
Wristwatches · Wristwatch
Aquastar wristwatch, ref. 1000, Seatime New Old Stock, circa 1970's
- Maker / attribution
- Aquastar (brand / maker)
- Date
- c. 1970s
- Historical period
- Quartz Revolution (1969 – 1990)
- Country of origin
- Unrecorded in source
- Object type
- Wristwatch
- Materials / technique
- stainless steel
- Dimensions
- diameter 40 mm
- Auction house
- Antiquorum auction archive, Geneva
- Lot
- Lot 368-8
- Credit line
- Auction lot record: LOT 8, Geneva, May 11-12, 2024
- Catalogue title (original)
- AQUASTAR, SWITZERLAND, REF. 1000, SEATIME, NEW OLD STOCK, ORIGINAL BOX AND WARRANTY, STAINLESS STEEL (English)
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Record summary
Catalogued by Antiquorum auction archive, Geneva (lot Lot 368-8), this is a wristwatch by Aquastar, dated c. 1970s. The Atlas places it in the Quartz Revolution period (1969 – 1990) of its Wristwatches collection. Materials and techniques recorded by the source: stainless steel. Recorded dimensions: diameter 40 mm. The record is illustrated with 1 photograph.
Assembled from the source record's structured fields. Dates and attributions are given as the source states them; where a field is missing the Atlas leaves it blank rather than estimating.
Catalogue description
Antiquorum catalogue description
A fine, attractive, new old stock, stainless steel, self winding diver's wristwatch with date
Lot specifications (Antiquorum)
Model: Seatime; Reference: 1000; Case No.: 7070459; Caliber: AS 2066, 25 jewels; Diameter: 40; Signature: dial, case and movement; Accessories: original fitted box, blank warranty
Inscriptions & marks
dial, case and movement
Provenance
Property of a Swiss Gentleman
Historical context
Quartz Revolution (1969 – 1990)
Seiko's Astron begins mass quartz timekeeping; traditional industries contract sharply.
Quartz and digital watches transformed the market after 1969. Swiss employment collapsed, Japanese and Hong Kong production soared, and the Swatch (1983) helped the Swiss industry recover; mechanical watches survived as luxury goods.
Read the period in the timelineMore wristwatches from this periodEarlier: Modern Mechanical Horology
Atlas type guide
Dive and water-resistant watches
Keeping water and dust out of a wristwatch was a long-standing challenge. Rolex's screw-down Oyster case (1926) and Omega's Marine (1932) were landmarks; in the early 1950s Blancpain's Fifty Fathoms and Rolex's Submariner defined the professional dive watch with rotating bezels for timing dives, luminous dials and high water resistance. The ISO 6425 standard (1982) later codified what a 'diver's watch' must do.
Dive watches became icons of post-war design and exploration, and their evolution — helium escape valves, ceramic bezels, saturation-diving depth ratings — records the history of underwater work.
What to look for
- Unidirectional or bidirectional rotating bezel with minute markings.
- Screw-down crown and case back; depth rating printed on the dial.
- Luminous hands and markers (radium before c. 1960, tritium c. 1960–1998, then Super-LumiNova).
- Reference numbers on the case between the lugs or inside the back.
Dating clues
- Screw-down Oyster cases: from 1926.
- Professional dive watches: from 1953.
- Tritium 'T' marks on dials: c. 1960–1998.
General guidance written by the Atlas editors about this kind of object. It is not a statement about this particular piece; for that, rely on the source record above and on physical examination.
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