Omega Speedmaster 2998-4 First Omega in Space

non-original handset, deal breaker for me- haha. The "had this gifted to me, or inherited" stories on these forums are a straight red flag until proven otherwise. It is a nice watch though, I wouldn't kick it out of bed.

Just checking in here and am sorry to see that I ruffled some feathers.

My story is legitimate and accurate, for the record. Upon learning more of the piece and its value, I did decide to list is for sale for what I considered an egregious amount. I received multiple offers (including by some forum members here) which I ultimately turned down. My intentions in posting here were genuine and I had no malicious intent to “stir up” interest here.

I continue to possess the watch and while I will ultimately end up parting ways with it I have enjoyed wearing it intermittently (although I still haven’t been able to find an additional link). Enough so that I put a nice rash on the new crystal even.

Not sure why I felt compelled to reply here as it truly doesn’t matter and I’m certain will change nothing, but here we are!

Appreciate the advice and kind words!

This post was mostly in response to the apparently negative comments questioning my intentions and factuality of my original post!

Just out of curiosity, since I did not find the C24 listing, what was the asking price? Thanks guys.

I certainly do understand the skepticism here and don’t necessarily fault it, it just happens to be untrue in this instance.


Happy to elaborate on the story:

I have a small health care practice in the US in which I provide care as a Physical Therapist. I serve a geriatric patient population in a very wealthy area.

I have a very modest collection of watches that I regularly rotate wearing. I am far from a collector but enjoy wearing a nice watch. My regular wearers include 2 omegas, a Tudor, and a couple citizen watches.

A 90+ year old woman whose husband I had previously worked with reached out to me to inquire about my services. I took her on as a patient and we got along incredibly well. She shared stories from her childhood growing up in Hitler-era Germany, immigration to the US as a young woman when her first husband took a job in the east coast, and her accomplished life of aviation as she flew the continent collecting unique items to sell in her boutique in California. In our 2-3 years working together I introduced her to my wife and daughter, and we shared a lovely friendship overall.

One day early on in the time we were working together, she took notice of the watch I was wearing and asked me about my interest in watches. I told her very honestly that I really like watches and have a small collection, but by no means am a collector. She told me she has a men’s watch that she purchased in the 60s and would wear only when she flew her plane, and asked me if I wanted it. She was unsure where it was but could track it down. I told her no and that I wanted her to keep it. Accepting gifts from patients always makes me feel uncomfortably and can be ethically questionable.

A few weeks passed and we continued working together 3+ times/week. Then one day I came to her house and she handed me this watch. It was absolutely beat to hell and disgustingly filthy. She said she wanted me to have it. I took a quick peek and saw that it was an Omega and told her it was a nice watch and she should keep it. She very pointedly insisted that I take it and I agreed, gratefully. When I left that day I threw the watch in the center console of my car and left it there for probably a month.

Eventually I grabbed it from my car and took a good look. It was a disaster and I didn’t know where to begin so I took it my local jeweler where I had my wife’s ring recently resized and asked what they would suggest. He said a new crystal, and a COA. I asked the price and he said $800 all-in, I balked because I assumed the watch to be worth less than that, but eventually bit the bullet. He asked me what the value was for insurance purposes when I left it there, I said 1k.

I picked it up about a month later and it looked beautiful, as it does now. I squeezed into the bracelet and wore it the next time I worked with the woman who gifted it to me, and she was thrilled to see it in good working condition. She asked how much I had invested into it and I told her. Her jaw hit the floor and she offered to reimburse me since I “wasted all that money”. I refused. When I got home that day I put the watch in my drawer with the rest of them and never looked/thought about it again.

Despite our combined efforts, my old friends health declined relatively quickly and she was no longer a good or willing candidate for Physical Therapy. I continued to visit and check in on her intermittently, but it grew less frequent as her enthusiasm for company diminished.

Fast forward to earlier this year, and I learned of her passing. I reached out to her husband to share my thoughts and condolences, and moved on. Unfortunately with my demographic of work, death is familiar and not surprising. I thought about the watch she had given me and decided to look into it more. It began as me wanting to find additional links for the bracelet, then I decided to open the case back. I bought tools off amazon and popped it open, looked up the reference number and that eventually led me to this forum and a better understanding of the value.

I listed it for sale for an above market price to see if there were any very motivated buyers, and had many offers that didn’t cause me to feel compelled to sell. I also had some interactions that I would consider slimy and shady of “potential buyers” so I stopped pursuing a sale. I reached out to an (the?) expert on these watches, who has been very generous with his time and attention, and as of now I am holding the watch with the intent of accepting his offer if he continues to be interested as I am fortunate to be in no great hurry or financial need.

If not, I will likely keep the piece, at least for now.

The unfortunate truth is that despite the bit of sentimental value, I just don’t LOVE the watch as much as it is worth. Hence my consideration of selling.


Forgive my long-windedness, was fun to recall this story. Also, you did ask for the “short story long” 😉

I did tell him about it and offered it to him after her passing. He insisted I keep it or sell it for “beer money”.

I still see him at least monthly as he resides in a community where I am often working.