In its original version, Blancpain's best-seller is now a highly desirable item fiercely hunted on forums, and considered spoils of war by purists, so rarely does it come on the market.
Fifty fathoms… A strange unit of measurement designating the first-ever modern diving watch. A simple, utilitarian watch with no frills. A deep-sea watch that cuts the mustard. In short, Blancpain's Fifty Fathoms is functional first and foremost, meeting a purely military requirement when it was created in 1953. In its original version, Blancpain's best-seller is now a highly desirable item fiercely hunted on forums, and considered spoils of war by purists, so rarely does it come on the market. At the Hôtel Drouot, the last one sold to date fetched €6,500 on 19 July 2017 (with Gros & Delettrez): over three times its estimate. Fanatics far prefer it to the younger, much-hailed Rolex Submariner: it is more unobtrusive, and for good reason, because the Fifty Fathoms was designed for the shadowy French secret services. It was a crucial issue for the first combat diver unit of…
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