Case #651 — Christopher Ward (watchmaker) Sealander (Lucerne Blue LE) Ref. C63-39ADA3-S00B5

Case #651 — Christopher Ward C63 Sealander Automatic "Lucerne Blue" Limited Edition

Ref. C63-39ADA3-S00B5

Status: Available

Condition: Very Good Pre-Owned

Scope: Box, Papers, and Cards

Year: 2022

🔎 Case Notes

Some watches are bought for their movement. This one was bought, almost universally, for its dial. The 39mm C63 Sealander Automatic in Lucerne Blue was a 300-piece limited edition, its colour drawn from the crystal-clear waters of Lake Lucerne — a bright, saturated turquoise that reads as sporty in daylight and unexpectedly formal under artificial light. The polished lacquer dial carries top-brushed, diamond-polished indexes filled with Super-LumiNova Grade X1 BL C1, a lumed hand-set, the twin-flags logo, and a date window at 6 o'clock that keeps the layout symmetrical.

The 39mm version arrived after the brand's 36mm Lucerne Blue release had sold out, and it gave the colour a case size that suits a wider range of wrists. The larger watch keeps the stainless steel case and smooth bezel, with the lacquered blue dial as the clear focal point.

This example dates to 2022 and is graded Very Good Pre-Owned. It presents beautifully overall, with some minor wear to the case flanks — visible on close inspection at the right angle, entirely consistent with careful use, and not something that intrudes when the watch is on the wrist. It arrives on a leather strap with a tang buckle, currently fitted to suit an approximately 8-inch wrist, and is accompanied by its box, papers, and cards.

On the timing machine at BST, the watch measured +3 seconds per day with an amplitude of 296 degrees at the time of inspection — a healthy reading for a Sellita automatic of this generation.

🕰️ The Evidence

• Reference: C63-39ADA3-S00B5
• Model / Collection: C63 Sealander Automatic — Lucerne Blue Limited Edition
• Year: 2022
• Limited Edition: One of 300 pieces
• Case: Stainless Steel, brushed and polished marine-grade stainless steel
• Case Diameter: 39 mm
• Thickness: 11.25 mm
• Dial: Lucerne Blue polished lacquer, top-brushed diamond-polished indexes with Super-LumiNova Grade X1 BL C1
• Crystal: Anti-reflective sapphire
• Bezel: Fixed steel, circular brushed and polished
• Crown: Embossed, screw-down
• Caseback: Screw-down display caseback with unique engraved serial number
• Movement: Sellita calibre SW200-1, 26 jewels
• Movement Type: Swiss-made self-winding mechanical, with twin-flag engraved rotor over Colimaçoné finishing
• Frequency: 28,800 vph (4 Hz)
• Power Reserve: 38 hours
• Functions: Hours, minutes, seconds, date
• Water Resistance: 150 m (15 bar)
• Strap: Leather strap
• Clasp: Tang / pin buckle
• Fit: Approximately 8 inches
• Measured Performance (at BST inspection): +3 seconds per day; 296° amplitude
• Condition: Very Good Pre-Owned — minor wear to the case flanks
• Included: Box, Papers, and Cards

🌟 Collector Provenance

The Sealander sits in a specific place in Christopher Ward's modern era. Introduced in 2021, the collection was conceived as a flexible, Swiss-made sports-explorer line, combining the brand's ergonomic Light-catcher case, glossy lacquer dials and genuine water resistance. It was the everyday, go-anywhere three-hander the range had been missing, positioned between the brand's dive watches and its dressier pieces.

The Lucerne Blue chapter is the part collectors actually track. The colour first appeared in autumn 2022 as one of four limited 36mm dials — Lucerne Blue, Jura Green, New Forest Yellow and Acer Red — each capped at 200 pieces. Of the four, the Lucerne Blue proved the most sought-after, and the 39mm edition followed. The initial 36mm run was gone within a single day.

That sequence matters for anyone reading this listing. Lucerne Blue was not a permanent catalogue colour; it was a short, dated moment in the model's history, and the 39mm reference is the version that made it wearable for larger wrists. Discontinued colour-led limited editions from independent brands are, by nature, encountered on the secondary market only intermittently.

🌟 Design Provenance

The dial exists because of a wider moment in watch design. The turquoise trend traces back to Patek Philippe's Tiffany-dial Nautilus, which reintroduced the colour to a mainstream watch audience, and with that watch and the Tiffany-blue Oyster Perpetual effectively unobtainable, buyers looked elsewhere for the shade. By summer 2022 the colour was genuinely in the air — a Tiffany exhibition in London, and a run of brands producing their own interpretations.

What separates this one from opportunism is the execution. Christopher Ward tied the colour to a Swiss geographic reference rather than a borrowed one, applied it as a deep polished lacquer rather than a flat paint, and paired it with brushed and diamond-polished applied indexes so the dial changes character with the light. The result is a colour story with an argument behind it, not just a fashionable panel of blue.

🧾 From the Case File

At 39 mm across and 11.25 mm thick, this is a straightforwardly wearable watch — large enough to have presence, slim enough to slide under a cuff, and dimensioned so that it works equally well on a 6½-inch wrist or the 8-inch fit it currently wears. The Light-catcher case shape is unusually flattering for a steel sports piece, with polished flanks that pick up light against the brushed top surfaces.

With 150 m of water resistance and a screw-down crown, it is a watch that can be worn without negotiation: swimming, travel, weather, a day of work. The screw-down display caseback shows the decorated rotor, and the quick-release system means strap changes require no tools — relevant here, since the fitted leather strap is only one of the moods this dial supports.

Practically speaking, the appeal of this example is the combination of a discontinued, colour-defined limited edition with complete accompanying documentation. Box, papers, and cards are supplied together, which is not always the case with limited editions that changed hands during a period of high demand. Buying new is no longer an option for this reference — the colour has been retired — so a well-kept secondary-market example is the route in.

Condition is described honestly: this is a watch that has been worn, with some minor wear to the case flanks, and it is priced and graded accordingly. Everything else presents beautifully.

🗝️ BST Verdict

A discontinued, 300-piece limited edition whose entire reason for existing is a dial colour that briefly captivated the entire watch world — executed properly, in polished lacquer, on a 39 mm case that is genuinely easy to live with.

Complete with box, papers, and cards, running at +3 seconds per day with 296 degrees of amplitude at inspection, and honest about the light wear to its case flanks. For a buyer who wants the Lucerne Blue in the more universally wearable size, this is a direct and well-documented way to get there.

👉 Every case deserves a closer look.