1958 Omega Seamaster Automatic on Bracelet 2849
Ref: 2849 14 SC
Specification
Lugs : 18mm
Condition : Pre-Owned
Box & Papers : None
Case Material : Stainless Steel
Warranty : 12-Months NON-Waterproof Warranty
Points of Mention
This watch is sold as “Watch Only” and therefore without its Omega box or paperwork. The watch comes paired with an 18mm Omega stainless steel “Beads of Rice” bracelet secured with a signed glide-adjust clasp and will fit up to a 7.15mm wrist plus an additional 18mm suede strap and pin buckle. The watch is from Circa. 1958 and is sold in fair vintage condition, the dial is showing signs of patina, as you can see from the photographs. The watch comes with our 12-Months Non-Waterproof Warranty.
For more photos see here - https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1y0IjD_ixKdfOrdhG0TYayLrwMtCZ4iaT?usp=drive_link
4K YouTube video, skip to 30:34 - https://youtu.be/n7uax6skZLA
The Watch
Here we have a 1958 Omega Seamaster Automatic 2849 on a Bracelet with a 34mm stainless steel case that curves over your wrist with thick lugs, and a lug-to-lug length of 41.5mm and a case thickness of 12mm to ensure a comfortable fit on the wrist. On the right side is a signed crown. The smooth bezel holds a domed crystal protecting an even patina cream dial and an outer minute track surrounds applied baton indexes filled in black marking the hours, and at 3 o’clock a framed date window. Elegant steel Dauphine hands are complemented by a tapered centre seconds hand. Text is kept to a minimum with an applied Omega motif “Omega Automatic” at 12 o’clock and “Seamaster” at 6 o’clock. On the reverse, we have a case back with an embossed Hippocampus “Seamaster” in the centre, representing Neptune the God of the sea, Pierre Borie conceived it after seeing a picture of Neptune riding a chariot pulled by seahorses, it is the reason why the seahorses are wearing a bridle. Inside an automatic Omega Cal. 503, 20 jewels, beating at 19,800 beats per hour. The watch comes paired with an 18mm Omega stainless steel “Beads of Rice” bracelet secured with a signed glide-adjust clasp and will fit up to a 7.15mm wrist plus an additional 18mm suede strap and pin buckle.
Personal Note
When the opportunity to buy a wonderful vintage Omega Seamaster comes my way I jump at it as long as the condition is great and the price is right, this reference 2849 ticks those boxes and more coming paired with an Omega bead of rice bracelet featuring one of Omega's first adjustable clasps, an ingenious invention and one that still amazes me to this day! But as always, I feel that these beautiful 34mm Seamasters look incredible on straps, so included is a suede strap that suits the watch perfectly, best of both worlds!
The Brand
They were formerly known as the La Generale Watch Co. in 1848 founded by Louis Brandt in La Chaux-de-Fonds. When he died in 1879, his sons carried on his dream. In 1880 they moved to 96 Rue Jakob-Stampfli where they remain today. The brothers produced their first mass-produced calibre, the Labrador In 1885. Just a few years later in 1892, they produced the first minute-repeater. In 1903 they renamed the company Omega until 1982 when they officially changed their name to Omega SA. During WW1 Omega watches were used as official timekeepers for the Royal Flying Corps and the US Army. In 1930, Omega and Tissot merged together to form Société Suisse pour l'Industrie Horlogère (SSIH) In 1931, another group was formed - Allgemeine Schweizerische Uhrenindustrie AG (ASUAG). Where SSIH was primarily French-speaking, ASUAG was founded by the more German-speaking members of the Swiss watch industry. In 1948 they introduced the first edition of one of its most symbolic watches: the Seamaster. Omega first introduced the Constellation in 1952. At the time it was Omega's flagship timepiece. The first models had a Cal. 354 bumper movement in them. Later in 1955, Omega introduced the Automatic Cal. 50x, followed in 1959 by the Cal.55x (no date) and 56x (date) versions. Many of the Constellations came with pie-pan dials, diamond indexes, and fancy lug configurations. All the gold Constellations of that time have the Observatory of Geneva's hand engraved on the back. The stainless steel and stainless steel/gold versions had a gold medallion on the back with the Observatory of Geneva. The eight stars above the Observatory stand for the many exploits of Omega in the world Chronometer competition. Celebrating the fact that all Constellations are Chronometer Certified. In 1962, when astronaut Wally Schirra wore a Speedmaster on his Mercury Sigma 7 Mission, making it the first Omega watch to enter space. After rigorous tests, NASA used Omega for all their Apollo missions including the 1969 Moon landing of Apollo 11. Today Omega is still an astronaut's first choice. In 1969, President Nixon famously said it was “too valuable” and turned down the first-ever all-gold Speedmaster Professional Deluxe. As a response to the ever-growing threat of electronic watches to the manufacturers of mechanical watches, Omega and many Swiss brands such as Rolex and Patek Philippe formed Centre Electronique Horologer (CEH). Prototypes began to appear in 1967 with their production starting in 1968. Then In 1972, Omega introduced the reference, 198.030, which included the Omega calibre 1250, a ‘tuning-fork electronic movement which was made under licence from Bulova. Later we saw a merger of SSIH and ASUAG into SMH, or Société de Microélectronique et d’Horlogerie. This merger took place in 1983. In 1992, the company acquired Blancpain, and in 1998 it officially rebranded itself from SMH to the Swatch Group. Then, in 1999, they purchased and integrated Breguet into the Swatch Group.