Watch Review: Hands On With The Eterna-Matic KonTiki Super 1973 Watch (Price)

Eterna is a Swiss watch brand with a great history of firsts in both watchmaking and seafaring. In fact, its KonTiki line is named after the 1947 KonTiki ocean expedition, wherein scientist Thor Heyerdahl and five others crossed the Pacific on a wooden craft to prove that other earlier civilizations could have done so. They brought no modern technology except for a hand radio for weather reports and six Eterna watches. Their balsa wood boat was named KonTiki after the Incan sun god, and after that 101-day journey, wherein all six watches performed excellently and endured no corrosion, Eterna created the KonTiki line. So, when I was offered the chance to borrow and wear an Eterna-Matic KonTiki Super watch recently, I jumped at the chance.

Technically advanced, the Super KonTiki that I borrowed is a superb rendition of a dive watch with all of the easy-readability factors and more. To begin with, the watch features a black rotating bezel with triangular indication for setting and luminescent numbers and markers. Additionally, the black dial of the 44mm stainless steel watch features hands and indexes that are also filled with Super LumiNova for easy reading under water. The crystal is not only anti-glare coated, but also scratch-resistant coated.

Overall the look of the watch, with cushioned case behind the round bezel and dial, looks sporty chic out of the water, but has the ability to dive right in. Housing an automatic Eterna-Matic movement with 38 hours of power reserve, the automatic KonTiki Super 1973 watch is water resistant to 200 meters thanks to a screw-down caseback and a screw-locked crown. It offers hours, minutes, seconds, and date.

What is also really cool about this watch is the fact that it is an Eterna-Matic. For those who love watches, you may already know that the Eterna-Matic movement, developed in 1948, was revolutionary for its time. The Eterna-Matic caliber essentially featured a ball-bearing mounted rotor system to reduce friction. Five strategically placed ball bearings reduced friction and resistance on the oscillating weight that winds the mainspring and increased the watch’s accuracy. Eterna was the first to utilize such a system, and it revolutionized the way other brands created their automatic watches, as most implemented a similar concept within years.

Sold with a stainless steel integrated mesh bracelet with a diver extension, the KonTiki Super watch has all the looks, as well as the function. I found it easy to read, perfectly sized and sporty yet urban chic. Best of all is the price. This Swiss-made timepiece retails for $2,200.