Debuting in 1997, the Patek Philippe Aquanaut was released to engage with a newly minted clientele with money in their pocket during the stock market explosion. Released under the same premise as the Nautilus when it was released in 1976, the Aquanaut was a trendy watch that broke from traditional Patek Philippe aesthetic stylings. Featuring a first for Patek with its composite strap, the Aquanaut needed to be delicately launched. So it was first released as a limited-edition offering of 1000 pieces with the ref. 5060A. Thanks to its success, in 1998, the year following, Patek launched a new variant of the Aquanaut, the ref. 5066A, which is what we have here. Featuring the same 36mm stainless steel case and the same automatic cal. 330 SC movement as the ref. 5060A, the ref. 5066A is very similar to its predecessor, yet it introduces a sapphire crystal exhibition caseback to the collection. This allowed the 120m water-resistant Aquanaut ref. 5066A to become the most water-resistant timepiece to sport an exhibition caseback, an impressive feat for Patek Philippe considering their pedigree was in complicated classical timepieces, not sports watches. An icon of modern watchmaking, the Aquanaut has transcended horology, and with the ref. 5066A marking the beginning of its production as a serially-produced watch, it is a remarkably important and collectible reference.

Watch is in near-mint overall condition. Watch was serviced by Patek Philippe at some point and appears to have been seldom used since. Case was polished at service and shows little to no signs of surface wear. Caseback service sticker still affixed. Blue tropical rubber strap has been cut to fit a 6 3/4" wrist. Watch comes with original blue colored limited edition inner and outer box, as well as guarantee papers and service box.

With only a handful of these Japanese limited edition Aquanaut ref 5066A-010's known to the market, and only a rumoured 500 examples made, the opportunity to add such an intriguing piece of Patek Philippe's history to one's collection does not often turn its head, except for right now, of course.