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The Cipher Diver: A Watch Forged from History and Invention
CREATED TO HONOR AMERICA’S 250th YEAR OF INDEPENDENCE
COMING JANUARY 8, 2026 • PATENT PENDING • LIMITED EDITION OF 100
As the United States enters its 250th year of independence, Bernhardt Watch Company, in partnership with Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello, set out to create a watch that honors not only the founding of a nation, but the ingenuity and invention that helped secure it. Inspired by one of Thomas Jefferson’s lesser-known creations, the Cipher Diver brings mechanical encryption to the wrist, a modern tribute to an idea born in the early years of the American republic.
The Cipher Diver is more than a watch. It’s a living piece of coded history.
Inspired by Jefferson, Created for the Present
Most Americans know Thomas Jefferson as the author of the Declaration of Independence, a diplomat, and the nation’s third president. Fewer know he was also a prolific inventor, with a deep interest in mechanics, cryptography, and the practical application of ideas.
Among those inventions was a rotating wheel cipher, a mechanical concept designed to encode and decode messages through the alignment of letters across multiple disks.
Drawing from Jefferson’s inventive mindset, Bernhardt Watch Company adapted this historical concept into an entirely new, patent-pending system designed specifically for a mechanical wristwatch. This required the development of a modern encoding and decoding method that uses time itself as the reference, allowing messages to be securely hidden, revealed, and solved using the watch.
The Cipher Diver is intended as a contemporary interpretation of Jefferson’s curiosity and creativity, translating an enduring idea into a functional, wearable cipher that can be explored and enjoyed today.
The Cipher Bezel
The Cipher Diver is equipped with our classic 120-click unidirectional bezel, built to perform exactly as a traditional dive watch bezel should.
What makes it unique is what’s hidden in plain sight.
Beneath the sapphire bezel are alphabetic characters printed in UV-reactive ink, completely invisible during normal wear. You won’t see them in daylight. You won’t see them in the dark. They reveal themselves only under ultraviolet light, when you choose to uncover them.
That hidden alphabet, combined with the fixed time references of the watch, transforms the bezel into a functional cipher.
By aligning the bezel to a designated hour key and referencing specific minute markers on the dial, messages can be decoded using time itself as the coordinate system. Rotate the bezel. Reference the minute. Reveal the letter. Repeat. It’s intuitive once learned, deeply engaging to use, and unlike anything that has existed on a wristwatch before.
Every Cipher Diver ships with a UV decoding torch and an initial cipher card, with new encrypted messages released weekly through July 4, 2026. This isn’t a feature you glance at once and forget. It’s something you return to, solve, and explore throughout America’s 250th year of independence.
A traditional dive bezel, reimagined as a working cipher, hidden in plain sight.
A Flag-Inspired Palette With Purpose
The Cipher Diver proudly draws its color palette from Old Glory, the American flag itself.
The dial and bezel are rendered in Old Glory Blue, chosen for its depth and character. Surrounding the dial is a red outer minute track, intersected by white minute markers, creating a visual rhythm that echoes the red and white stripes of the flag.
These elements serve as a visual tribute to the ideals the flag represents, sacrifice, unity, and perseverance, and to the generations who shaped the nation whose 250th year of independence this watch was created to honor.
At the center, a circular brushed sunray dial adds movement, while the sandwich construction and polished steel index borders bring depth and clarity. BGW9 Super-LumiNova is applied to the hands, indices, and bezel pip, ensuring strong legibility in low light.
Engineered Without Compromise
While the Cipher Diver is rooted in history, it’s built to be worn, used, and trusted as a modern tool watch.
At its core is the Miyota 9039, a slim, no-date automatic movement chosen for its reliability and performance. Each movement is regulated in-house to ±5 seconds per day, ensuring the Cipher Diver delivers precision to match its purpose.
The 41mm stainless steel case strikes a balance between presence and comfort, with a 48mm lug-to-lug that wears naturally on a wide range of wrists. At just 11mm thick, the watch maintains a clean profile while still offering 300 meters of water resistance, making it as capable underwater as it is on land.
A sapphire crystal protects the dial, while the sapphire-topped bezel delivers durability without sacrificing clarity. The caseback is engraved with Monticello’s official 250th Anniversary emblem, marking the Cipher Diver as part of a once-in-a-generation moment in American history.
This is not a watch designed for display alone. It’s built to be worn daily, explored often, and relied upon wherever time takes you.
Illumination
Designed for clarity by day and discovery by night.
The Cipher Diver features high-grade BGW9 Super-LumiNova on the hands, indices, and bezel pip for excellent low-light legibility. Hidden beneath the sapphire bezel are UV-reactive cipher markings, invisible during normal wear and revealed only when intentionally illuminated with UV light.
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UV Light
Use the left and right arrow keys to navigate between before and after photos.
Release Information
The watch is a limited edition of 100 pieces, each individually numbered, and will be available at BernhardtWatch.com. Orders will ship immediately upon purchase.
Each Cipher Diver includes a UV decoding torch and the first cipher card. New encrypted messages will be released weekly online through July 4, 2026, allowing owners to engage with the watch throughout the entirety of the 250th year of American independence.
The Cipher Diver is priced at $795.
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Description
Created to mark America’s 250th year of independence, the Cipher Diver is a limited edition mechanical dive watch developed in partnership with Thomas Jefferson’s Monticello and inspired by the inventive spirit of Thomas Jefferson.
At first glance, it wears and functions as a traditional 300-meter dive watch. Hidden beneath the sapphire bezel, however, is a UV-reactive alphabet that allows messages to be encoded and decoded using time itself as the reference. The cipher remains invisible during normal wear and is revealed only when intentionally illuminated with UV light.
Each Cipher Diver includes a UV decoding torch and the first encoded cipher, with new messages released weekly throughout the 250th year. Limited to 100 individually numbered pieces, the Cipher Diver is designed to be worn daily, explored thoughtfully, and engaged with over time.
Frequently Asked Questions
When will my watch ship?
The Cipher Diver is not a preorder. All watches will ship immediately upon purchase when sales open on January 8, 2026.
Does the bezel work like a normal dive watch bezel?
Yes. The Cipher Diver uses a classic 120-click unidirectional bezel, operating exactly like a traditional dive watch. The cipher functionality comes from hidden UV-printed letters and a time-based decoding method, not from any change to how the bezel moves.
Do I need special tools to use the cipher?
No special tools are required beyond what’s included. Each Cipher Diver ships with a UV decoding torch, which is used to intentionally reveal the hidden letters on the bezel when decoding messages.
Is this watch still meant to be worn every day?
Absolutely. While the hidden cipher is an innovative feature, the watch was intentionally designed so the messaging remains concealed unless you choose to reveal it. This allows the Cipher Diver to be enjoyed as a traditional dive watch in a celebratory American colorway, without compromise, while still offering the full cipher experience when you want it.
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