show that honest, normal wear – you can truly lean in and enjoy them to the fullest without being afraid of putting that first scratch in it. I love the idea of the top of the ‘holy trinity’, in steel, on a rubber strap, and ready to be truly worn day in and day out.

Reference: 5066/1a-001 Aquanaut

Case: The 36mm stainless steel case is the original Aquanaut size and truly one of those watches that disappears on wrist and becomes more enjoyable the more you wear it. In my humble, biased opinion, the beauty of the 5066 is the smaller size as it’s understated, sporty, and comfortable. The case shows minimal honest surface wear throughout, and is believed to be unpolished.

Dial: The original ‘grenade’ dial is an odd thing; block hour markers that seemingly point wherever they landed, a date window next to an applied Arabic are the obvious places to start, but all the quirks add up to make what is very much a right. The depth and texture of the dial has to be experienced in person, the matte white gold applied Arabic numerals add to the dimensionality, and the white/silver script signature appears to float above the dial. I’ve said many times in the past that drivers for vintage aquanaut values are first if it’s tritium or luminova and if it’s tritium, is the patina attractive; this one certainly is. The tritium hour markers and hands have aged to a very attractive, warm tone with the hands ageing slightly lighter, as is common.

Movement: The caliber 330SC self-winding, Geneva seal movement is winding, setting, and running well at approximately +4.6 s/d, averaged across 6 positions.

Bracelet: Presented on a black tropic strap that will fit an approximately 6-5/8” wrist and its original early “Nautilus” stamped deployant buckle.  The original steel bracelet is also included, believed to be full length and in excellent condition measuring approximately 165 mm, and including the critical extra thin spring bars.

Includes: Early outer box, early inner wooden presentation box, leather document holder, Aquanaut booklet, movement booklet, Aquanaut strap cutting guide, museum booklet, registration document and return envelopes, and certificate of origin that is undated.

I suspect this is an early offering based on the “Nautilus” stamped deployant and early box set.