A Very Well PreservedEterna-Matic KonTiki 20 on a Beads of Rice Bracelet with a Beautiful Black Dial with a Date Aperture, 1969

The watch world is no stranger to an adventure hero, Rolex hasSir Edmund Hillary and the death-defying Everest adventure giving way to the Explorer, and Omega boasts the first watch on the moonthrough Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin with their Speedmaster.

Alesser known fact might be, however, that Eterna acquired a trueadventure herowatch before its rivals, thanks to the journey by raft across the Pacific Ocean from South America to the Polynesian islands, led by a Norwegian academic, explorer and writer.

Thor Heyerdahland his crew of five sailedfor101 days, covering more than 4,300 nautical miles across thePacific Ocean on a raft named Kon-Tiki as anexperiment to prove that sailors from South America could have journeyed to Polynesia.

He recreated a 15x30ft craftin the same way earlier mariners would have done, constructed with onlythe materials and technologies available at the time – his point beingthat the raft itself could makethe journey – although they did make use of modern equipment which included – you guessed it, an Eterna watch.

As Eterna puts it: The seaborne adventure of a young Norwegian who, in 1947, decided to demonstrate the validity of a historical and geographical hypothesis of his was to have consequences both unexpected and welcome for a manufacturer at the heart of the Swisswatch industry. It would later lead Eterna to issue a watch calledKonTiki, which gradually grew into a dynasty of sports, divinganddress watches.

What’s on Offer

The story behind a watch always makes it more appealing wouldn’t you say? I think this story is particularly fantastic and am now keen to watch the movie and read the book, and of course, own a KonTiki watch.

This example is in superb pre-owned condition and looks beautiful on the wrist. It would make a great everyday watch as well as being perfectly appropriate for more formal events – due in part to the fact it is paired with its original Eterna beads of rice style braceletwith KonTiki engraved on the clasp andto the caseback you cansee the Kontiki raft emblem in gold.

The dial is stunning, rich black with a relatively simple design incorporating applied baton hour markers and stick hands with luminous inserts for better visibility in low light. A subtle date aperture sits at 3 o’clock and the Eterna-Matic and KonTiki signatures complete the picture.

The watch is in superb condition with only slight signs of previous wear – but nothing we wouldn’t expect to see and certainly nothing of any concern. The case and bracelet are very well preserved, this watch has been meticulously taken care of, you certainly wouldn’t know its approaching 60 years old!