Sea and Silver watches are steeped in history; a story beginning in the early 20th century.

The Sultan of Najd Abdulaziz bin Abdulrahman Al-Saud led a legendary campaign to reunify the whole of Saudi Arabia. By 1932 he unified these lands, placed them under his authority and became the undisputed king of Saudi Arabia.

In 1944, King Abdulaziz ordered 3 million silver one riyal coins to be mined in the USA. The shipment was loaded onto the USS John Barry, which headed for Saudi Arabia. The ship was attacked and sunk in the Arabian Sea, off the coast of Oman, by a prowling German U- boat. A mayday call was sent but it was too late and the vessel sunk. With it, the rare riyal coins became lost to the depths of the sea.

Here the riyals remained for 40 years. Team after team attempted to explore the seas in search of the precious coins. Until the British expedition, Blue Water Recoveries led a daring expedition to recover the riyals from the seabed.

Only 80,000 coins were retained by Blue Water Recoveries and most were smelted. But an Arabian historical artefacts collector purchased a small quantity of coins and sold them to esteemed buyers around the world. HRH Prince Sultan bin Abdulaziz, Bill gates, His Majesty the King of Sweden and His excellency the prime minister of Japan are all benefactors of the riyal.