Introducing The New Aquastar Benthos Heritage II

Aquastar is a historic Swiss name in the world of dive watches, renowned for its commitment to crafting professional-grade timepieces. In 1970, the brand released one of the most iconic dive watches: the Benthos 500. It was the first non-monobloc dive watch, featuring a caseback and middle section that were not merged into a single component, and was designed to operate at depths of up to 500 meters. Notably, the watch was included in the approved equipment section of the 1973 US Navy Air Diving Manual.

The brand was revived by Rick Marei, a renowned figure in the dive watch community celebrated for his expertise and passion in the field. Marei is also credited with the revival of Doxa. In 2023, Aquastar reintroduced the Benthos Diver with the release of the Benthos H1, featuring a 42mm case, a substantial 16mm thickness, and an impressive 500m depth rating. This year, Aquastar is unveiling a modern reinterpretation of their iconic diving watch: the Benthos Heritage II, which offers a smaller and more contemporary design.

The watch draws inspiration from archival sketches from the 1970s, reimagining how the original creators might have evolved the iconic design. It features a robust yet wearable 40mm case crafted from 904L stainless steel, with a slim 11.9mm profile for exceptional comfort on the wrist. The case is topped with a flat sapphire crystal enhanced by triple AR coating, ensuring superior clarity.

A unidirectional ceramic bezel, engraved with lume-filled numerals in Old Radium Super-LumiNova, encircles the case. The watch also features a helium escape valve positioned at 4 o’clock and offers water resistance up to 300 meters. The semi-glossy black dial is adorned with square indices and hands filled with Old Radium Super-LumiNova. 

The watch is powered by the Sellita SW200-1 automatic movement, which operates at a frequency of 28,800 vph (4 Hz) and provides a power reserve of 38 hours. It comes with a genuine Tropic strap and an additional black Isofrane strap. For those seeking a more refined look, a stainless steel beads-of-rice bracelet is available.

The watch is limited to just 500 pieces. The price is $1,390 / AED 5,100 for the strap variant and $1,490 / AED 5,480 for the bracelet variant.

For more information, you can visit Aquastar’s official website.