Blancpain - Fifty Fathoms 70th Anniversary Act 1

Blancpain just launched the Fifty Fathoms 70th Anniversary, a limited edition of three 70-piece series for EMEA, AsiaPacific, Americas. Price €18,500

2023 marks the 70th anniversary the Blancpain Fifty Fathoms. Launched in 1953, the Fifty Fathoms was the first modern diver's watch, setting the benchmark in its field and playing an essential role in the development of scuba diving and the discovery of the ocean world (you can read the detailed history of this iconic timepiece in our feature article "The history of the Blancpain Fifty Fathoms").

Blancpain has started the celebration of this exceptional milestone with the release of the Fifty Fathoms 70th Anniversary, a limited edition comprising three 70-piece series, each of them dedicated to a region of the world – EMEA, Asia-Pacific, the Americas – and bearing a number from I to III on the dial.

The Fifty Fathoms 70th Anniversary comes in a 42.30 mm x 14.30 mm case made of polished stainless steel and equipped with the signature unidirectional rotating bezel with a domed sapphire inlay.

42 mm is an exclusive diameter, as no contemporary Fifty Fathoms has ever yet been offered in this size. Regular models measure 45 mm, while the usual limited-edition Fifty Fathoms has a 40 mm case.

Protected by an anti-reflective sapphire crystal, the dial is black with a sunburst motif and features vintage-look luminescent hands and block-type hour-markers. 

Water resistant to 30 bar (300 metres / 1,000 feet), the watch is powered by the renowned Calibre 1315, a self-winding movement expressly developed and manufactured for the Fifty Fathoms in 2007. Beating at a frequency of 4 Hz (28,800 vibrations per hour), it provides a remarkable 5-day power reserve thanks to its three-barrel architecture.

Its silicon balance spring guarantees resistance to magnetism, an essential criterion in the world of diving. When the first Fifty Fathoms was born, anti-magnetism was ensured by a soft iron cage housing the movement. By eliminating this constraint through the introduction of the use of silicon some 15 years ago, Blancpain enables owners of its diver’s watches to appreciate the movement through the sapphire crystal case back.

This anniversary edition’s oscillating weight bears the "Fifty Fathoms 70th" logo and is made of platinum, a material often associated with 70th wedding anniversaries. As a further tribute to the first Fifty Fathoms, the oscillating weight features an opening, a technical trick used in the 1950s to increase the suppleness of the rotor and thus improve its shock resistance.

The strap of choice for this commemorative model is a black NATO YTT+ made from 100% recycled and entirely recyclable thread from fishing nets recovered from the sea or oceans – a sustainable initiative that will eventually be extended to all Blancpain NATO straps. A stainless steel pin buckle with a "Fifty Fathoms" engraving secures the strap to the wrist.

The three series of 70 watches dedicated respectively to EMEA (ref. 5010A-1130-NABA), Asia-Pacific (ref. 5010A-1130-NABA) and the Americas of the Blancpain Fifty Fathoms 70th Anniversary will soon be available for pre-order on the Blancpain website at the price of Euro 18,500. blancpain.com

Suggested reading:

- The history of Blancpain, the oldest watch brand