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 ref. 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. Two successor references followed just one year later: the ‘Jumbo’ ref. 5065 and the mid-size ref. 5066.

The mid-size reference 5066 is the true successor to the original Aquanaut as it features the same 36 mm stainless steel case with a black dial, painted hour markers, as well as 18k white gold applied Arabic indices. A cool detail on these early Aquanauts is the placement of the date window on the edge of the dial at the 3 o’clock position. Details like this show how the model was still in early stages of development and give the ref. 5066 a no nonsense prototype-like look.

The majority of Aquanauts on the market come with a rubber strap only, but we’ve managed to find one with the original chunky steel bracelet with highly polished links that resemble the tracks on a tank.

This 5066 dates back to 2000 and is in excellent condition. The watch was just serviced and comes with the corresponding Patek Philippe service papers. Moreover, the watch is accompanied by the original Patek Philippe certificate, tags, and booklets.