A MoonSwatch worth its weight in... history!

Some moments are so extraordinary they continue to shine across generations. Such was the first moon landing in 1969. To celebrate this moment, Swatch launches the MISSION TO THE MOON 1969: a limited edition of 1969 pieces, featuring a dial, hands, crown, and pushers crafted from OMEGA’s 18K MoonshineTM Gold, all weighing 11 grams.

The gold used for this limited edition dates also from that period, coming from old OMEGA spare parts. We melted it in our own foundry to create OMEGA’s 18K MoonshineTM Gold.

In 1969, eleven grams of 18K gold cost 11 dollars and around 48 Swiss francs (CHF), with an exchange rate of CHF 4,31 to the dollar. MISSION TO THE MOON 1969 will be available at CHF 500, based on the price of gold on July 21, 1969 and not on today’s gold price.

To get your hands on this model, you have to fill out an ESTA or Electronic Swatch Timepiece Application. There will be 32 questions to answer similar to the ESTA many travelers have to fill out to travel to the USA. Only 1969 people will get an ESTA approval from Swatch, which gives them the right to purchase the limited edition. All this is happening in the digital space, online. The Electronic Swatch Timepiece Application will be available on swatch.com from July 16 at 15:32 CEST and must be filled out and submitted by July 21 at 23:59 CEST at the latest. Selected participants will receive follow up instructions on how to complete their purchase and pick up their watch at a Swatch store.

The choice of gold and its weight are more than aesthetic details, as both are playful nods: the use of gold on the dial as well as its design reference OMEGA’s gold Speedmaster from 1969, a timepiece created to celebrate the success of the Apollo 11 mission, while the weight is a playful wink to the mission’s number. Additional details echo this and other commemorative models, from the vertical satin dial finishing and the black Bioceramic bezel with a gold-colored tachymeter, to the gold beveled indexes with black lacquer, period-correct OMEGA logo and typography.

Two additional subtle highlights keep MISSION TO THE MOON 1969 gleaming from every angle. The first is its battery cover which features a golden Moon design with an anti-scratch coating, that displays the date of the moon landing and a footprint referencing the first step taken on the Sea of Tranquillity, Apollo 11’s landing site. The second is that each chronograph in this limited edition is individually numbered, with its number engraved on the side of its case at 9 o’clock and finished with a touch of golden lacquer.

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