{"product_id":"omega-speedmaster-as04480","title":"Omega Speedmaster","description":"\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003e\u003cb\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e3… 2… 1… Liftoff!\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eTake a poll amongst wristwatch collectors, and we'd bet the consensus would be that there might be nothing more important or iconic in a watch collection than an Omega Speedmaster. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003eSure, chronographs such as the Rolex Daytona or the Heuer Carrera are classics - icons even, but neither can match the stature of the Speedy with regards to importance in history. In fact, \u003cem\u003earguably no watch \u003c\/em\u003ecan.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBut this is not just any ordinary Speedmaster.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWhat we have here is a Reference 2915-1 - the first Speedy!\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe Reference 2915-1 Speedmaster was the brainchild of designer Claude Baillod. The black, stepped \"pie-pan\" dial is reminiscent of Italian race cars of the period. In fact, it was a close association with auto racing, not space flight, that drove the Speedmaster's design.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eOne salient feature of the Speedmaster's design--what set it apart from chronographs of the period--is the bezel. While most of the chronographs at the time featured a tachymeter scale on a chapter ring on the dial, Baillod placed the tachymeter on the stainless-steel bezel (which Omega referred to as a \"Tacho-Productometer Scale\"). This made it easier for the wearer to measure speed with \"no calculating, no paperwork,\" according to the advertisements. \u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eWe take this feature for granted, given the remarkable continuity of the Speedmaster's design throughout its nearly seven decades of production, but at the time it was nothing short of revolutionary. The Speedmaster, \u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003ealong with the Seamaster and Railmaster, was meant to be a tool watch: purpose-driven watches intended to make a job easier. Its this legibility that would prove invaluable in the Apollo 13 mission, for example, when the astronauts used their Speedmasters to make life-saving calculations that would permit them to return to Earth--and without the Reference 2915-1, the progenitor of the Speedmaster line, that could never have happened.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAnother distinctive feature of the Reference 2915-1 are its 'broad arrow' handset. Later references of Speedmaster would bear 'alpha' - and from the 1960s on, 'pencil' hands. The Reference 2915 would feature broad arrow hands until the introduction of the Reference 2915-3 in 1959.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThis outstanding early example dates to circa 1957 and features a clean matte black dial with a matching 'broad arrow' handset, a correct signed crown, a (correct!) flat-link expanding bracelet with (correct!) #6 end links and a signed blade clasp, and of course - Omega's \u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003eCalibre .321 hand-cranking movement within.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eFurthermore, this piece is accompanied by an incredible, collector-grade package.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eIt includes an amazing (correct!) presentation box, papers, period-correct booklet, an original advertisement, and an extract from Omega's Archives confirming production and delivery to Italy in 1957.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003eThe Reference 2915 only saw three years of production. While exact production totals aren't known, estimates number between 3000 and 4000, with the 2915-1 in the 300-500 range. This scarcity, as well as the fact that so few examples have appeared intact on the vintage market, makes the Reference 2915-1 a very special breed. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003eWe've used the word \"iconic\" before, but perhaps in no other instance is it so appropriate - t\u003c\/span\u003e\u003cspan\u003ehe Speedmaster Reference 2915-1 is an icon among icons. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp class=\"p1\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eIt's the alpha of Omega - Speedmasters, that is - and perhaps the Alpha Omega, period.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Omega","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":40042255351895,"sku":"40960049","price":150000.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0809\/1255\/files\/AS04480_40960049_OMEGA_SPEEDMASTER_2915-1-7_81d98879-26a5-49a7-b25f-2f3f6f99c1de.jpg?v=1694438660","url":"https:\/\/www.analogshift.com\/products\/omega-speedmaster-as04480","provider":"Analog:Shift","version":"1.0","type":"link"}