Seiko’s latest diver’s watch has a dial inspired by a mysterious underwater forest in Antarctica. The new watch is part of the Japanese brand’s premium Prospex LX line, a range of Spring Drive powered watches that places Seiko in the AED15,000+ luxury sports watch category.
The LX line takes its design inspiration from the award-winning Ref. SLA025, a high-beat diver’s watch that marked the 50th anniversary of a legendary Seiko diver’s watch, the Ref. 6159-7001 from 1968. Unlike regular Prospex models, the LX line uses titanium cases and is powered by the brand’s proprietary upmarket Spring Drive movements. LX hints at the Latin word for light – lux - and is a subtle nod to the way light is reflected in the broad, flat surfaces of each watch case.
The new LX diver Ref. SNR045J1’s main draw is the green dial that references the mysterious moss pillars of the underwater forest in the Skarvnes Foreland in Antarctica. Located about 55 km from Showa, a Japanese research outpost in Antarctica, this mysterious underwater forest was first discovered by a team of researchers from Showa. From their first diver’s watch in 1965, Seiko has supplied watches to Japanese marine expeditions, so Seiko can call up their history to promote this watch.
This isn’t your regular $1,000 Prospex diver, the LX has a decidedly upmarket feel and positioning. The case of the new limited edition is the same 44.8 mm titanium version that’s a hallmark of the LX line. The surface of the case has undergone a blade polishing technique called Zaratsu which results in distortion free surface. This type of finishing is normally associated with the more high-end Grand Seiko collection. It is 15.7 mm thick and is depth-rated to 300 meters. It has a curved sapphire crystal and a closed caseback. The watch is paired with a matching titanium bracelet. The case is fitted with a unidirectional bezel with a green ceramic insert and the green dial, as mentioned before, has a pattern that is inspired by the moss pillars of the underwater forest.
The watch is powered by Spring Drive Caliber 5R65, a self-winding movement with a 72 hour power reserve and ±1 second per day (±15 seconds per month) accuracy rating. The Spring Drive movement, developed by Seiko in 1982 and industrially produced since 1999, is unique because it has the accuracy of a quartz movement and the perpetual power supply of an automatic caliber. This is a limited edition of just 500 pieces and will be available in August this year. The price of the watch has not been announced yet but expect it to be around the AED23,000-mark.
