Jewellery & Watch News
Last year, Japanese watchmaker Seiko launched a series of blacked-out divers watches inspired by the sport of night diving. Their stealthy black cases were paired with bold turquoise-coloured luminescent hardware for increased legibility under the waves. Now joining the Seiko Prospex Black Series Night King Samurai, Tortoise and Solar Divers watches is a new duo of designs: the 2023 Seiko Prospex Black Series Night Turtle SPB335J1 and the Night Alpinist SPB337J1.
Starting with the Seiko Prospex Black Series Night Turtle SPB335J1 watch, this particular design has long been fan favourite even before it’s new black coated case and green luminous dial. The Seiko Turtle was nicknamed by Seiko collectors for its curved, cushion-shaped case which evokes the shape of a turtle’s shell. This time, the round architecture is paired with a black hard coating adding to its contemporary aesthetic and durability. To match, the dial is finished in a grainy black surface and joined by vivid green-turquoise hour markers and hands which glow brilliantly in the dark, attesting to its “Night” nickname.
The dimensions of the Seiko Prospex Black Series Night Turtle SPB335J1 watch replicate those done before it with a diameter of 41mm and a height of 12.25mm. There’s also the familiar screw down crown at 4 o’clock, curved sapphire crystal glass, a screw down case back and a water resistant rating of 200 metres. Since it’s purposely designed for night diving, the Seiko Prospex Black Series Night Turtle watch comes equipped with a unidirectional rotating bezel with a steel insert, which like the dial, glows with luminous markings on the 60 minute diving scale. The bezel insert is predominantly black with the 0 to 20 minutes portion subtly done in grey.
The Seiko Prospex Black Series Night Turtle SPB335J1 watch is powered by the Calibre 6R35 automatic winding movement which ensures the smooth running of the two large sword-shaped hour and minute hands and the red-tipped seconds hand, all generously adorned with Seiko’s green Lumibrite Pro. The movement also delivers a date window between 4 and 5 o’clock, a power reserve or 70 hours and an accuracy of 15/+25 seconds per day. Finally, this design comes complete with a black rubber strap and a black hard coated pin buckle. It is limited to 4,500 pieces.
Very different in style to the Seiko Prospex Black Series Night Turtle watch, and in fact any of the three “Night” models launched last year, the Seiko Prospex Black Series Night Alpinist SPB337J1 watch takes inspiration from the original Seiko Alpinist watch launched in 1959. This historic model was designed for Japanese ‘Yama-otoko’ mountain men to accompany them as they explored treacherous terrain. In fact, it seems the Seiko Prospex Black Series Night Alpinist watch is the very first reference in the entire history of the Seiko Black Series to be built on a land-based concept, not water.
With this in mind, the Seiko Prospex Black Series Night Alpinist SPB337J1 watch ensures impressive robustness with a 200 metre water resistant rating, screw in crown at 3 o’clock and black hard coating across the case. The case measures slightly smaller than its Turtle counterpart with a diameter of 39.45mm and a height of 13.2mm and stands out for its additional crown at 4 o’clock which controls the internal rotating bezel. The internal bezel laid out on the outskirts of the grainy black dial is adorned with a compass scale so you can navigate your way out of the wilderness.
The compass scale is printed in white but there are some small red accents which add a nice sporty touch to the look of the Seiko Prospex Black Series Night Alpinist SPB337J1 watch. The dial next to it is equipped with a three cathedral-style hands including a black glossy minutes hand, a brushed steel seconds hand and a tipped seconds hand. All three are once again applied with Lumibrite Pro as are the turquoise markers next to the large silvered Arabic numerals. Powering these functions and the magnified date window at 3 o’clock is the same Calibre 6R35 with a 70 hour power reserve. The Seiko Prospex Black Series Night Alpinist SPB337J1 watch is a limited edition of 5,500 pieces and comes complete with a black hard coated stainless steel bracelet and folding buckle.
If you’d like to learn more about the new Seiko Prospex Black Series 2023 Night Turtle and Alpinist watches, head over to the W Hamond website here. Alternatively, get in touch with the team by calling 01947 603330 or send us a message at info@whamond.com.
