Editor’s Note: Watches & Wonders (formerly SIHH) has moved online and Baselworld 2020 is canceled, but that hasn’t stopped watch brands large and small from debuting their new wares. Stay on top of this year’s best new watch releases here.
French brand Yema’s flagship product is the Superman, a retro dive watch with a quirky bezel-locking device. Taking inspiration from vintage models, it’s always been suffused with a ’60s vibe, but the newest limited edition pays tribute the very first Superman model, which debuted in 1963.
The new Superman 63 features a handset based on skin diver watches, as the original model did, and distinctive 6-9-12 numerals embedded within indices — a quirky trait of the era which other watch companies have also resurrected, most notably Oris with its Diver’s Sixty Five. Though the watch features a scratch-resistant sapphire crystal with a “box” shape that mimics old acrylic versions, sapphire also further protects the bezel insert.
Like other Superman watches, the new 63 is available in 39mm and 41mm case options and water-resistant to 300m. (Interestingly, when Yema introduced the Superman in 1963, it was evidently the first dive watch with this water resistance available to civilians.) The steel case, solid case back and screw-down crown protect a Sellita SW200-1 automatic movement inside, powering the watch and offering time, date and a 38-hour power reserve.
The Yema Superman 63 is limited to 1,000 examples and comes on a steel bracelet for $1,199 or a Tropic rubber strap for $1,049. Preorder is available from the brand beginning on July 6, 2020.
