This forthcoming Monday marks the 46^th Anniversary of the first man on the moon landing. On July 20, 1969, Americans Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins were the first astronauts to land on the moon with the Apollo 11 spacecraft.

The spaceflight effectively ended Space Race between the United States and Soviet Union which began at the outset of the Cold War between the two nations in the early 1960’s and fulfilled a national objective proposed by President John F Kennedy in 1961 to have a man land on the moon before the decade was out.

Interestingly another race to the moon coincided with the 1969 moon landing: the race to have the first wristwatch on the moon. Watchmakers Omega and Bulova were both in direct competition with each other during the 1960’s to achieve this honor of distinction.

American watchmaker Bulova originally had the edge  for not only being an American watch brand but also producing the Accutron 214 wristwatch, which was used by NASA in early space missions and also became the Official Gift of State when President Johnson was in office during the mid 1960’s.

However, the Plexiglas crystal and dustproof characteristics of the Speedmaster gave Swiss watchmaker Omega the competitive edge over Bulova.

Although Bulova did not make it to the moon, the brand’s Accutron Spaceview timepiece originally intended for space exploration was a global phenomenon when it was introduced in the 1960’s.

The automatic timepiece featured a skeleton dial and no visible crown with the time-setting mechanism on the caseback. It was also the first-mass produced exhibition watch of its type.

The Bulova Accutron Kirkwood Automatic men’s watch available at luxury retailer TheWatchery.com pays homage to the legendary Spaceview timepiece. This outstanding Swiss-made automatic watch has an exhibition skeleton dial and semi exhibition caseback that let you see the intricate movement inside.

The contoured round case in premium grade stainless steel case is highly polished to a mirror-bright glow. The handsome black crocodile textured leather strap has a deployment clasp for added convenience. The skeleton dial features luminous silver colored hands along with Deco inspired Roman numeral and baton hour markers.

Features include a scratch-resistant sapphire crystal above the dial and water resistance to 100 meters or 330 feet. Automatic watch is 40mm in diameter and 12mm thick.

Complementary delivery and returns are included on all domestic US purchases at TheWatchery.com.