Auctions: Buzz Aldrin’s Watches Are Coming To Auction

This story has been republished from our friends at Hodinkee Australia.  

Amongst the lots in Sotheby’s New York’s latest Space Exploration auction, I found some interesting things. In fact, I found 24 of them. Watches – all owned by none other than retired Brigadier General of the U.S. Air Force, and second man on the moon, Buzz Aldrin.

The astronaut, born Edwin Eugene Aldrin Jr., has listed a large portion of his watch collection, primarily Omegas, but there’s a smattering of watches from other brands amongst the spacefaring lots. It’s no surprise that Buzz’s Apollo 11-flown Omega Speedmaster Professional isn’t present; that watch is still lost, stolen on the way to the Smithsonian after its sojourn to the moon in 1969 (and it still technically belongs to the U.S. government).

There’s a range of Omegas that are meaningful to Aldrin that he’s acquired through decades of collecting, including dive watches he relied on as an experienced scuba diver and a big box of souvenir watches. There’s no denying the man is a collector and a true watch enthusiast. Bidding is open online right now before live bidding sessions begin on July 15th in New York – here are some of the highlights.

Jaeger-LeCoultre Shark Deep Sea Chronograph

This is the most interesting watch in the sale that isn’t an Omega: Aldrin’s JLC Shark Deep Sea. It’s a late 60s to early 70s tool watch, one of only a handful of diving chronographs from the era. After conquering space, Aldrin pursued his second love in life, diving, famously saying, “My favourite thing to do on this planet is to scuba dive”.

Whilst the supplied provenance doesn’t confirm this, I suspect Aldrin bought this Shark Deep Sea new to accompany him on dives, a theory that would stack up given this example is signed ‘LeCoultre’ on the dial, dropping the ‘Jaeger ’, meaning it’s a US market watch. Plus, it has the dive bezel rather than the optional GMT or world-time bezel, bearing all the marks of a life aquatic with oxidised spring bars, pusher stems, and a scuffed crystal that’s hiding a gorgeous condition dial and handset.

At the time of writing, it is sitting at US$8,500, below the estimate and below market for this rare vintage chronograph, Aldrin provenance aside.

Lot 36 | Estimate: US$10,000 – $20,000

Omega Speedmaster Professional ref. 3590.50.00

As previously mentioned, you cannot own Buzz Aldrin’s Omega Speedmaster Professional that he wore on the surface of the moon. Despite the fact that it’s lost, it remains the property of the U.S. government and will never be sold, so this is the closest you’ll ever get to owning Buzz’s Moonwatch. It’s a 1990s Speedmaster Professional with the calibre 861 movement and a tritium dial with some nice age to the lume. Aldrin acquired it new as a replacement for the Speedmaster he wore in the Apollo days, bearing all the battle scars of regular wear.

The estimate places it only a tad above the market rate for this reference, and at the time of writing, it’s bid to USD$8,000 – for Mister Moon’s Moonwatch, if it hammers within estimate, it’s a total steal.

Lot 37 | Estimate: US$8,000 – $12,000

Omega Speedmaster X-33 Gen 2

The other Speedmaster that jumped out at me in the auction is this X-33, Omega’s quartz ani-digi replacement for the mechanical Speedmasters, flight-qualified and still used in space by NASA and on the ISS today. It’s only fitting Aldrin wore one, often spotted rocking what I believe to be this very X-33 on a bracelet that was Frankensteined to hold another watch head on the same bracelet, specifically another Speedmaster on the other side of the wrist.

This particular example also has a blank caseback, typical for military and NASA-issued X-33s. Issued watches left the factory with blank casebacks so a unit engraving, insignia or owner’s name could be engraved onto it, so it looks like Aldrin likely acquired this one either through his partnership with Omega or through NASA or military connections, and it was never engraved. Note: this example isn’t currently running and either needs a simple battery change or more extensive servicing.

Lot 43 | Estimate: US$4,000 – 6,000

Omega Constellation Manhattan Day-Date

I was beaming ear to ear when I first saw this Constellation Day-Date, known to collectors as “The Owl” due to its calendar subdials, in the catalogue. I own this exact reference in steel, and it’s one of my most regularly worn and treasured watches. It isn’t surprising Buzz has a lot of Omegas in his collection and in this auction – his role as a brand ambassador meant he was probably flung a new watch from time to time – but the watches he held on to for decades, appearing at auction now, are an insight into which watches spoke to him enough to keep and wear regularly.

It’s a two-tone example with the handsome inset gold Roman-numeral bezel and matching gold subdial rings, wearing very nicely at 32mm with an integrated bracelet. Amongst the recent hype for neo-vintage watches, these Constellation Manhattans remain something of an underappreciated gem, but the next generation of collectors has begun to embrace it; this reference is often spotted on Charlie Puth’s and Devon Lee Carlson’s wrists. Like the X-33, this one needs a battery and/or a service, but condition-wise it’s all there.

Lot 42 | Estimate: US$5,000 – $8,000

A box of commemorative watches

This box of watches has zero horological value, yet I think it’s the most compelling watch listing in the entire auction. These eight watches (watch box included) were collected by Buzz over decades as keepsakes of important stages of his life and career. There’s a two-tone watch presented to Buzz commemorating his involvement in the Buzz Aldrin Elementary School, a Toy Story 3 watch (where else do you think Buzz Lightyear got his name?), a Rodeo Drive Art & Performance commemorative Swatch, a Korean War Stories watch, and a Boeing watch with the ISS on the dial.

Korean War fighter pilot, test pilot, astronaut, diver, education advocate, collector. Buzz lived and breathed all these roles, and this box of memories commemorates every initiative of his life, lovingly held on to and built over decades – this collection is a testament to a man’s life.

Lot 64 | Estimate: US$3,000 – $5,000

Buzz, the watch guy

Buzz isn’t your run-of-the-mill guy, and his watch-wearing style matches that. He’s often rocking multiple watches on each wrist and sometimes even multiple watch heads on a single bracelet in a Frankenstein-esque mashup of metals. To each their own, but when you’ve worn a Speedy on the moon, you can wear a Speedy any way you damn well please.

I doubt Aldrin particularly cares about setting auction records with this sale, and despite him being a personal hero to mine (a Gen Z whippersnapper) and a huge portion of older generations, I don’t think these watches will be setting the auction world on fire. Despite his unrivalled importance in history (both for watch history and, you know, the human race), the generational changing of the guard is in full effect, and the boomer heroes like Paul Newman, Steve McQueen and Buzz Aldrin no longer have the cool factor to get collectors frothing that they once commanded.

Interest and prices in their watches have begun to reflect that. McQueen’s last Heuer Monaco, screen-used in Le Mans, sold in June for US$640,000, well under its million-dollar estimate.

The writing is on the wall as watch tastes continue to transition from steel mid-century tool watches to neo-vintage independents and precious metal jewellery watches, but I think Aldrin’s watches will be one of the few outliers in the years to come. Paul Newman and Steve McQueen are pop-culture figures, which is inherently fleeting. Buzz Aldrin is an explorer and historical figure who’s also instrumental in watch history, so I believe his appeal (and interest in his watches) will endure far beyond the reach mid-century pop culture can have.

Sotheby’s New York’s Space Exploration auction is open to live online bidding now, with live bidding sessions starting on July 15th at 10 am EDT (July 16th at midnight AEST) in New York. You can learn more here.