Notes
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Provenance
From the private collection of an American enthusiast
Biography
The Tornek-Rayville TR-900 is a modified version of the Blancpain Fifty Fathoms, one of the first modern diving watches, tailored to meet US military specifications.
To circumvent American import restrictions on Swiss watches, American importer Allen V. Tornek established the Tornek-Rayville company. The watch was essentially a Blancpain Fifty Fathoms with different markings.
It was produced specifically for the United States Navy and was used by combat divers (Navy SEALs and UDT - Underwater Demolition Teams). The watch met the stringent military specifications for diving watches, including high readability and significant water resistance.
The production of the Tornek-Rayville TR-900 was very limited, making it an extremely rare and highly sought-after watch by collectors today.
Many watches were destroyed by the United States Navy at the end of their service, making the remaining examples even more valuable.
This particular example from the personal collection of an American enthusiast was discovered a few years ago, but it had a replacement US navy steril dial from the late ’70’s. .
With great luck, he was able to find a rare original dial to restore the watch to its historically accurate condition, which is nothing short of a miracle. It is thus presented today for the first time in its perfect configuration.
