The 1990s saw the arrival of smart-casual and business-casual clothing in the workplace. The Patek Philippe Aquanaut—which drew inspiration from the smaller 3800 Nautilus—was launched in 1997 as the quintessential watch for this era: it was suitable for diving and other sporty activities but could be worn equally well in the boardroom.

The Aquanaut bears a striking resemblance to the Nautilus with its porthole-inspired octagonal bezel and with alternating satin-brushed and polished finishes. Nevertheless, it has a uniquely sporty look thanks to the rubber strap and the matching embossed black dial. 

The very first Aquanaut, the ref. 5060 was introduced in 1997. Its successor, the 5065 'Jumbo' with its 38 mm sized stainless steel case followed just one year later in 1998.

This 5065 dates back to 2000 and comes with a black dial, painted hour markers, and 18K white gold applied Arabic indices. The ref. 5065 features a date window on the edge of the dial at the 3 o’clock position and a straight end rubber strap. On later references, the date window was moved to the left, sacrificing the number ‘3’ index, and a curved rubber strap that hugs the case was introduced. But we love the reference 5065 especially because of these no-nonsense prototype details.

This 5065 is in great condition and comes with an extract from the Patek Philippe archives.