As any sea loving islander knows, one of the most critical components to your oceangoing toolkit is a reliable watch that has mastered the art of practicality and presentability. Chiefly when your favourite pastime happens to be diving.

Conceived almost 35 years ago the original Citizen Aqualand watch revolutionised the safety of amateur and professional diving through the introduction of a precise digital depth gauge, and a rubber strap printed with no-decompression limits, all on a regular wrist watch.

It may sound simple now, but back then it was ground breaking technology meaning divers no longer required cumbersome depth gauge instruments in addition to a dive watch to stay safe while going submariner.

Over the years Citizen has advanced the Aqualand technology through a series of analogue and digital advancements in dive technology. Here we celebrate our favourite advancements in this timeless range from Citizen.

1992, Aqualand Air Divers Cal. 5810. Hindsight is a wonderful thing. Especially where technology is involved. While the LCD depth gauge was breakthrough at the time, the small LCD display made it hard to read, especially in low visibility conditions. Ironically the 1992 edition improved this through the adoption of legacy timekeeping technology - a high visibility analog hand and dial.

1993, Aqualand Cal. C023. Just one year later The Aqualand saw the return of the LCD display. This time with a fully illuminated panel to improve legibility of the original design. Furthermore the depth sensors were calibrated to the specific gravity of sea water.

1994, Promaster Hyper Aqualand. Next came The Eco-Drive Hyper Aqualand. A full feature dive computer and watch. Blending max depth, current depth, dive times, elapsed times, ascent rate alarm, a low battery alarm, and elapsed surface time, this model marked a significant leap forward for Citizen.

1998, Promaster Eco Drive Aqualand, Cal. U100. It was four more years until the next iteration of the Eco-Drive energy generating watch surfaced. With improved reliability and almost no reported complete functional failures, this model cemented the Aqualand as the ultimate divers watch.

2017, Citizen Eco Drive Promaster 1000 Meters. Over a decade later the Promaster 1000 meters reflects the purity of the original Aqualand Promaster. Bright, lucid dials, and the failsafe locking bezel, paired with technology designed to sync with state-of-the-art dive computers make this watch a timeless timepiece.

The full collection of Citizen Promaster Watches is on display at Kirk Freeport Bayshore Mall from November 11th until November 23rd. Don’t miss this opportunity to be inspired by this genre defining range of watches.

All images courtesy of hodinkee.com