Page 48 - The Book For Men Fall/Winter 2023

Deep Dive
To celebrate the Seamaster’s 75th anniversary, Omega unveils a new generation of Ploprof
AS PART OF THE 75TH ANNIVERSARY CELEBRATIONS FOR OMEGA’S
Seamaster nameplate, an asymmetric legend from the watchmaker’s past has resurfaced. The Seamaster Ploprof was first launched in the early 1970s and was originally rated for 600 metres of water resistance. With this modern edition, that figure has doubled. However, its two crucial innovations remain the same — a button-operated locking bezel and a monobloc case design. The former ensures that the watch’s timing bezel remains secured, unable to be adjusted unless you interact with both its release button and bezel simultaneously. The latter means that the Ploprof’s caliber is dropped in from the dial side of the case, which removes the need for either a caseback or an additional gasket.
The 75th anniversary model also shares its Summer Blue shade with several of its other Seamaster siblings. But each watch in the collection has a different dial
from the next, and the Ploplof’s presents a high-contrast fumé design that fades from a light powder blue to an inky navy. It’s a pattern with a deeper meaning: as a proper dive watch, these hues represent the gradual loss of light as divers descend into the depths of the ocean. And the same colours can be found repurposed across the bezel, with paler indices contrasting against the dark blue ceramic bezel insert.
But the new colourway isn’t the only thing that sets this Ploplof apart. Its arrival also marks the first example of a steel-cased Seamaster since 2019 — and specifically crafted from the brand’s lustrous O-MEGASTEEL alloy. It also marks the arrival of a smaller case size in the Ploprof line, something collectors have been quietly demanding for quite some time. It may still be 55 mm across (accounting for the bezel lock and crown guard setup), but the lug-to-lug length of the watch has shrunk from 48 mm to 45 mm. Priced $14,300, deliveries begin in November.
48 BFM / FW23 PORTFOLIO
DEEP DIVE: TEXT BY BY JUSTIN MASTINE-FROST