Case #769 — Oris Aquis Relief: Cherry Ref. 01 733 7766 4158-07

Case #769 — Oris Aquis Date Relief "Cherry"

Ref. 01 733 7766 4158-07 8 22 05PEB

Status: Available

Condition: Very Good Pre-Owned

Scope: Box and Papers (No Warranty Card)

Year: Unknown

🔎 Case Notes

Colour is the first clue here, but it is not the whole case. The dial is a cherry red sunray — a finish that shifts from deep burgundy in shadow to a bright, almost lacquered scarlet under direct light — set against white baton indices and the familiar broad Aquis handset. It is a diver that behaves like a tool watch and reads like a statement.

The second clue is the bezel, and it is the reason this reference carries the "Relief" name. Instead of the ceramic insert used across most of the Aquis line, this model uses a uni-directional rotating stainless steel bezel with a diving scale in relief — a finish first seen on the Aquis Date Relief. The edge is round-sandblasted in Oris's "bottle cap" profile, giving the watch an all-steel, monochrome frame that lets the red dial do all the talking. It is a genuinely different visual recipe from the standard Aquis Date, and one that is less frequently encountered on the secondary market.

Underneath sits the Oris Calibre 733, based on the Sellita SW 200-1, automatic, with a 38-hour power reserve and 26 jewels, visible through the screwed stainless steel caseback with its see-through window. Water resistance is rated to 300 metres (30 bar), so the specification is honest dive-watch territory rather than desk-diver theatre.

This example is graded Very Good Pre-Owned, with no specific condition notes recorded at inspection. It is presented on its tapered three-link stainless steel bracelet with clasp extension system, currently sized to fit an approximately 8-inch wrist, and is accompanied by its box and papers. No warranty card is present.

🕰️ The Evidence

• Reference: 01 733 7766 4158-07 (full factory reference 01 733 7766 4158-07 8 22 05PEB)
• Model / Collection: Oris Aquis Date Relief — Cherry
• Year: Unknown
• Case: Multi-piece stainless steel case with minutes-scale top ring
• Case Diameter: 41.50 mm
• Lug Width: 22 mm (interhorn width)
• Dial: Cherry red sunray, white baton indices, Super-LumiNova BG W9 on indices and hands
• Crystal: Sapphire, domed on both sides, anti-reflective coating inside
• Bezel: Uni-directional rotating stainless steel bezel with diving scale in relief
• Crown: Stainless steel screw-in security crown
• Caseback: Stainless steel, screwed, with see-through window
• Movement: Oris Calibre 733, base Sellita SW 200-1
• Movement Type: Automatic winding, 28,800 A/h (4 Hz), 26 jewels
• Power Reserve: 38 hours
• Functions: Centre hands for hours, minutes and seconds; date window; instantaneous date; date corrector; fine timing device; stop-seconds
• Water Resistance: 300 metres / 30 bar
• Bracelet: Multi-piece stainless steel bracelet, tapered three-link
• Clasp: Security folding clasp with extension
• Bracelet Fit: Approximately 8 inches
• Condition: Very Good Pre-Owned
• Included: Box and Papers (no warranty card)

🌟 Collector Provenance

The Aquis is Oris's modern dive pillar, and for most of its life the line has been defined by a ceramic bezel insert and a tightly controlled palette of blue, black and grey. The Aquis collection is built around real-world functionality — considered design, hard-wearing materials and fit-for-purpose functions, which is precisely why the collection has become one of the most recommended Swiss divers under the luxury-sports tier.

The Date Relief sits slightly apart from that mainstream. By replacing the ceramic insert with a machined steel top ring carrying a raised minute scale, Oris changed the entire character of the watch: the bezel reads as part of the case rather than as a separate applied component, and the result is a diver with a more industrial, more integrated silhouette. That relief finish debuted on the Aquis Date Relief, which makes this reference a design marker within the family rather than just another dial colour.

The 41.5 mm case is the smaller of the two principal Aquis sizes, sitting beneath the 43.5 mm variants that dominate the line. For collectors who find the larger Aquis heavy on the wrist, the 41.5 mm case with its 22 mm interhorn width is the more wearable proposition, and cherry red is one of the few genuinely expressive dials Oris has offered in this format.

At the time of writing, Oris's own product pages for this reference list the model as not currently available — a useful signal for anyone who has been waiting for the cherry dial to reappear at retail.

🌟 Design Provenance

Oris describes the character of this watch in exactly two elements, and the brand's own wording is worth repeating: the unique character of the Aquis Date Relief 41.5 mm is determined by its rich cherry red dial and the minutes scale in relief on the uni-directional rotating bezel. Everything else on the watch — the sandblasted bezel edge, the white batons, the brushed-and-polished bracelet — is deliberately restrained so those two elements carry the design.

The dial itself is worth studying in person. A sunray finish in red is difficult to execute without tipping into either orange or maroon; here the radial brushing keeps the colour reading as true cherry across most lighting conditions, with the date aperture tucked at six o'clock so the symmetry of the baton track is left intact. Baton hour markers with the date window at 6 o'clock is a small detail, but it is the reason the dial looks calmer than the colour suggests.

There is also a thread of purpose behind the design. Retail communication for the reference describes the Aquis Date Relief as a high-performance diver's watch inspired by Oris's quest to raise awareness of the importance of water, and ties the model's launch to Oris's support of expedition swimmer and water ambassador Ernst Bromeis, who was to wear the watch for his 'The Blue Miracle' campaign swim across Lake Baikal. Oris's water-advocacy programme is a long-running part of the brand's identity, and this reference sits inside that story rather than alongside it.

🧾 From the Case File

Practically, this is one of the easier divers to actually live with. 41.50 mm with a domed sapphire crystal and a tapered bracelet keeps the visual mass down, and the folding clasp with extension means on-the-fly adjustment over a wetsuit cuff or simply through a hot day. As supplied, the bracelet is sized to an approximately 8-inch wrist — links can be added or removed by any competent watchmaker, subject to the links present.

The steel relief bezel is the ownership argument that separates this from a standard Aquis. Ceramic inserts resist scratching but can chip and cannot be refinished; a machined steel top ring ages in the same way as the case, which many owners prefer on a watch intended to be worn hard. Combined with the screw-in security crown and 300 metres of water resistance, the specification supports genuine use rather than careful display.

Mechanically, the Calibre 733 on the Sellita SW 200-1 base is the pragmatic choice: widely understood, serviceable by independent watchmakers anywhere in the world, and inexpensive to maintain relative to in-house alternatives. The 38-hour power reserve means a Monday-morning wind if the watch has sat over a weekend, which is the honest trade-off for that serviceability.

No service history has been supplied with this example, and no timing or amplitude measurements have been recorded, so we make no claims about current running performance. The watch is offered as a Very Good Pre-Owned example with its box and papers; no warranty card is included, and no manufacturer warranty is represented.

Buy with Confidence

BST guarantees the authenticity of every watch we sell and provides a 30-day mechanical performance guarantee under normal use.

Accuracy may vary with age and service history, and water resistance is not guaranteed unless specifically stated and pressure-tested.

🗝️ BST Verdict

A deliberately expressive Aquis in the more wearable 41.5 mm case, distinguished by the steel relief bezel that gave the reference its name and a cherry red sunray dial Oris has used sparingly.

For a buyer who wants a 300-metre Swiss diver with a straightforward, serviceable automatic movement and a face that is not another black or blue sunburst, this is a well-considered and increasingly hard-to-find-at-retail option, offered here honestly as a Very Good Pre-Owned example with box and papers.

👉 Every case deserves a closer look.