Founded in 1875, Bulova is one of the world’s most recognized brands, and one of its watches, the Bulova Chronograph, was worn by the commander of NASA’s Apollo 15 mission. That very watch — model NUMBER 885104/01 2’509’052 — has just sold at an auction for more than $1.6 million ($1.3 million plus fees).
Commander Dave Scott was the sixth person to walk on the moon and the first to drive a car there, the lunar rover, in July 1971. He was also the first and only astronaut in history to wear a personal watch on the surface of the moon. With a velcro and cloth strap, this timepiece still has residual lunar material on its face.
The primary use of the wrist chronograph on the surface of the moon was to track the elapsed time of consumables use (oxygen, water, and battery) in the Portable Life Support System backpack. This precision timepiece is an astounding specimen rife with aeronautical and horological history – a key piece inherent to Apollo 15’s success.
An excerpt from Scott’s accompanying letter of authenticity reads:
“The Bulova Lunar EVA (Wrist) Chronograph and attached velcro wrist strap…was worn by me on the lunar surface during the third EVA of Apollo 15, and then in lunar orbit and return to Earth… The primary use of the wrist chronograph on the surface of the Moon was to track… the elapsed time of consumables use (oxygen, water, and battery) in the Portable Life Support System (PLSS) backpack… Our mission was to basically double the capabilities and requirements of previous missions, including especially the duration of EVAs outside the Lunar Module… At the moment of liftoff, I was fully responsible for the mission and the safety of my crew… Among the decisions I made, the monitoring and use of time was perhaps the most important… Time is of the essence during human lunar expeditions — and exploration time on the surface is limited by the oxygen and water (for cooling) we can carry in our backpacks… Knowledge of precise time remaining was essential… as a backup to the standard issued Omega chronograph, I carried and used a Bulova chronograph on the lunar surface…this unique strap was… worn during… each of my three EVAs on the lunar surface.”
For the history buffs out there, check out RR Auction’s catalog of Scott’s Bulova Chronograph (opens full screen).
Definitely a cool piece of history, would you have spent $1.6 million on it if you had it to spare? Let us know in the comments below, or on Google+, Facebook, or Twitter.
[button link=”http://www.rrauction.com/past_auction_item.cfm?ID=3348050″ icon=”fa-external-link” side=”left” target=”blank” color=”285b5e” textcolor=”ffffff”]Source: RR Auction[/button]Last Updated on November 27, 2018.
