The lugs are very distinctive, and one of the details that drew me to this model. This is a great design if you have the exact tool, but can be problematic for those not using the proper wrench, which leaves this style of case back susceptible to marks and gouges. The case back screws in, and has a polygon shaped ridge for the back removal tool. The Antarctic is small by today’s standards, with the stainless steel case measuring 34mm wide by 43mm long with 18mm lugs. Through all these tests, Nivada’s Antarctics kept perfect time.” They were dropped and knocked against ice. One print ad in particular said it all in reference to the Antarctic’s performance on the expedition: “They were subjected to prolonged immersion, extreme altitude and high-magnetism. The ads touting this connection were numerous, and apparently quite successful as the Antarctic became one of Nivada’s most well-known models, along with the Chronomaster Aviator Sea Diver. It survived the rigors of the frozen South, and lived to tell the tale-in advertising. Since the Antarctic got its name and purpose from the Operation Deep Freeze expedition to the South Pole, it was necessarily designed to be waterproof and anti-magnetic. The example discussed here today is a Croton Nivada Grenchen Antarctic. Nivada (et al) produced different Antarctic variants-some with date, some without, as well as several different dial designs. That’s why you’ll see watches branded Nivada, Nivada Grenchen, and Croton Nivada Grenchen. They then teamed up with Croton for distribution. Nivada ended up having trouble with Movado regarding their name, and were forced to change it to Nivada Grenchen. They used this in all their advertising at the time, and were quite successful. In 1958, JLC sent their now famous Geophysic Chronometer with the USS Nautilus nuclear submarine on its journey under the North Pole, while Nivada sent a watch to the Antarctic in 1957.Īdmiral Byrd and the US Navy went to the Antarctic under the name Operation Deep Freeze, and Nivada created the waterproof and anti-magnetic Antarctic model to go with them. Two manufactures in particular took advantage of the IGY: Jaeger-LeCoultre (JLC) and Nivada.
Rolex had great success tying their Explorer to the Everest expedition, and they and other watch manufactures wanted to take advantage by advertising their exploits and attaching themselves to the popularity of the IGY. Rolex sent their Explorer with Hillary and Norgay on their ascent of Everest in 1953, Vulcain accompanied the assault on K2 in 1954, and Enicar was there for the climbing of Lhotse in 1956. Earlier in the decade, some of the big Swiss companies had already had their watches tied to famous explorations. This made the IGY a perfect opportunity for watch manufactures to tie in their products with these scientific endeavors.
Wristwatches were becoming more capable of highly accurate timekeeping, as well as being exposed to extremes of temperature and water depth. This was a time of burgeoning scientific progress, and the watch industry was right there too. It was a scientific collaborative effort to explore the Earth’s poles, climb the tallest mountains and advance the exploration of space.
In 1957/58, a group of about forty countries, including the US, Soviet Union, and most of Europe came together to declare the International Geophysical Year (IGY).
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