In my experience, most die-hard watch fans prefer mechanical watches, and this is especially true among vintage-watch enthusiasts. But the Hamilton Ventura is one of those exceptions that proves the rule, and I would argue it is perhaps even more desirable by virtue of its quartz movement. This space-age watch was developed to demonstrate hyper-accuracy and focus on the mission at hand, and there is no better power source to uphold this ethos than quartz.

The original Ventura was released in 1957, becoming one of the world?s first electrically powered watches. It was a watch that preceded Bulova’s Accutron model from 1960, with its electric tuning fork, and also the game-changing Seiko Astron, which set off the Quartz Crisis across the industry in 1969. For its technological innovation and unusual design, it became the watch of choice for movers and shakers across the Western world, most notably becoming Elvis Presley?s signature watch for much of his career. Today, the piece has received a fair amount of press for its role as the official watch of the Men in Black movie franchise and is being revived in marketing campaigns touting its futuristic character, just the same as it was more than 60 years ago.
The modern Ventura collection includes many different designs with many different movements ? both quartz and mechanical ? but at its center remain three models that channel the original look of the watch to speak to a modern audience. Each of these watches use a 31...