Omega - The Hong Kong Watch Auction: XV Hong Kong Monday, November 28, 2022 | Phillips

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  • Manufacturer: Omega
    Year: 1990
    Reference No: ST145.0022
    Movement No: 48.263.973
    Case No: 09/10
    Model Name: Speedmaster, “MIR 90 Days”
    Material: Stainless steel
    Calibre: Manual, cal. 861, 17 jewels
    Bracelet/Strap: Leather
    Clasp/Buckle: Stainless steel Omega pin buckle
    Dimensions: 42mm diameter
    Signed: Case, dial, movement and buckle signed
    Accessories: Accompanied with Omega fitted presentation box, medallion and service box. Further delivered with Omega Extract from the Archives confirming the manufacture of the present timepiece on 16th November 1990 and its delivery to Germany.
    Literature: A similar example is prominently illustrated in the “Moonwatch Only, 60 Years of OMEGA Speedmaster” by Anthony Marquié and Grégoire Rossier, p380-381

  • Catalogue Essay

    Broadcasting live on December 2nd 1990, the Soyuz TM-11 crew stepped on the Soyuz-U2 space vessel for the 11th expedition to the Russian Space Station MIR. There, three cosmonauts commander Viktor Afanasyec, flight engineer Musa Manarov and Toyohiro Akiyama, a television reporter/ journalist for the Japanese Broadcasting System lifted off along with a set of 10 Omega Speedmaster ref. 145.022, these chronographs aim to be an experiment to observe the effects of zero gravity over a prolonged period on the components of the watch, and most importantly, the movement. According to Omega, the batch of 10 Speedmaster were sent to Germany in the late 1980s prior to their deliver to ESA which lead to the space voyage. Flown in space for 90 days until March 1991, these remarkable timepieces returned to Earth and were fitted with a personalized casebacks and presented to important personnel’s, most being political figures at the time.

    While these 10 Omega Speedmasters were the first batch for the MIR aerospace project, in 1993, 35 Speedmasters took flight as the second batch of timepieces to be taken to the space station for 365 days with the purpose of observing microgravity on the movements. With a total of 28 stainless steel and 7 pieces in yellow gold which also had numbered and engraved caseback, one of which Phillips had the pleasure of auctioning in the Phillips & Blackbird: Sports Auction in 2019 achieving a staggering result of $1,375,000 HKD.

    A true trophy for all Speedy collectors, these MIR Speedmasters are almost mythical and are rarely seen in the market. Possibly the second example to surface in the market, the present Omega Speedmaster ref. ST145.0022 MIR-90 Days not only chartered to space where only a few men have been, it is also preserved in its impeccable “new-old-stock” condition. Featuring twisted lugs that are razor sharp, pristine dot close to 70 tachymetre bezel, flawless dial, and a medallion caseback freshly engraved and painted like the day it left the manufacture (90 DAYS FLIGHT QUALIFIED – SPACELAB MIR DEC.90-MAR. 91 and The FIRST WATCH WORN ON THE MOON), even the red sealing wax remains intact on the caseback. What more can one ask for?

    While the limited series are featured in the Moonwatch Only book with an example that is numbered 05/10, the present MIR-90 Days is numbered 09/10. Bearing a GRSA Helm stamp on the inner caseback, these cases were manufactured by Georges Ruedin SA since the 1990s.
Kept in private hands for over a decade, this is an unmissable chance for watch lovers and space enthusiasts to own mementos which chronicle one of the most important space missions in the history of humanity. Presented with its impressive Omega presentation box still retaining its Russian medallion, according to Omega this is the first time the museum has issues an Omega Extract from the Archives for a MIR-90 Days confirming its production in 1990 and its delivery to Germany. A collector’s dream, an icon of the space race, the present “Flown” MIR along with only a handful of Russian Cosmonaut’s timepieces are the only Speedmasters ever available in the market.

    Phillips would like to thank the Omega Museum for the precious support and archival information for this timepiece.

  • Artist Biography

    Omega

    Swiss • 1848

    Omega's rich history begins with its founder, Louis Brandt, who established the firm in 1848 in La Chaux de Fonds. In 1903, the company changed its name to Omega, becoming the only watch brand in history to have been named after one its own movements. A full-fledged manufacturer of highly accurate, affordable and reliable watches, its sterling reputation enabled them to be chosen as the first watch company to time the Olympic Games beginning in 1932. Its continued focus on precision and reliability ultimately led their Speedmaster chronograph wristwatch to be chosen by NASA in 1965 — the first watch worn on the moon.

    Key models sought-after by collectors include their first, oversized water-resistant chronograph — the reference 2077, early Speedmaster models such as the CK 2915 and 2998, military-issued versions of the Seamaster and oversized chronometer models such as those fitted with their prestigious caliber 30T2Rg.

    View More Works

897

Ref. ST145.0022
An exceedingly rare, important and “new-old-stock” limited edition stainless steel chronograph wristwatch with “MIR-90 Days” caseback and presentation box, numbered 9 of a limited edition of 10 pieces which flown in space for 90 days

1990
42mm diameter
Case, dial, movement and buckle signed

Estimate
HK$410,000 - 820,000 
€48,800-97,500
$52,600-105,000

Sold for HK$819,000

Contact Specialist

Thomas Perazzi
Head of Watches, Asia
+852 2318 2001
WatchesHK@phillips.com

The Hong Kong Watch Auction: XV

28 - 29 November 2022 (Online Registration ends 27 Nov, 2pm HKT)