24 Hours Later: The New NOMOS Glashütte Ahoi Atlantic

The artful, minimalist approach of Bauhaus-inspired watchmaker NOMOS Glashütte is established canon in the world of timepiece appreciation. But how can you incorporate additional functionality and personality without breaking the signature design concepts so integral to your brand?

The answer is: Carefully and thoughtfully.

And while the brand’s press materials call its new Ahoi Atlantic an “all-rounder,” you might think of it more as a “double-agent.”

The deep Atlantic Ocean-blue used for this new timepiece’s dial already establishes a kind of terra firma for the signature clean apportionment of the real estate by the NOMOS Glashütte designers. Next, the thin, modernist white Arabic numerals at 12, 2, 4, 8, and 10 o’clock blend with the thin bar indices and hash gauging that fills out the chapter ring. Then, the elegant red-handed small seconds sub-dial is right where you want it at 6 o’clock.
 

Additionally, twelve small rectangles punctuate each hour marker and aid the slender rhodium-plated hands in the time-telling. Each of these rectangular markers is an eye-catching bright yellow and outlined in green, hinting at the timepiece’s extra-curricular features (more on that in a bit). And although they are not large, these hour markers bring some much-needed pops of bold color to the clean dial and stainless steel case execution.
 

There are three versions of the new Ahoi Atlantic: a 40.3mm core execution, a smaller 36mm Ahoi neomatik model, and a 40.3mm Ahoi date Atlantic version with a date aperture at 6 o’clock.

But for all, another tell-tale sign of a potential split-personality is the slender, sculpted crown guards of the Ahoi collection – the only family of NOMOS Glashütte timepieces to sport that protection. As a design feature, crown guards generally telegraph some inherent rowdiness to a watch’s intended use, but (again) more on that later.
 

Interestingly, the protrusion of crown guards could create a potential design issue for a watchmaker so focused on artful simplicity and minimalism. However, they don’t break or detract from the timepiece’s inherent NOMOS-ness in the least. Even when viewed from the back, the sloping guards are well-integrated into the overall design zeitgeist.
 

Presented on an almost unbelievably luxe feeling textile blue-black woven strap and sporting an exhibition caseback secured with six screws, the new Ahoi Atlantic models present all the understated sobriety of an elegant business or evening watch.

But all work and no play make Jack a dull boy.
 

When you’re ready to unplug from work, the Ahoi Atlantic is ready to rock-and-roll right along with you.

Don’t get me wrong: the subtle cues that make this timepiece special in the stable of NOMOS Glashütte watches don’t really make it a full-on proper dive watch. But with 20 atm (about 660 feet) of SCUBA-appropriate water resistance, a screw-down, protected crown, and a model name like “Ahoi,” you don’t have to be afraid to play hard or get wet.
 

And, when the sun goes down, the Ahoi Atlantic is also ready to take you into the night with style. The colorful square hour markers mentioned above take on a new dimension, with generously applied, dark-splitting Super-LumiNova coating those markers, but also applied to the hour numerals and bar indices, as well as the hour and minute hands themselves.

The Ahoi Atlantic lights up like no other NOMOS Glashütte timepiece, making diving or low-light legibility a snap and casting enough remnant glow to give a green illumination across the entire dial face.
 

The 40.3mm Ahoi Atlantic (Ref. 557) lists for $4,060; the 36mm Ahoi neomatik Atlantic (Ref. 567) retails for $4,120; and the 40.3mm Ahoi date Atlantic (Ref. 558) sells for $4,660. All are available at brand retailers as you read this, and via the NOMOS Glashütte website.
 

(Photography by Liam O'Donnell)