The first modern diver’s watch

One of the most desirable technological boys toys throughout the last 50 years has been the Blancpain 50 fathoms watch. The Fifty Fathoms watch was born in the 1950s when Blancpain was asked by the French Ministry of Defence to create an elite “Combat Divers” watch that was reliable and readable to a depth of 50 fathoms (91.45 metres). Blancpain delivered, and the hardcore military kit was subsequently commercialised in 1953 with the first modern diver’s watch - that's an original 1954 advert at right. A new exhibition opens tomorrow in Geneva, the Cité du Temps, tracing the history of the watch with all the models and variations of the collection assembled under a single roof.

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