Thanks everyone for your constructive feedback, I thoroughly enjoyed reading through all the comments and critiques.
While looking at these cloisonné enamel watches, I think it’s important to bear in mind not many of us have seen them in the flesh. I’ve myself have only gotten to handle a few over the past 25 years. I took a relatively long video so that the beauty of these dials can be shared with everyone.
Regarding authenticity, all I can say is that I’ve had a long enough relationship with my dealer, his expertise in Omega, and the price for which I paid, to be fairly confident of what I have. At the end of the day, like any other vintage watch we buy, we surmise authenticity based on not one particular thing, but rather the sum of all parts (case, movement, crystal, crown etc), other factors such as uniformity of wear, accompanying documentation, and in this case, provenance etc. I believe this watch, when considered in this light, to be honest.
Moreover, every cloisonné enamel dial of the observatory dial is unique in some way. For example, no two dials have the exact same star alignment if one looks closely. Some have a “flat” Omega logo (Phillips) while others are rounded and raised (A journey through time; Omegamania). Some have lumed indices and hands (Phillips), while others are not. Some have longer hands than others (Phillips). No two have been found on the exact same bracelet. John Goldberger believes he has the only rose gold version of this watch, when all others are in yellow gold. Etc etc. Also, owing to the ravages of time, it’s hard to say how each differently each of these dials could have aged over the past 70+ years. I personally not have seen any scholarly research into how sunlight or moisture affects these dials, even though we know factors such as these, can indeed render two identical dials completely different (ie what we call patina).
With the above in mind, here’s another watch I’d like to share with everyone. Enjoy.