Published 15 July 2016 · Updated 19 August 2026 · Written by Tibor on the second floor of Powerscourt Townhouse Centre, Dublin 2
Vintage watches are scarce if they are original. They are common if they have been “improved.” Authenticity means the watch has been left alone. Paying the right amount is a second problem, and it is the one people get backwards.
Omega launched the Seamaster in 1948 to mark the brand’s centenary (Omega). The line came out of wartime tool watches and was sold for town, sea, and country. That is the start of this reference, not a 2016 price tag.
What you need to know
- Seamaster: 1948. Seamaster 300: 1957, with Speedmaster and Railmaster.
- Sixties divers wear smaller than modern ones. Try it on.
- A 2016 euro figure on this page is history, not a quote.
Why do people want fifties and sixties divers?
Wristwatches from the 1930s to the late sixties are smaller than what boutiques push now. After the war, civilian divers became a fashion as well as a tool. Case size is half the appeal. Jaeger-LeCoultre, Zodiac, and Rolex all made pieces in this period. Omega stayed near the top of the list because the Seamaster and Speedmaster kept selling.
The Seamaster 300 arrived in 1957 as part of Omega’s professional trilogy, with the first Speedmaster and the Railmaster (Omega). Omega says Jacques-Yves Cousteau’s team used that line on the Precontinent II work in the Red Sea in 1963. The “Big Crown” nickname, on the pieces we see, is about a crown you can actually grip with cold fingers, not a sticker we invented. We will not invent a catalogue year we cannot show you on Omega’s own site.
Prince William, Joe Biden, Jeremy Clarkson, and Rory McIlroy have all been photographed in Seamasters. That is nice. It does not time a movement. Bond’s Seamaster, on Omega’s own telling, starts with the Diver 300M in GoldenEye in 1995. That is a different watch.
| Line | Year Omega publishes | What to remember |
|---|---|---|
| Seamaster | 1948 | Town, sea, and country |
| Seamaster 300 | 1957 | Professional trilogy, Cousteau 1963 |
| Diver 300M | 1993, Bond from 1995 | Not a sixties Big Crown |
| Big Crown on this bench | Collector name | Try the one in front of you |
How should you buy a vintage Seamaster in Dublin?
Investigate the make and the exact model. Look at the dial before you look at the price. Then come and handle whatever Omega we have on the pad. A vintage Seamaster or a Seamaster 600 is a more honest starting point than a number from 2016.
Omega still asks for a complete service every 5 to 8 years and a yearly water-resistance check (Omega, 2026). A sixties diver with a tired gasket is not a swimming watch until someone tests it.
This article once quoted €3,000 against a €3,500 to €4,000 “market.” That figure is ten years old. We will not pretend it is still the ticket. Call 01 679 9107 or contact us if you want the current piece, if we have one.
A refinished Seamaster dial is the usual disappointment. Collectors will pay for honest lume that has aged. They will not thank you for a wet reprint. Look at the hippocampus on the case back, then look at the dial under daylight, not a shop lamp.
Read best vintage watches in Dublin for other names on the trays, and trying on a vintage watch before you buy a diver from a screen. Second floor of Powerscourt, Monday to Saturday, 11:00 to 18:00.
Questions? We are on the second floor of the Powerscourt Townhouse Centre, Dublin 2.
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