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run-of-the-mill international adventurer , but Uemura was a standard bearer for his country and selected that most Japanese of all brands , Seiko . He ( probably ) wore the watch throughout many of his treks , which included a one-man dog sled run from Greenland to Alaska , the first solo walk to the North Pole and ascension of the North American Denali Mountain , which marked his last adventure .

He disappeared on the Denali hike , presumably with a Seiko on his wrist .

The second man in the Seiko storybook is the legendary “ Captain Willard ” from Francis Coppola ’ s film “ Apocalypse Now .” Willard , played by Martin Sheen , wore a Seiko in the same dive watch family , which gave rise to the watch ’ s status among collectors ( we love our little tribute names , don ’ t we ), and its value on the secondary vintage watch market .

Seiko has re-issued this watch in several variants over the years , and at varying price points , creating secondary and tertiary collectors ’ markets for the multiple iterations of this product .

For the uninitiated collector , deciphering the complicated soup of Seiko designations , per market , is itself a treasure hunt and the stuff many lengthy Seiko forum discussions .

Suffice to say , the current Prospex Ice collection is alluring enough to satisfy anyone interested in wearing a tough watch that looks like a classic from the analogue era . So , let ’ s get on with now .

Built for the Ice Diver , this new collection is comprised of three watches , each with its own twist on our theme . These watches are coded by color : SPB175 ( grey dial / bezel ), SPB177 ( green dial / bezel ) and SPB179 ( blue dial / bezel ) and are being released exclusively in the North

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