LIST: 6 of the best vintage watch advertisements, according to @adpatina
Editors Note: One of the more interesting Instagram accounts I’ve followed in recent times is @adpatina, dedicated to sourcing (and selling) vintage watch ads. Clearly, I wasn’t alone, as Ad Patina has graduated from Instagram and is now a fully fledged site and store. I thought I’d reach out and get the full story. So, a few DMs and emails later and Nick has given me the scoop (kind of) on collecting vintage watch ads, and his thoughts on the best possible examples … So, how did you get into vintage watch ads? Ah, it all started when I was a teenager in the mid ’90s … I remember taping Rolex ads to my bedroom wall. The ads weren’t vintage, and, oddly, most of the models advertised weren’t ones I wanted to own. They were just random Rolex ads (I even had Lady Datejust ads pinned up). It was less about the actual watch, more about the brand. You see, I aspired to own a Rolex, and having these ads greet me as I entered my room — looming over my head as I did homework, the last thing I saw before falling asleep — served as a reminder and motivation to get good grades, work hard, stay out…
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Twenty-five years is a milestone worth celebrating, so Omega have pulled out all the stops with their latest upgrade of the Seamaster Professional 300M, AKA the Seamaster Professional, AKA the SMP. The SMP is a fairly iconic watch, largely down to its prominent placement on the wrist of Bond (James Bond). Omega have made a host of small but sweeping cosmetic changes, from the bezel, to the dial (hello wave pattern), to the bracelet (thinner) and the case (slightly larger). However, the real change is on the inside: it’s now powered by the Master Chronometer Calibre 8800, which, in another SMP first, is visible through a clear caseback. It’s also available in a range of flavours. Steel, two-tone, bracelet, rubber — you choose. And the best thing, the price. Steel only on rubber comes in at $6375, on bracelet $6525. 
One of the big surprises of Baselworld 2018 was Patek Philippe’s decision to add a grand complication model – specifically a perpetual calendar – to the Nautilus line. Or was it? Nautilus-with-complication is an old story (travel time, chronograph, annual calendar have all featured over the years) and the pre-Basel rumour mill was promoting the ‘perpetual’ idea pretty heavily. So when Patek unveiled the ref. 5740 there was a definite sense of “Surprise – what surprise?” Vital statistics The movement is one of Patek’s all-time greats: the ultra-thin self-winding calibre 240 Q – also found in the current collection in the Calatrava-cased ref. 5327. It’s essentially the same movement that was introduced in the landmark ref. 3940 in the mid-1980s and continually improved upon over the years. Those improvements include a Gyromax balance wheel and Spiromax (silicium) hairspring. The perpetual calendar display indicates the day, date, month and leap year by hands, as well as a moon phase and 24-hour display. The white gold case measures 40mm (diagonally, from 10–4 o’clock), has a screw-down crown, helping to ensure water-resistance to 60 metres, and comes on a white gold bracelet with a folding clasp. On the wrist Although, for a Nautilus, there’s…