After millennia of admiring the Moon from afar, NASA finally achieved one of man’s greatest feats on 20th July 1969 with the moon landing of the Apollo XI lunar module. Since President John F. Kennedy declared the US’s commitment “to achieving the goal, before 'the’ decade is out”, there had been a space race between the two Cold War rivals. Through dedication, resilience and perseverance, Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin became the first men to set foot on the moon. With them, the Omega Speedmaster Professional became “the first watch worn on the moon”.

The ref.145.022 yellow gold chronograph was released that year to commemorate this momentous historical event. Produced as a limited edition of 1014 pieces, the first two examples were initially offered to the President and Vice-President of the United States, who sadly had to decline this gift due to compliance reasons. Luckily for collectors, No. 1 and No. 2 of the Speedmaster Apollo XI 1969 are now exhibited at the Omega Museum and can be admired by the public. Numbers 3 to 28 were offered to mission astronauts and were engraved “To mark man’s conquest of space with time, through time, on time” and with the recipient's name, as per the present example. The following three examples, numbers 29 to 32, were given to Swiss personalities. They bear the same case back inscriptions as the astronaut’s timepieces and exclude their sequential number, making these watches the only 3 out of 1014 pieces with this attribute. Subsequently, numbers 33 to 1000 were commercialised, featuring an engraved case back reading “Omega Speedmaster-Apollo XI 1969 - The First Watch Worn on the Moon”, as shown in the next lot.

The present ref. 145.022 not only has a strong appeal with a gold dial, onyx numerals and burgundy bezel, but also has a prominent provenance. Bearing a No. 12 on the caseback, this example is further engraved with the name of its original owner, Mr Charles Conrad. A man of many hats, Conrad was an American NASA astronaut, aeronautical engineer, naval officer, aviator, and test pilot. As the commander of the Apollo XII space mission, he became the third person to walk on the Moon between the 14th and the 24th of November in 1969. A time capsule piece, the present example is exceptionally well-preserved and seemingly untouched, boasting razor-sharp edges. Most likely worn a handful of times, the caseback engravings of this ref. 145.022 are crisp, deep and unrubbed.

The sublime combination of the present lot’s rarity, provenance, condition and vibrant aesthetic makes it one of the most exciting examples of a Speedmaster to appear in auction. Mr Charles Conrad’s very own Speedmaster Apollo XI 1969 is, without a doubt, a trophy watch deserving of a prominent place in any collection of important and rare sports models. In addition, Omega reissued a 50th Anniversary moonshine gold limited edition in 2019, paying tribute to the Moonwatch legacy and showing how important the brand itself deems this model to be for its heritage.