This 40-Year-Old Omega Speedmaster Watch Will Auction For Over $25K Because It’s Been Somewhere Insane

This Omega Speedmaster watch has orbited the moon, and thanks to a crafty NASA astronaut, it will now orbit the world of some rich asshole.

​The Apollo astronauts all wore Omega Speedmasters to the Moon, but when they came back, the watches became property of NASA, which then disseminated them to archives and museums the world over. But Apollo 17 astronaut Ron Evans attached one to a heat flow engineering experiment, different from the one he wore on his wrist. That watch wasn’t handed over at the end of the mission–it’s the only Speedmaster in private hands. And it’s going up for auction.

On December 15, 2015, Christie’s will auction off the watch. No opening bid has been announced, but the last time it was up for sale in 2009, it went for $23,900, according to Collect Space. It’s going up alongside the wrist strap from the watch Evans wore and the pen he used on that mission, the final one to visit the moon.

This Omega Speedmaster would be a solid start to any vintage watch collection but there is one thing the owner should know. The watch was never actually ON the moon. Evans was the Lunar Command Module pilot. He was basically the Uber to the astronauts who actually touched down on the moon. Evans kept circling like he was looking for a good parking spot so the watch was never really on the moon but close enough.

The watch is cool but it doesn’t have as cool a backstory as this watch.

[via Esquire]

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Chris Illuminati is a 5-time published author and recovering a**hole who writes about running, parenting, and professional wrestling.