My collection. vintage Omega-Rolex content. Picture heavy.

[Slevin Kelevra]

Outstanding!

Speedmaster = Drool!!!

[Finch]

very nice collection, congrats.

[RichS]

Wonderful collection. Don't know how I missed this the first time. Great information regarding your polar Explorer. Have you got first dibs on the back-up Seiko? :)

[MerlinShepherd]

Somehow I missed this thread first time round. What a superb collection you have and what excellent provenance of that 1016. A great story you have and thanks so much Michael for sharing with the forum. For me, this level of care, thought and attention to detail is of the highest order. Threads like this and collections like yours shine out!

[Martin123]

What a great conclusion to this story.

[Meinessex]

What an email! Congrats Mick, glad all your research has paid off, this not only proves what you originally thought, but this makes this watch the one to have from all those issued for that expedition.

Seems your emails have stirred a long lost memory from the distant past of a real hero, love the story of the wolverine ;-)

[dbt001]

What a wonderful letter from Dr. Hedges, and so fortunate to get that degree of background. I want to see the Seiko, too!

[Carlton-Browne]

What a fantastic addition to the story. Many thanks for posting.

[primabaleron]

Fantastic ! :)

[burton]

Love the watches and even more so there is some history behind them!

[MadeOfCheese]

Great collection, and a great story! Thanks for posting.

The gilt 1016 is a real beauty. Had an opportunity to buy a gilt dial one myself last year - really kicking myself now that I didn't go for it!

[Dr.f]

I'm really glad you've got definate proof now,persistance has paid off.I missed out on Alan Gill's Explorer when it came up for auction originally but felt so taken with the story after some time and effort and with help of folk here managed to acquire my own.Nice to see this update and feel a link with that past again.

[Michael E]

Thank you for the above comments.
So glad I held on to the 1016 now.
Cheers Mick

[Chinnock]

WOW!
&
WOW!

[erwin]

Congratulations on what you've been, and sorry for having broken away from the jewels.

[drdvice]

That Speedy is beautiful. Lovely collection.

[zsayub116610]

WOW! i've never really liked the omega speedmasters however yours is an exception! That is truly wonderful and the best one i have seen!

Also thats a beautiful collection! Congrats :)

[JackW]

Wow, can't believe I missed this thread. First: great collection! I like them all, but that's probably the most beautiful Speedmaster I've ever come across, so that one in particular. Thanks also for the update re the polar expedition watch. Stories like that are what make this forum such an interesting place.

[Beeks]

Just to update this thread regarding my Allan Gill Rolex explorer, I know a couple of people were interested in a update.
With the help of a Canadian member on another watch forum I have managed to contact the only surviving member of the trans Artic expedition of 1968-69.
Dr Ken Hedges was kind enough to respond to my email regarding the watch with some information of its history. A big thank you to tick talk (Dean) for his help and also DrF (John) for his interest and help also.



I sent a email to Ken, just a test email really to see if the address still existed as I was told by Dean it was quite a old email address. To my delight Ken responded within a hour with the following>

Good evening Michael

I can confirm that I was a member of the four-man crossing party of the "British Trans Arctic Expedition" of 1989-1969 and am now sadly the only one of the four of us still living...Allan having past away three years ago.

Perhaps you would be kind enough to let me know a little about yourself and of your interests in Polar exploration?

With kind regards and compliments of the season.

Ken Hedges
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I explained to Ken that I am trying to find the history of my 1016 Explorer engraved "Allan Gill North Pole 6th April 1969", and if all the team were issued with one.
Ken Replied with the following>
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Good day Michael, and thank you for your further Email and most interesting background. What a fascinating interest you have in collecting watches...and gathering the stories attached to them.

Yes, each of the four members of the crossing party was issued with one of those Rolex watches. The story of the one in your possession is of interest. It had been worn by me until a point during the winter of 1968 when Allan, our navigator, somehow lost his in the snow. he was the only one who elected to sleep outside in an unheated tent throughout the winter while the remaining three elected the relative luxury of our much more comfortable insulated tent which provided out winter quarters. Somewhere between Al's tent and the Winter Quarters, the watch was lost. On Wally Herbert's directions, I gave my watch to Allan who of course needed a watch to perform his activity as navigator...and in fact this instrument is not simply a watch, but a chronometer. So the chronometer in your possession was worn by two members of the four-man party! It was the instrument used to guide us to the North Pole and subsequently on to the Svalbard archipelago where Allan and I scrambled ashore on 29 May 1969 to complete the first crossing of the Arctic Ocean. (The North Pole was a secondary target which happened to be en route to our final destination).

I carried a backup watch which I wore slung on a piece of parachute cord around my neck. It is a Seiko which I still have and which had previously accompanied me during operations in the jungles of Borneo and deserts of what is now Yemen and Libya during my tours of duty as Regimental Medical Officer with the Special Air Service (S.A.S.)

I chuckled to see one of the pictures you had kindly included. It shows the four of us looking rather intently to our left and downwards...We were visiting the facilities of the U.S. Naval Arctic Research Laboratory in Point Barrow Alaska...and been shown a Wolverine which had been left to run free on the floor. These animals have a dreadful reputation as a predator for bringing down virtually any size prey and I remember being quite apprehensive!

Thank you for your interest and very best wishes to you and your family for the coming year.

Dr. Ken Hedges
Honorary Colonel / Colonel honoraire
Royal Canadian Medical Service / le Service de santé royal canadien
Canadian Forces Health Services Training Centre /
Centre d'instruction des Services de santé des Forces canadiennes.


I'm pretty chuffed about finally getting more info on the watch and its history.
Cheers Mick

Wow that is truly fantastic, what an incredible story and what fantastic provenance

[MattH]

Fantastic story... Nice to see these luxury goods being used as they should....

You our must be chuffed to have gotten to the bottom of that mystery..

cheers

matt

[Michael E]

Fantastic story... Nice to see these luxury goods being used as they should....

You our must be chuffed to have gotten to the bottom of that mystery..

cheers

matt

Very chuffed Matt, I was totally convinced it had to be one of the watches used in the expedition, it would have been a shock if it wasn't, but finding out for sure was fun and frustrating at the same time. With help from forum friends I got there.
All I have to do now is hope my 3 year old son turns out to be a watch nut like myself and that he appreciates the watch and enjoys learning about the history behind it.
In the mean time it is on a NATO and being enjoyed by his Dad.
Cheers Mick