The Doxa SUB 200 Azure for Caribbean Retailer Art of Time

Although Doxa was not a pioneer in the development of dive watches, when it decided to take the plunge in 1967, it consulted experts in the field. Teaming up with US Divers and its chairman, Jacques Cousteau, their input helped develop Doxa’s first dive watch, the professional-grade SUB 300, with an orange dial and a rotating bezel with decompression times. Acquired by the Jenny family in 1997, Doxa has resurfaced with a rich portfolio of dive watches. The no-nonsense entry-level Doxa SUB 200 collection joined the brand’s lineup in 2019, complete with a hallmark orange dial, a discreet dose of vintage styling and modern proportions. The latest SUB 200 is a collaboration between Doxa and retailer Art of Time and captures the inviting blue waters of the Caribbean.

Art of Time, a retailer based in the Dutch Caribbean Island of St Maarten, has commissioned 50 pieces of the Sub 200 Azure to be sold exclusively in its boutique on the island. Sharing identical specifications to earlier editions of the Doxa SUB 200, the collaboration watch has a 42mm steel case with a 13.8mmm thickness and short, sweeping lyre lugs that make it wear smaller than its dimensions would indicate. The case is decorated with brushed surfaces and polished bevels and has a screwed steel caseback, a screw-down crown and 200m water-resistance. To differentiate it as a special edition, the caseback has a laser-engraved map of the Caribbean, the signature Doxa fish symbol (also featured on the crown) and is individually numbered xx/50.

The old-school coin-edge profile of the unidirectional bezel has a sapphire crystal insert with a white 60-minute dive scale with luminescent numerals and markers. Another retro accent is the domed sapphire crystal covering the dial with its liquid-like peripheral distortions, recalling the domed plexiglass of yesteryear divers.

To evoke the sparkling blue Caribbean waters, the light blue dial has an attractive sunray finish that plays with the light. As a dive watch, legibility is vital, and the applied baton indices have black outlines and are filled with Super-LumiNova. The minutes track and border of the date window are also black, matching the hallmark black Doxa central hands with SLN, including the rectangular counterweight of the central second’s hand.

Powered by a reliable and easy-to-service SW200-1 automatic calibre, the movement beats at 4Hz and delivers a 38-hour power reserve. Fitted with a comfortable stainless steel beads-of-rice bracelet with a folding clasp and dive extension, the SUB 200 Azure box also comes with a white textured rubber strap and pin buckle.

The Doxa SUB 200 Azure is a limited edition of 50 pieces and will be available exclusively at Art of Time in St Marteen. You can place an order by contacting Art of Time by emailing [email protected]. The price is USD 1,590. For more details, please visit doxawatches.com.