Edox: Delfin Fleet 1650- The Tale of the sunken ship

by Timepiece Atelier on Jun 27th, 2021

Many watches have been made over the past 1000 years. Watches have passed through the passage of time along with mankind, to the highest skies and to the depths of the ocean. These timepieces have stories that inflamed many watch enthusiasts to continue to invest time and money into the world of watches.

In early 2017, EDOX announced it will partner with Arqueonautas and Indonesia’s Bureau for the Protection of Cultural Heritage, to research and underwrite a special project. Arqueonautas is a company active in the research of shipwrecks and archaeological surveys. Together, they pledged to protect the final resting place of a fleet of five ships that belonged to the Dutch East India Company.

The ships sank in March 1650 as they suffered from severe damages while passing through the rocky islands in Indonesia. Despite the dreadful situation, the crew were determined to recover most of the fleet’s cargo and even constructed a new vessel out of the wreckage for survival. This astonishing tale might have vanished had it not been the retrieval of a diary of the ship’s council in the National Archives of the Netherlands.

EDOX is releasing a new timepiece, EDOX Delfin Fleet 1650 Limited Edition in bronze (200 pieces worldwide), in celebration of its collaboration with Arqueonautas and the protection of sunken ships from 1650.

The EDOX Delfin Fleet 1650 Limited Edition timepiece was inspired by the true story of the sunken fleet. It is also a resurgence of the vintage Delfin timepiece collection released in 1961 with the same case shape. The 43mm watch has a water resistance of 200metres, features a beautiful bronze case that is homage to the bronze material used on the fittings of the 17th Century Dutch ships. At that time, it was also a widely used material for building weapons on board ships in the 17th Century, before cast-iron took its place.

Furthermore, the navy bezel and deep blue dial contrast perfectly against the bronze case, giving the watch an illusion of a ship at sea. Of course, over time, the watch will get its own patina as the bronze interacts with water and moisture. Every patina develops differently and this is what makes a bronze watch so unique and charming.

In addition to the vintage design, the watch movement uses a Swiss-made automatic movement and has a steel case back embellished with a historic wind rose drawing found in the documents that led to the last resting place of the Dutch ships. Each watch is also individually numbered and is stylized with a message ‘There is no certainty, there is only adventure’.

Presented in a hand-made leather pouch, the EDOX Delfin Fleet 1650 Limited Edition comes with a vintage leather strap as well as a bi-colour NATO strap.

Product Details:

Calibre EDOX 88

Diameter 43 mm

Case Bronze with rotating aluminium navy bezel Finishes Steel caseback, with windrose engraving and limited numbering

Dial Deep-blue Water resistance 200 meters / 20 ATM Glass Scratch-resistant and anti-reflective domed sapphire crystal Strap Genuine brown leather strap or NATO Strap with Delfin collection buckle