Watches of Espionage

The History is Murky, but Challenge Coins Are a Key Aspect of Culture & Camaraderie in the W.O.E. Community Watches of Espionage started with a single picture. I was sitting in my (home) office, bored on another pandemic-driven Zoom call that had dominated my post-CIA life, and I was looking for an outlet. I slid my IWC off my wrist, placed it next to a challenge coin I probably pulled out of a desk drawer, and posted it under the newly created Instagram name @watchesofespionage.

The Chronosport & Rolex Watches Worn by a Cultural Icon of the W.O.E. Community Despite often missing the mark in realism, Hollywood’s influence on special operations and the intelligence community has been profound, especially when it comes to watches. I personally know several real “operators” and “spies” in the military and intelligence community who purchased watches due to their association with fictitious characters.

A Career Spy Describes How He Used Seiko and Rolex Watches as Tools in the Business of Intelligence Chris Costa is a former US Army Case Officer who served in and led some of the US intelligence community's most elite units. His career included deployments spanning both Gulf Wars, the Global War on Terror, and the Horn of Africa before going on to senior intelligence leadership positions in government.

August 28, 2026 The Punisher Wears a Sangin, Rolex Boutique “Fails” to Spot Counterfeit, Fighter Pilot Watch Spotting, Rolex Pricing at Pre-Pandemic Levels, a Doxa Honoring San Diego Frogmen, a Cool But Pricey Blancpain, & Plenty of Watch Crime By Benjamin Lowry As summer draws to an unwelcome close and the pumpkin spice-wielding hordes loom ever darker on the horizon, we sincerely hope you packed in the best of the warmer months before we collectively begin a reluctant gear shift into spooky...

August 25, 2026 One Year Later - Selling My “Bruce Wayne” Rolex GMT Was the Best (Watch-Buying) Decision I Have Made Sitting in a cafe in the old town of Geneva, I explained my predicament to veteran vintage watch dealer Skip Powell and a former Army Special Forces officer turned watch collector (alias De Tempore Liber). The year prior, I had purchased a new Rolex GMT-Master II with a black and grey bezel, dubbed the "Bruce Wayne" by watch nerds.

For Special Operations & Intelligence Organizations, Customized Unit Watches Serve as Tools and Talismans. Never advertised and available only to specific military and government communities, unit watches are among the best examples of Watches of Espionage in action. In recent years, brands like Tudor, Omega, and IWC have delivered customized unit watches to everyone from Navy SEALs to the US Secret Service Counter Assault Team to Air Force fighter pilots to US Army Special Forces.

August 11, 2026 Warfare & Watches Have Changed, But For Maritime Special Operators, a Timepiece Remains a Vital Tool of Underwater Navigation By Benjamin Lowry You’ve seen it before. Whether in film, an old-school recruiting ad, a documentary, or a corny TV series, the scene where a team of Navy SEALs in diving gear clandestinely break the water’s surface on a faraway beach in the dead of night is pervasive.

The latest from W.O.E. Knifeworks (a working name), the Mosebey returns with the 2.0: updated with MagnaCut steel with a black-oxide tumbled finish, OD Green linen Micarta scales, and a Kydex sheath with a Discreet Carry Concepts clip. Inspired by the design of a one-off blade W.O.E. designed while living in Africa, the Mosebey 2.0 is made in North Carolina.

August 4, 2026 More of the Most W.O.E. Images of All Time About a year ago, we shared some of our favorite “action shots” of historically important and intriguing watches being used as tools by practitioners from the military and intelligence (check out part one HERE). Twelve months down the road, the broader W.O.E. community has been busy, and there are so many more great shots and impactful timepieces that we thought we’d do it again, and we might even have to make it a regular thing.

July 31, 2026 Iraqi PM & Royal Navy First Sea Lord Watch Spotting, a New Titanium Doxa, Getting Robbed Over a $500 Seiko, Buzz Aldrin’s Watches at Auction, Blue Angels Controversy, a Gold Bra & G-String, & More By Benjamin Lowry It’s hard to believe, but we’re already more than halfway through summer 2026, and we sincerely hope you’ve had a chance to get out of town, throw your kids in the pool, or otherwise enjoy the warmer weather and sunshine. I know we have.