Reference:5500: Difference between revisions

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=== Royal Saudi Armed Forces ===

5500s with the Saudi Armed Forces crest at six o'clock are documented across the 1970s and 1980s. Silver or black ground; sometimes paired with "Sultan" script. These are commemorative gift dials commissioned for senior officers and government officials, not military issue. The crest dial sits above the standard 5500 market.

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=== Kuwait — Sheikh Abdullah Al-Jaber Al-Sabah ===

The strongest government-crest 5500 in the auction record. Approximately three known examples carry the signature of Sheikh Abdullah Al-Jaber Al-Sabah of Kuwait. **Christie's November 2018 sold a Sheikh Al-Sabah 5500 for CHF 18,750.** This is the documented Kuwaiti commission; collectors sometimes conflate it with the better-known Sultan-of-Oman / Khanjar program — they are separate, and Khanjar 5500s are not documented.

The strongest government-crest 5500 in the auction record. Approximately three known examples carry the signature of Sheikh Mubarak Abdullah Al-Jaber Al-Sabah (1934–1987) of the House of Sabah, Kuwait's ruling family. Christie's November 2018 sold a Sheikh Al-Sabah 5500 for CHF 18,750. This is the documented Kuwaiti commission; collectors sometimes conflate it with the better-known Sultan-of-Oman / Khanjar program — they are separate, and Khanjar 5500s are not documented.

=== Kuwait Army ===

A separate small batch of 5500s carries the Kuwait Army crest at six o'clock — a hawk over a wreath, distinct from the Al-Sabah signature dials and from the parallel Kuwaiti Coat of Arms commissions documented on later Sea-Dweller examples. The Kuwait Army crest 5500 is rarer than the Al-Sabah signature variant in the surviving population and is generally less hyped in the market; printing detail and the specific hawk-and-wreath arrangement separate it from neighbouring Gulf-state crests.

=== Qatar Armed Forces ===

A small run of 5500s carries the Qatar Armed Forces crest — a vertically symmetric emblem with crossed swords and a wreath that prints crisply against the gloss black dial. A 1982-dated example is the most strongly documented entry to the branch; Christie's has catalogued an Air-King with the Qatar Armed Forces dial alongside other Gulf-state commissions of the same era. The branch sits a tier below the Al-Sabah Kuwait signatures in the auction record but above the standard 5500 market.

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 <span id="saudi-armed-forces"></span>
 === Royal Saudi Armed Forces ===
+[[File:Ref 5500 government-saudi-armed-forces-sultan.webp|thumb|right|220px|alt=5500 with Saudi Armed Forces emblem and rarer Sultan script|5500 with Saudi Armed Forces emblem and the rarer "Sultan" script under the crest]]
 s with the Saudi Armed Forces crest at six o'clock are documented across the 1970s and 1980s. Silver or black ground; sometimes paired with "Sultan" script. These are commemorative gift dials commissioned for senior officers and government officials, not military issue. The crest dial sits above the standard 5500 market.
@@ Line 228: / Line 230: @@
 === Kuwait — Sheikh Abdullah Al-Jaber Al-Sabah ===
-The strongest government-crest 5500 in the auction record. Approximately three known examples carry the signature of Sheikh Abdullah Al-Jaber Al-Sabah of Kuwait. **Christie's November 2018 sold a Sheikh Al-Sabah 5500 for CHF 18,750.** This is the documented Kuwaiti commission; collectors sometimes conflate it with the better-known Sultan-of-Oman / Khanjar program — they are separate, and Khanjar 5500s are not documented.
+[[File:Ref 5500 government-kuwait-al-jaber-signature.webp|thumb|right|220px|alt=5500 c.1962 with Sheikh Mubarak Abdullah Al-Jaber Al-Sabah signature|5500 c.1962 with Sheikh Mubarak Abdullah Al-Jaber Al-Sabah signature]]
+The strongest government-crest 5500 in the auction record. Approximately three known examples carry the signature of Sheikh Mubarak Abdullah Al-Jaber Al-Sabah (1934–1987) of the House of Sabah, Kuwait's ruling family. Christie's November 2018 sold a Sheikh Al-Sabah 5500 for CHF 18,750. This is the documented Kuwaiti commission; collectors sometimes conflate it with the better-known Sultan-of-Oman / Khanjar program — they are separate, and Khanjar 5500s are not documented.
+<span id="kuwait-army"></span>
+=== Kuwait Army ===
+[[File:Ref 5500 government-kuwait-army.webp|thumb|right|220px|alt=5500 with Kuwait Army crest dial|5500 with Kuwait Army crest dial, 1960s]]
+A separate small batch of 5500s carries the Kuwait Army crest at six o'clock — a hawk over a wreath, distinct from the Al-Sabah signature dials and from the parallel Kuwaiti Coat of Arms commissions documented on later Sea-Dweller examples. The Kuwait Army crest 5500 is rarer than the Al-Sabah signature variant in the surviving population and is generally less hyped in the market; printing detail and the specific hawk-and-wreath arrangement separate it from neighbouring Gulf-state crests.
+<span id="qatar-armed-forces"></span>
+=== Qatar Armed Forces ===
+[[File:Ref 5500 government-qatar-armed-forces.webp|thumb|right|220px|alt=5500 with Qatar Armed Forces crest dial|5500 Air-King with Qatar Armed Forces crest dial]]
+A small run of 5500s carries the Qatar Armed Forces crest — a vertically symmetric emblem with crossed swords and a wreath that prints crisply against the gloss black dial. A 1982-dated example is the most strongly documented entry to the branch; Christie's has catalogued an Air-King with the Qatar Armed Forces dial alongside other Gulf-state commissions of the same era. The branch sits a tier below the Al-Sabah Kuwait signatures in the auction record but above the standard 5500 market.
 <span id="retailer-signed"></span>