Watch Icons explores documented links between notable people and the watches they wore. The illustration accompanying this article is AI-generated.
Miles Davis and the Breitling Navitimer ref. 806 Mk5
Miles Davis turned a professional pilot’s chronograph into part of his visual language. Breitling documents the jazz musician wearing a Navitimer reference 806 Mk5 on stage during the 1960s—years before tool watches became mainstream style objects.
The specific Mk5 configuration paired a black reverse-panda dial with pale subdials and Breitling’s “Twin Jet” emblem. Breitling describes Davis’s watch as a turning point in the Navitimer’s journey from cockpit instrument to cultural icon.
Phillips likewise records the Navitimer on the wrists of figures beyond aviation, naming Miles Davis among the musicians who helped establish the model’s wider cultural identity. The watch suited Davis’s approach to style: functional, uncompromising and unmistakably individual.
Sources
- Breitling, Miles Davis and the Navitimer ref. 806 Mk5
- Breitling, Navitimer heritage
- Phillips, Breitling Navitimer: The Early Years
Disclosure: The lead image is an AI-generated editorial illustration. SEKUND.STORE is not affiliated with Miles Davis, his estate or Breitling. This article does not state or imply endorsement, and it does not indicate that SEKUND.STORE stocks the featured watch.