A stellar Rolex. (Photo credit: Jannicke Mikkelsen)
It may have been built to reach the deepest point on earth, but the watch reached heights that few ever will. Now, that watch, which belongs to Jannicke Mikkelsen, Norway’s first female astronaut, is going on the market.
Mikkelsen, who commanded the first human spaceflight to orbit Earth over both poles, is selling the Rolex Deepsea Challenge she wore in space. Made in RLX titanium and rated to 11,000 meters (36,090 feet), it is the most water-resistant Rolex ever commercially produced. She wore the watch in orbit around Earth on a NATO strap in the colors of the Norwegian flag.
This "Space Deepsea" will be auctioned by Nyborgs in Oslo on Nov. 11, with an estimate of $53,722 to $75,211, roughly twice the Deepsea Challenge’s $29,100 retail price, a sign of the on-going demand for Rolex watches with unusual provenance. Proceeds exceeding its purchase price will benefit a Norwegian nonprofit supporting Ukraine’s air defenses. From space, Mikkelsen spotted a Russian missile heading toward Ukraine. She later visited the site of the deadly strike she had witnessed from orbit.