Ever since Titanic emerged from the Harland and Wolfe Shipyard in 1912, she has captured the imagination of historians, artists and the general public. Romain Jerome paid tribute to the iconic ship by launching the Titanic-DNA collection. The original steel from the wreckage of the ship lying 3,840 meters below the sea level has been used to create the exquisite watches. The timepieces also symbolize a blend between the machinery of the industrial era and the modern sensibilities. The company launched the version 1 of its Octopus Dive Watch as part of its Titanic-DNA collection at the Baselworld watch show in 2011. However, the first authentic diver watch of the company never saw the light of the day. The company came back with the Romain Jerome Octopus Dive Watch Version 2 at the Baselworld Watch Show in 2012.
The launch of Romain Jerome Octopus Dive Watch Version 2 was not easy. The company originally planned to release a watch that could resist up to 300 meters of water. The watch also consists of a 60 minute ring printed on a transparent crystal. The purpose was to turn the outer bezel to adjust the internal bezel. Both of these features did not make the final cut as the company’s stringent quality control process did not approve of them. Romain Jerome included a second crown on the left side of the case to turn the inner bezel. The dial on the 2012 version is bigger than that its predecessor. It is easy to read and beautifully engineered yet functional at the same time.
The case of the Romain Jerome Octopus Dive Watch Version 2 is thick and 46m wide. Each crown consists of eight screws with an octopus engraving on the top. The intricate details are an upgrade over the 2011 version of the watch. The oxidized metal bezel contains traces from the Titanic. The information is engraved on the rear side of the watch along with the picture of a cool octopus. The inner side of the rubber strap is made to look like the tentacles of the octopus.
Romain Jerome may come up with more versions of its Octopus Dive Watch. The Romain Jerome Octopus Dive Watch Version 2 has a steel case but is also available as PVD black version and the one with 18 K rose gold trim. Each limited version of 888 timepieces seeks to maintain the quality and collectability of the watch. It retails for about $10,000
